Technology

Cupertino (California), Nov 15 (IANS) Apple on Tuesday announced that its safety service Emergency SOS via satellite is now available to customers in the US and Canada.

Available on all iPhone 14 models, the technology enables users to message with emergency services while outside of cellular and Wi-Fi coverage.

Additionally, if users want to reassure friends and family of their whereabouts while traveling off the grid, they can now open the Find My app and share their location via satellite, the company said in a statement.

The Emergency SOS via satellite will come to France, Germany, Ireland, and the UK in December.

Greg Joswiak, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, said that the feature "is a breakthrough service available only on the iPhone 14 lineup, and a new innovation that we hope will provide our customers some peace of mind."

The service will be included for free for two years starting at the time of activation of a new iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Emergency SOS via satellite and Find My via satellite require iOS 16.1.

The emergency services call centres to connect to even more users in emergency situations, and requires no additional software or protocols to enable communications.

"Users will be connected directly to emergency services that are equipped to receive text messages, or to relay centres with Apple-trained emergency specialists who are ready to contact PSAPs that cannot receive text messages on the user's behalf," said Apple.

With Emergency SOS via satellite, if a user is not able to reach emergency services because no cellular or Wi-Fi coverage is available, an easy-to-use interface appears on iPhone to get the user help utilising a satellite connection.

A short questionnaire appears to help the user answer vital questions with a few simple taps, which is transmitted to dispatchers in the initial message, to ensure they are able to quickly understand a user's situation and location.

Apple said it worked closely with experts to review standard questions and protocols to identify the most common reasons for calling emergency services.

"We dedicate our lives to helping people in need, but there are inevitably people who are not able to contact a dispatcher. Emergency SOS via satellite will allow us to help iPhone users in more remote areas who might not otherwise be able to reach us," said Jennifer Kirkland, ENP, the Grand Junction Regional Communication Center's 911 center manager.

With Emergency SOS via satellite, users can send and receive messages in as little as 15 seconds in clear conditions.

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San Francisco, Nov 15 (IANS) Google will pay a historic $391.5 million in settlement to 40 states in the US over allegations that the tech giant tracked users location data without their consent in the country.

Last month, Google paid $85 million to the state of Arizona to settle the claims that the tech giant illegally tracked the location of Android users.

The new settlement with Google over its location tracking practices, led by Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum and Nebraska AG Doug Peterson, is the largest attorney general-led consumer privacy settlement ever.

Because of Oregon's leadership role in the bipartisan investigation and settlement, Oregon will receive $14,800,563.

"For years Google has prioritized profit over their users' privacy," said Attorney General Rosenblum.

"They have been crafty and deceptive. Consumers thought they had turned off their location tracking features on Google, but the company continued to secretly record their movements and use that information for advertisers," he said in a statement late on Monday.

As outlined in the settlement, Google misled its users into thinking they had turned off location tracking in their account settings, when, in fact, Google continued to collect their location information.

In addition to the multimillion-dollar settlement, as part of the negotiations with the AGs, Google has agreed to significantly improve its location tracking disclosures and user controls starting in 2023.

According to the Oregon Department of Justice, location data is a key part of Google's digital advertising business. Google uses the personal and behavioural data it collects to build detailed user profiles and target ads.

In fact, location data is among the most sensitive and valuable personal information Google collects. Even a limited amount of location data can expose a person's identity and routines and can be used to infer personal details.

The attorneys general found that Google violated state consumer protection laws by misleading consumers about its location tracking practices since at least 2014.

Specifically, Google confused its users about the extent to which they could limit Google's location tracking by adjusting their account and device settings.

In a blog post, Google said the lawsuit is based on "outdated product policies" that the company has already addressed.

Google said it will also start providing more "detailed" information about the data it collects tracking during the account setup process and is launching a new toggle to turn off and delete your location history and web and app activity "in one simple flow."

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San Francisco, Nov 13 (IANS) Tech giant Google has released a public beta of the new Coolwalk UI on the Play Store with some new features and changes for users to try out.

Android Auto is an application which allows drivers to access music, media and navigation apps on car infotainment system screens by connecting their Android smartphones.

According to Android Central, earlier this year, Google revealed that it was preparing a major redesign for Android Auto.

While the Coolwalk design was expected to arrive over the summer, it did not, leaving users wondering when it would actually reach consumers.

Coolwalk was unveiled at Google I/O 2022 (an annual developer conference), bringing a dynamic split screen UI to Android Auto that would adjust to different screen sizes more effectively, according to the report.

The goal was to make the most important apps and features more easily accessible with a single tap, allowing drivers to concentrate more on the road.

As part of the features, it includes a split-screen UI in which the map will be placed closer to the driver in the new dashboard for improved reachability.

Users will also be able to change the map's size, allowing it to fill the entire display if desired for a better view of their route, the report added.

The company has also redesigned the media card, allowing it to grow and shrink dynamically, such as when a new message comes in.

It will also let users quickly access Google Assistant suggestions for media with just a swipe.

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San Francisco, Nov 13 (IANS) Google will release a software update for the new Nest Wifi Pro early next week to address the slow Internet speeds being experienced by some users.

Sanjay Noronha, Google Nest Wifi's product lead said that "the company is currently investigating reports of a small number of users experiencing reduced Internet speeds on Nest Wifi Pro routers, and that its teams are working to roll out a fix," as reported by The Verge.

Google launched the Nest Wifi Pro mesh router last month, touting support for faster Wi-Fi 6E, which is capable of speeds of up to 5.4Gbps.

It also adds a 6GHz band to help reduce network congestion and automatically adjusts "network performance to minimise disruptions."

However, many users reported on the Google Nest community forum about an issue causing capped download and upload speeds ranging anywhere from 40Mbps to 90Mbps.

Users said their old Nest Wifi Pro, which only supports Wi-Fi 5, outperformed the new device, according to a media report.

These issues do not affect everyone who purchased the new router, though.

As confirmed by Google, it primarily affected the users in the UK who used point-to-point protocol over ethernet (PPPoE) networks.

Many digital subscriber lines (DSL) providers use this system, which requires users to configure their router with a username and password before they can connect to the Internet, according to the report.

Based on the reports on the forum, the issue has also been reported to be affecting users in the US and other parts of Europe, as well as those with fiber, the report added.

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New York, Nov 11 (IANS) Cybersecurity researchers have discovered a spyware campaign that is targeting the ethnic Uyghurs in China by "masquerading" as Android apps including messaging services, prayer time apps and dictionaries, according to a new report by the cloud security firm Lookout.

The spyware, which researchers say is connected to a Chinese government-backed hacking group, can be used to track people who use services that may be considered a "pre-crime" or are seen by Beijing as indications that someone is engaging in or will engage in religious extremist or separatist activities, The Guardian reported.

"Pre-crime" activities include using a virtual private network (VPN) or sharing any kind of religious content and can lead to being detained in a re-education camp.

The surveillance campaign primarily targets Uyghurs in China, according to the report, but there is also evidence that those behind the campaign were looking to target Uyghurs in Muslim-majority countries like Afghanistan or Turkey.

Turkey is home to the largest Uyghur diaspora outside of Central Asia with an estimated 50,000 Uyghurs living there, The Guardian reported.

China's mass surveillance apparatus and its targeting of Uyghurs has been well documented in the past few years.

Several Chinese surveillance and camera companies have been placed on the US entity list for complicity in human rights violations.

Some of these firms have filed for patents for, developed or planned to develop features that would allow them to detect or set up alerts when someone who is Uyghur is detected.

The UN has also found that China is responsible for "serious human rights violations" against Uyghurs in Xinjiang, The Guardian reported.

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San Francisco, Nov 11 (IANS) Microsoft has rolled out a new feature that allows direct integration of iCloud Photos into the Photos app on Windows 11, and will be available via a Microsoft Store update.

The company said it expects the feature to be available to Windows 11 users by the end of the month.

"We know that many Windows customers have photo and video collections on their iPhones that they would like to be able to view on their PC. This iCloud Photos integration will make it easier for those with an iPhone to have direct access to all their cherished memories in one organised place and is another step in our continued efforts to make experiences on Windows 11 seamless," said Microsoft in a blogpost.

The new update in the Photos app on Windows 11 will make the organisation of users' photo collection easy, no matter where their photos and videos came from, i.e. via phone, camera, and cloud storage.

To bring iCloud Photos into the Photos app, users need to make sure their Photos app is updated, and then they can install the iCloud for Windows app from the Microsoft Store.

Further, users can sign in and choose to sync their photos, and then all their iCloud Photos content will appear automatically in their Photos app, according to the blogpost.

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New Delhi, Nov 11 (IANS) There is no stopping prankster Rahul Lingma, who became a social media sensation after posing as a fired Twitter employee in front of its headquarters in the US. Ligma is now seen carrying a box with office stuff as a sacked employee of beleaguered crypto exchange FTX in the Bahamas.

In a new video, Ligma is seen standing at a beach with an office box, posing as a laid-off worker of FTX, a crypto company which is in deep trouble after leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance backed out of its acquisition deal.

"It is really tough as this is my second job in a month (after Twitter). After Web 2.0 spit me out, I just really thought that Web 3.0 was going to be different. But it is not," Ligma said, jokingly.

"I've been out of my Twitter job and just moved my 'husband and wife' here in the Bahamas. And you know, everything just changed so quickly," he chuckled.

Binance on Thursday took a U-turn on acquiring its rival FTX, saying it was backing out of the deal after reviewing the company's finances, leading to further fall in major cryptocurrencies.

Crypto exchange FTX Founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried told investors that he needed emergency funding to cover a shortfall of up to $8 billion due to withdrawal requests received in recent days.

Ligma said he really does respect Sam as he "really tried to maximise his altruism".

Last month, as Elon Musk fired 50 per cent of Twitter workforce, Ligma with another man was seen carrying boxes outside the entrance of Twitter's San Francisco headquarters, claiming they have been laid off by Musk.

Ligma identified himself as a software engineer at Twitter, who later turned out to be someone whose name does not even exist in Twitter's Slack or email system.

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New Delhi, Nov 11 (IANS) Google has warned that a commercial surveillance vendor was exploiting three zero-day security vulnerabilities in new Samsung smartphones that could have been exploited to steal users' data.

All three vulnerabilities were in the manufacturer's custom components rather than in the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) platform or the Linux kernel.

"It's also interesting to note that 2 out of the 3 vulnerabilities were logic and design vulnerabilities rather than memory safety," said Maddie Stone, Project Zero.

"While we understand that Samsung has yet to annotate any vulnerabilities as in-the-wild, going forward, Samsung has committed to publicly sharing when vulnerabilities may be under limited, targeted exploitation, as part of their release notes," Stone added in a blog post.

"We hope that, like Samsung, others will join their industry peers in disclosing when there is evidence to suggest that a vulnerability is being exploited in-the-wild in one of their products".

The Google Threat Analysis Group (TAG) obtained a partial exploit chain for Samsung devices that it believes belonged to a commercial surveillance vendor.

"All 3 vulnerabilities are within Samsung custom components, including a vulnerability in a Java component," said the team.

The exploit sample targeted Samsung phones running kernel 4.14.113 with the Exynos SOC.

"Samsung phones run one of two types of SOCs depending on where they're sold. For example the Samsung phones sold in the United States, China, and a few other countries use a Qualcomm SOC and phones sold in most other places (example Europe and Africa) run an Exynos SOC," said the Google team.

Examples of Samsung phones that were running kernel 4.14.113 in late 2020 (when this sample was found) include the S10, A50, and A51 smartphones, the team added.

"The analysis of this exploit chain has provided us with new and important insights into how attackers are targeting Android devices. It highlights a need for more research into manufacturer specific components," said Google.

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San Francisco, Nov 5 (IANS) Chip-maker Qualcomm has confirmed that the upcoming Galaxy S23 series will be powered by a Snapdragon processor globally.

Samsung's Galaxy smartphones have traditionally used Qualcomm's Snapdragon chipsets, which were available in select markets such as the US, while other markets get the Exynos variants.

According to Android Central, chief financial officer Akash Palkhiwala, during Qualcomm's recent investor call, confirmed that the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S23 models would be powered by Snapdragon chipsets globally.

Palkhiwala also pointed out that 75 per cent of the Galaxy S22 models on the market were powered by Snapdragon chips.

Qualcomm's President and CEO, Cristiano Amon, backed Palkhiwala, saying that future flagship Galaxy phones worldwide will use Snapdragon chips.

"In handsets, we entered into a new multiyear agreement with Samsung, expanding the use of Snapdragon platforms for future premium Samsung Galaxy products globally," Amon was quoted as saying.

Samsung and Qualcomm have signed a multiyear agreement that calls for Snapdragon chipsets to be used in upcoming Galaxy flagship models, according to the report.

An unlocked US version of the Galaxy S23+ running on a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor appeared on Geekbench shortly after Qualcomm announced its partnership with Samsung.

As per the benchmarking results, the phone packs at least 8 GB of RAM and runs on Android 13, reports Android Central.

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Gurugram, Nov 3 (IANS) Samsung on Thursday launched the latest Internet of Things (IoT) enabled air purifiers to provide clean air regardless of the environment or room air conditions for consumers in India.

The new air purifiers come in two variants in Beige and Grey colours at a starting price of Rs 12,990 which are available online and offline stores, according to the company.

"Our latest range of air purifiers is designed to remove even the most ultrafine dust particles effectively allowing consumers to breathe pure air. We are optimistic that our new range of air purifiers will help improve the lifestyle of consumers," Mohandeep Singh, Senior Vice President of Consumer Electronics Business at Samsung India, said in a statement.

The models cover a wider area of up to 645 sq ft, making them ideal for master bedrooms, fitness studios, hospital rooms, and other large spaces.

The air purifiers come equipped with a "Multi-Layered High-Efficiency Purification System" to remove even ultrafine dust and "SmartThings" that allow the consumer to remotely control the air purifier, the company added.

With a single-button control, these new air purifiers effectively remove 99.97 per cent of nanoparticles, ultrafine dust, bacteria, and allergens.

Moreover, "Auto Mode" in the air purifiers helps in optimising the air quality to suit consumer needs automatically and efficiently, while "Sleep Mode" creates a quiet and comfortable sleeping environment throughout the night.

--IANS
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