Windows 11 now lets OneDrive automatically backup all of your files and folders without asking for users' permissions.
> According to the latest reports, Windows 11 has made an independent choice by automatically turning on OneDrive folder backup for Desktop, Pictures, Documents, Music, and Video folders without your permission. This signifies that, whether you approve or not, everything is becoming coordinated with the cloud.
>This action from Microsoft fits into a larger pattern where big tech companies cleverly (or not so cleverly) promote their services and subscriptions to users. It isn’t only about Microsoft; there have been instances of Google doing something similar with Google Photos and its storage plans.
>Keep an eye on your settings, particularly when you have just finished setting up a new device or updating your operating system. Companies such as Microsoft constantly seek methods to link users with their environments—sometimes without permission.
Tesla is recalling its futuristic new Cybertruck pickup for the fourth time in the U.S. to fix problems with trim pieces that can come loose, and failing front windshield wipers.
>The company says in the documents that the front windshield wiper motor controller can stop working because it’s getting too much electrical current. A wiper that fails can cut visibility, increasing the risk of a crash. The Austin, Texas, company says it knows of no crashes or injuries caused by the problem.
>In the other recall, a trim piece along the truck bed can come loose and fly off, creating a hazard for other motorists. > >Tesla says in documents that the trim piece is installed with adhesive, and that may not have been done properly at the factory.
According to a report from Arizona’s Family:
The 12-volt battery that powers the car’s electronics died without warning.
Tesla drivers are supposed to receive three warnings before that happens, but the Tesla service department confirmed that Sanchez didn’t receive any warnings.
Tesla didn’t respond to a request for comment; it has dissolved its press office.
Firefighters had to use an ax to smash through the window.
Microsoft really wants you to use a Microsoft account on Windows, to the point where it won't tell you how to make a Local one.
>- Microsoft removes guide on converting Microsoft accounts to Local, pushing for Microsoft sign-ins. >- Instructions once available, now missing - likely due to company's preference for Microsoft accounts. >- People may resist switching to Microsoft accounts for privacy reasons, despite company's stance.
The C.E.O. and his team drove Meta’s efforts to capture young users and misled the public about the risks, lawsuits by state attorneys general say.
>The C.E.O. and his team drove Meta’s efforts to capture young users and misled the public about the risks, lawsuits by state attorneys general say.
Summary:
- The US government is suing Adobe for allegedly deceiving customers with hidden fees and making it difficult to cancel subscriptions.
- The Department of Justice claims Adobe enrolls customers in its most lucrative subscription plan without clearly disclosing important plan terms.
- Adobe allegedly hides the terms of its annual, paid monthly plan in fine print and behind optional textboxes and hyperlinks.
- The company fails to properly disclose the early termination fee, which can amount to hundreds of dollars, upon cancellation.
- The cancellation process is described as "onerous and complicated", involving multiple webpages and pop-ups.
- Customers who try to cancel over the phone or via live chats face similar obstacles, including dropped or disconnected calls and having to re-explain their reason for calling.
- The lawsuit targets Adobe executives Maninder Sawhney and David Wadhwani, alleging they directed or participated in the deceptive practices.
- The federal government began investigating Adobe's cancellation practices late last year.
- Adobe's subscription model has long been a source of frustration for creatives, who feel forced to stay subscribed to continue working.
- Recently, Adobe's new terms of service were met with backlash, with some users interpreting the changes as an opportunity for Adobe to train its AI on users' art.
- The company has also faced regulatory scrutiny in the past, including antitrust scrutiny from European regulators over its attempted $20 billion acquisition of product design platform Figma in 2022, which was ultimately abandoned.
The DOJ accuses Adobe of trapping users in subscriptions.
To ensure our mission always comes first, Proton is transitioning to a non-profit structure and formalizing our promise of people before profits.
To ensure our mission always comes first, Proton is transitioning to a non-profit structure and formalizing our promise of people before profits.
The good old mouse jiggler is alive and well
To give users more control over the contacts an app can and cannot access, the permissions screen has two stages.
>iOS apps that build their own social networks on the back of users’ address books may soon become a thing of the past. In iOS 18, Apple is cracking down on the social apps that ask users’ permission to access their contacts — something social apps often do to connect users with their friends or make suggestions for who to follow. Now, Apple is adding a new two-step permissions pop-up screen that will first ask users to allow or deny access to their contacts, as before, and then, if the user allows access, will allow them to choose which contacts they want to share, if not all.
>For those interested in security and privacy, the addition is welcome. As security firm Mysk wrote on X, the change would be “sad news for data harvesting apps…” Others pointed out that this would hopefully prevent apps that ask repeatedly for address book access even after they had been denied. Now users could grant them access but limit which contacts they could actually ingest.
Former employee says software giant dismissed his warnings about a critical flaw because it feared losing government business. Russian hackers later used the weakness to breach the National Nuclear Security Administration, among others.
>Former employee says software giant dismissed his warnings about a critical flaw because it feared losing government business. Russian hackers later used the weakness to breach the National Nuclear Security Administration, among others.
>The federal government was preparing to make a massive investment in cloud computing, and Microsoft wanted the business. Acknowledging this security flaw could jeopardize the company’s chances, Harris recalled one product leader telling him. The financial consequences were enormous. Not only could Microsoft lose a multibillion-dollar deal, but it could also lose the race to dominate the market for cloud computing.
>Harris said he pleaded with the company for several years to address the flaw in the product, a ProPublica investigation has found. But at every turn, Microsoft dismissed his warnings
>his fears became reality. U.S. officials confirmed reports that a state-sponsored team of Russian hackers had carried out SolarWinds, one of the largest cyberattacks in U.S. history. They used the flaw Harris had identified to vacuum up sensitive data from a number of federal agencies, including, ProPublica has learned, the National Nuclear Security Administration, which maintains the United States’ nuclear weapons stockpile, and the National Institutes of Health, which at the time was engaged in COVID-19 research and vaccine distribution. The Russians also used the weakness to compromise dozens of email accounts in the Treasury Department, including those of its highest-ranking officials. One federal official described the breach as “an espionage campaign designed for long-term intelligence collection.”
>Harris’ account, told here for the first time and supported by interviews with former colleagues and associates as well as social media posts, upends the prevailing public understanding of the SolarWinds hack.
> the board’s report identified a “corporate culture that deprioritized both enterprise security investments and rigorous risk management.”
>ProPublica’s investigation adds new details and pivotal context about that culture, offering an unsettling look into how the world’s largest software provider handles the security of its own ubiquitous products. It also offers crucial insight into just how much the quest for profits can drive those security decisions, especially as tech behemoths push to dominate the newest — and most lucrative — frontiers, including the cloud market.
Summary:
- Elon Musk's X Corp. is demanding money from at least six laid-off Australian employees, claiming it accidentally overpaid them due to currency conversion errors
- The alleged overpayments ranged from $1,500 to $70,000 per employee
- X made the currency conversion errors when paying out the share entitlements to the laid-off employees
- The former employees have not repaid the money so far, and X has threatened to take them to court to seek the return of the funds plus interest
- This is in contrast to what allegedly happened to many former US-based workers, who are fighting to receive severance from X
- X is also facing lawsuits from former Twitter executives who claim they were cheated out of severance, and from vendors who were not paid after Musk took over Twitter
Summary:
- Boeing sales tumbled in May, with only 4 new plane orders and no orders for the 737 Max for the second straight month
- This compares unfavorably to Airbus, which reported net orders for 15 planes in May
- Boeing also saw Aerolineas Argentinas cancel an order for a single Max jet
- Boeing's stock fell 3% in afternoon trading
- The poor sales results follow weak figures in April, when Boeing reported 7 sales with none for the Max
- Boeing hopes the slow pace reflects a lull before the upcoming Farnborough Airshow, but the company is facing issues like the FAA capping 737 production and allegations of production shortcuts and falsified inspection records
- Despite the recent slow sales, Boeing still has a huge backlog of over 5,600 orders
Boeing had another weak month for aircraft sales in May, taking orders for just four new planes. The company said Tuesday that it got no new orders for its best-selling jet, the 737 Max.
Priced at £2.80, but goes beyond £3.90 in conditional trading
With iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia, Apple has replaced the Private Wi-Fi Address option for Wi-Fi networks with a new Rotate Wi-Fi Address...
Adobe scrambles to earn back user trust by updating terms next week.
>Adobe has promised to update its terms of service to make it "abundantly clear" that the company will "never" train generative AI on creators' content after days of customer backlash, with some saying they would cancel Adobe subscriptions over its vague terms. > >Users got upset last week when an Adobe pop-up informed them of updates to terms of use that seemed to give Adobe broad permissions to access user content, take ownership of that content, or train AI on that content. The pop-up forced users to agree to these terms to access Adobe apps, disrupting access to creatives' projects unless they immediately accepted them. > >For any users unwilling to accept, canceling annual plans could trigger fees amounting to 50 percent of their remaining subscription cost. Adobe justifies collecting these fees because a "yearly subscription comes with a significant discount."
Summary:
- Nintendo has discontinued support for X (formerly Twitter) integration on the Nintendo Switch console.
- The reason for pulling support is likely due to pricing changes to the X API, which now starts at $42,000 a month for enterprise customers.
- Microsoft and Sony also removed X integration from their consoles (Xbox and PS5/PS4) last year, but didn't specify the reason.
- Slack, a communication platform, also pulled support for X integration due to the API updates impacting its functionality.
- Console gamers will no longer be able to connect directly with X, despite the X Gaming account claiming that its "partnership with Nintendo remains strong" in a now-deleted post.
The Nintendo Switch has now sunset its X integration.
>The long-awaited day is here: Apple has announced that its Messages app will support RCS in iOS 18. The move comes after years of taunting, cajoling, and finally, some regulatory scrutiny from the EU.
>Right now, when people on iOS and Android message each other, the service falls back to SMS — photos and videos are sent at a lower quality, messages are shortened, and importantly, conversations are not end-to-end encrypted like they are in iMessage. Messages from Android phones show up as green bubbles in iMessage chats and chaos ensues.
>Apple’s announcement was likely an effort to appease EU regulators.
Summary:
- Meta (Facebook and Instagram's parent company) will start using Australians' social media posts and activity dating back to 2007 to train their artificial intelligence (AI) tools.
- This policy update will take effect on June 26, 2024.
- Only users in the European Union and the U.S. state of Illinois can currently opt out, due to AI protection laws like the GDPR.
- Many Australians were unaware of this policy change and expressed concerns about privacy and the impact on artists' livelihoods.
- Artists like Sara Fandrey and Thomas Fitzpatrick are worried this will negatively impact their work and the creative industry.
- Experts explain that while this may not be copyright infringement, it poses a threat to artists' economic assets and business models.
- Advocacy groups have launched complaints against Meta in the EU, and some users are migrating to alternative, artist-run social platforms like Cara to avoid AI-powered content generation.
If you're among the majority of Australians with Facebook or Instagram accounts, your social activity on those platforms is about to start training Meta's artificial intelligence (AI) tools — and if you live in Australia, you can't say no.
Summary:
- A survey by BambooHR found that some US companies implemented return-to-office (RTO) policies in the hopes of getting workers to quit.
- 52% of respondents prefer working remotely, while 39% prefer working in an office.
- 37% of managers believe their organization enacted layoffs because fewer employees than expected quit during RTO.
- 25% of VP and C-suite executives and 18% of HR professionals admit they hoped for some voluntary turnover during RTO.
- 22% of HR professionals said their company has no metrics for measuring a successful RTO.
- 28% of remote workers fear they will be laid off before those working in the office.
- 45% of people surveyed whose companies have RTO policies said they lost valued workers.
- 28% said they would consider leaving their jobs if their employer enacted an RTO mandate.
- The survey found that remote and in-office employees spend an equal amount of time working (76% of a 9-to-5 shift).
- In-office workers spend around one hour more socializing than remote workers, while remote workers spend that time on work-related tasks.
- 32% of managers said one of the main goals of their firm implementing an in-office policy was to track employee working habits.
- 48% of respondents said their work results have improved since returning to the office, and 58% said they have a stronger professional network.
1,504 workers, including 504 HR managers questioned.
>Nearly two in five (37 percent) managers, directors, and executives believe their organization enacted layoffs in the last year because fewer employees than they expected quit during their RTO. And their beliefs are well-founded: One in four (25 percent) VP and C-suite executives and one in five (18 percent) HR pros admit they hoped for some voluntary turnover during an RTO.
Op-ed: The risks to Recall are way too high for security to be secondary.
Related:
- Spotify's royalty system has faced criticism for not paying artists their fair share (Nov. 29, 2023, MSNBC)
The platform does not pay according to a per-stream rate, but rather puts all the revenue from subscribers and ads into a giant pot, and divides that share according to their respective "streamshare." Under this model, artists are estimated to receive between $0.003 to $0.005 per play.
That's about to change. Beginning early next year, Spotify will only pay royalties to artists whose tracks have been streamed 1,000 times in the past 12 months, effectively locking out the smallest artists from the "streamshare" pot. The money that would have been paid out to these small artists — which Spotify said amounts to $40 million a year — will instead go to "those most dependent on streaming revenue."
According to Spotify, artists generally don't pocket the earnings from tracks that have under 1,000 streams anyway, because they don't meet the labels and distributors' minimum withdrawal amount. The company also says it does not make any additional money under the new model. But musicians have said they feel the model is “putting a number on art," and industry experts said that this change essentially makes Spotify the arbiter of which artist is deserving of payment.
There has to be a way for multibillion-dollar companies to both keep music accessible and appropriately compensate musicians — especially fledgling, independent ones.
- Spotify made £56m profit, but has decided not to pay smaller artists like me (Nov. 30, 2023, The Guardian)
Spotify will stop paying anything at all for roughly two-thirds of tracks on the platform. That is any track receiving fewer than 1,000 streams over the period of a year. Tracks falling under this arbitrary minimum will continue to accrue royalties – but those royalties will now be redirected upwards, often to bigger artists, rather than to their own rights holders.
This sounds incredible, but there’s nothing to stop it. And their primary business partners – the three major labels – are cheering the change on because it will mean more money in their pockets.
Summary:
- Spotify has announced another price hike for its subscription plans in the United States.
- This price increase comes shortly after Spotify CEO Daniel Ek sparked outrage among music fans and creators by claiming that the "cost of creating content is close to zero."
- Many musicians and music fans condemned Ek's comments, arguing that music is not just "content" and that it is costly and time-consuming to create.
- Despite the backlash, Spotify is increasing its standard Premium plan by $1 to $11.99, the Duo plan by $2 to $16.99, and the Family plan by $3 to $19.99 per month.
- Spotify claims the price hikes are necessary to invest in and innovate its product features, but this reasoning is questioned given Ek's "content" cost comments.
- Spotify is less vulnerable to customer churn compared to TV/movie streaming services, as users are less likely to switch music streaming providers due to the hassle of rebuilding playlists and losing personalized recommendations.
Summary:
In the past, you could bypass the sign-in requirement by choosing ‘Offline Account’ or ‘Sign in with a local account instead.' However, Microsoft removed this option in recent years, meaning you would need an active internet connection to create a Microsoft account for a new Windows 11 install.
Some users discovered that they could bypass this requirement by using the following blocked email addresses: example@example.com, a@a.com, or no@thankyou.com, and then typing in a random password. While this would let you fall back to proceeding with an offline account until recently, it now results in an ‘Oops, something went wrong’ message, which will return you to the same email input screen.
Thankfully, there remains another way to install Windows 11 without a Microsoft account. When you’re at the log-in screen, you can hit Shift + F10 and type OOBE/BYPASSNRO, which will let you create a local account instead if you do not have an internet connection (so disconnect the internet for this). However, non-tech-savvy users will likely not know this, so many would likely end up creating another unwanted online account.
This is just one of the controversial steps Microsoft has recently been taking, like including ads in the Start Menu, nagging Windows 10 users to upgrade, or adding a watermark if your PC does not support AI features.
Alternative to Instagram:
- Pixelfed (Ad-free, privacy friendly, open source and decentralized)
Pixelfed is a free and open-source image sharing social network service. The platform distinguishes itself from other image sharing services through its decentralized architecture, meaning user data is not stored on a central server. It uses the ActivityPub protocol, allowing users to interact with other social networks within the protocol, such as Mastodon, PeerTube, and Friendica. Pixelfed and other platforms utilizing this protocol are considered to be part of the Fediverse. The network is made up of several independent sites that communicate with one another, which is roughly comparable to e-mail providers. The parties involved do not all have to be registered with the same provider, but can still communicate with each other. Thus, users are able to sign up on any server and follow others on the other instances.
Much like Mastodon, Pixelfed implements chronological timelines without content manipulation algorithms. It also aims to be privacy-focused with no third party analytics or tracking. Pixelfed optionally organizes its media by hashtags, geo-tagging and likes based on each server. It also allows audiences to be distinguished in three ways and on a post-by-post basis: followers-only, public, and unlisted. Like several other social platforms, Pixelfed allows accounts to be locked, when followers must be pre-approved by the owner.
For those looking to move beyond Chrome, there are alternatives that come pre-installed with uBlock Origin and are considered better than Firefox:
This project is a custom and independent version of Firefox, with the primary goals of privacy, security and user freedom.
LibreWolf is designed to increase protection against tracking and fingerprinting techniques, while also including a few security improvements. This is achieved through our privacy and security oriented settings and patches. LibreWolf also aims to remove all the telemetry, data collection and annoyances, as well as disabling anti-freedom features like DRM.
The Mullvad Browser is developed – in collaboration between Mullvad VPN and the Tor Project – to minimize tracking and fingerprinting. It is designed to be used with a trustworthy VPN instead of the Tor Network. It does not require the use of Mullvad's VPN.
We recommend Mullvad Browser if you are focused on strong privacy protections and anti-fingerprinting out of the box, Firefox for casual internet browsers looking for a good alternative to Google Chrome, and Brave if you need Chromium browser compatibility.
For those looking to move beyond Chrome, there are alternatives that come pre-installed with uBlock Origin and are considered better than Firefox:
This project is a custom and independent version of Firefox, with the primary goals of privacy, security and user freedom.
LibreWolf is designed to increase protection against tracking and fingerprinting techniques, while also including a few security improvements. This is achieved through our privacy and security oriented settings and patches. LibreWolf also aims to remove all the telemetry, data collection and annoyances, as well as disabling anti-freedom features like DRM.
The Mullvad Browser is developed – in collaboration between Mullvad VPN and the Tor Project – to minimize tracking and fingerprinting. It is designed to be used with a trustworthy VPN instead of the Tor Network. It does not require the use of Mullvad's VPN.
ICYMI: FTC judge rules Intuit broke law, must stop advertising TurboTax as “free”
According to Chappell's 242-page ruling, "the evidence proves that Intuit engaged in deceptive advertising in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act." Intuit "advertised to consumers that they could file their taxes online for free using TurboTax, when in truth, for approximately two-thirds of taxpayers, the advertised claim was false," he wrote.
About Samsung (from Techopedia):
Not every manufacturer has wholly embraced the idea. iFixit recently dropped its Samsung partnership over allegations the Galaxy phone maker wasn’t much interested in do-it-yourself repairs. 404 Media learned that Samsung required independent repair shops to not only report customers who fix devices with unofficial parts, but to “disassemble” those devices. While right to repair laws don’t necessarily address that behavior, they along with existing warranty law could mandate policy changes.
About Apple (from The Register):
The fact that a strong parts pairing prohibition was included in the bill indicates that the practice continues to fall out of favor as more and more localities take action to ban it. Even Apple, which has relied heavily on parts pairing to maintain control of its devices while speaking out of the other side of its mouth about support for right to repair, recently caved to the parts-pairing pressure by announcing it would allow used parts to be installed in some devices.
However, as iFixit pointed out, Apple's declaration of allowing some used parts to be used for repairs doesn't comply with Colorado's prohibition on parts pairing, nor the version included in a recently passed right to repair bill in Oregon.
"Apple has made no promises to enable previously blocked functionality for third-party parts, which are also key to independent and DIY repair," iFixit said. "To be clear, nobody expects Apple to make parts work when they don't meet the necessary specifications — but currently, Apple blocks functionality of many third-party parts preemptively."
In other words, Colorado is another win, but it's hardly the end of the war.
At a committee hearing, opponents of the new law argued that it would endanger the security and reliability of devices by opening up the market to independent shops of dubious quality and making documentation and tools more widely available.
“The marketplace already provides a wide range of consumer choices for repair with varying levels of quality, price and convenience without the mandates imposed by this legislation. The marketplace continues to evolve and manufacturers will continue to make changes to address consumer demand while offering consumers safe and reliable repair options,” said Michael Blank, director of state legislative affairs for CTIA, the trade association for the wireless communications industry.
At the hearing, Katz argued the change was necessary because companies were using technology to take more control of the market and block people from making reasonable repairs.
“When you limit choice and you limit freedom to fix the stuff that you own, then that can lead to higher costs. It can also lead to more people deciding it's just not worth it and buying a whole new thing and … that can have a huge impact on our society from an environmental perspective as well,” he said.
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