#privacy

New Privacy Features Android 11

Leave a Comment / Uncategorized / By / December 20, 2022 / , ,

When the new Android 11 launches in May, Google will be more selective about which apps on the Play Store can see all of the other apps you have installed. As experts points out, your list of installed apps, innocent as it seems, can communicate to developers personal traits like dating preferences and political affiliations. So starting with the new launch, developers will have to provide a very good reason for why Google should let you access info like that.

Android 11 apps that currently request the “QUERY_ALL_PACKAGES” permission can see the full list of apps you have stored on your device. But Google recently updated its developer program policy and now considers that info to be “personal and sensitive user data” which apps are allowed to use it.

Once the change goes into effect in May, apps can only use the permission if their “core user facing functionality or purpose, requires broad visibility into installed apps on the user’s device.” Examples of apps that will be permitted to continue using this permission include file managers, browsers, and antivirus apps that need the data “for awareness or interoperability purposes.” Banking apps, digital wallet apps, and any other app that involves “financial transaction functionality” will get a pass “for security-based purposes”.

Apps that do not have a justifiable use case for the permission risk being removed from the Google Play Store. All developers who want to keep the permission in their apps need to complete “a declaration form” justifying their use of it.

In case you’re worried that developers could still misuse the permission, Google’s Documentation clearly states it will come down hard on offending apps, whether they’re new to the Play Store or just updates to existing apps. Google could suspend apps and possibly terminate developer accounts.

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4 Mistakes To Avoid With Social Media

Leave a Comment / Uncategorized / By / December 20, 2022 / ,

Having a social media marketing strategy can make or break a business.  Around 90% of Millenials have at least one social media account and are quite active. Not only Millennials are using social media, but you also have Gen Z and Baby Boomers using it often, too.  With so many potential customers online, it is incredibly hard not to have a social media strategy.

If you have a social media strategy, great!  However, if you see followers decreasing or plateauing, then check out these mistakes that you can correct easily.

Spreading Yourself Too Thin

It can be tempting to get your business on as many social media platforms as possible.  However, that can lead to spreading yourself too thin. Being everywhere can be counterintuitive.  There’s a good chance you won’t be able to keep up with posting, which can lead to certain groups seeing certain accounts as non-active.

Start with 2-3 of the most popular social media platforms your target audience uses.  Once you have a great rhythm going with those, you can look at adding more.

Using Too Many Hashtags

Hashtags are a great way for your content to be seen in searches on social media platforms. Follow the Golden Rule of Less is More.  Having too many hashtags makes your post look more like spam than helpful or interesting content.  Use niche keywords to help get your content higher on searches.  Stay away from broad keywords like “sunsets” or “design”.

Keep your hashtags under 10.  Any higher and you can turn people away from your business.

Too Much At One Time

We again come to the Golden Rule of Less is More.  Posting several pieces of content one after the other every day may seem like a good way to get your content out there, but it can turn followers and fans away.

Aim to post content on a regular and consistent schedule.  Social media platforms come with insights for business accounts.  This is a great help to see which day and time is the best to post.  Use apps like Buffer to schedule these posts, so you don’t have to think about it later!

Being Anti-Social on Social Media

What is the point of being on social media if you never get social with your audience?  Being silent in your comment section is a quick way to disengage your followers.  You don’t need to be the biggest extrovert, but making sure you respond to comments and messages helps build long-lasting relationships and trust.  Your followers want to feel close to you, and you can easily do this by commenting or responding to messages appropriately.

It doesn’t take much to make small mistakes on social media that could cause engagement and follower numbers to drop.  However, the solutions to these are even easier!  Implementing these changes today will have you seeing drastic results you are sure to love!

Do you have a great way to increase followers and engagement?  Share it with us below!

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150,000 Security Cameras Hacked

Leave a Comment / Uncategorized / By / December 20, 2022 / ,

A hack of up to 150,000 security cameras installed in schools, hospitals and businesses is being investigated by the firm that makes them.

Hackers claim to have breached Verkada, a security company that provides cameras to companies including Tesla.

Hacks were reported from feeds from prisons, psychiatric hospitals, clinics, and Verkada’s own offices were hijacked.

Verkada told the several news agencies it was “investigating the scale and scope of this issue”.

The company added it had notified law enforcement. However, it did not confirm the size and scale of the attack.

News organizations also reported that the transport start-up Virgin Hyperloop was among the list of impacted user accounts disclosed by the hackers.

Software provider Cloudflare reported that it had been alerted to a “handful” of cameras that might have been compromised at its offices around the world.

A Verkada camera inside a Florida hospital, reportedly seen by Bloomberg, showed what appeared to be eight workers tackling a man and pinning him to a bed.

Another video showed officers in a police station in Stoughton, Massachusetts questioning a man in handcuffs.

One, inside a Tesla warehouse in Shanghai, showed people working on an assembly line.

No news outlets have been able to independently verify these videos.

‘Too much fun’ – The hackers also said they had gained access to the security cameras of Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, where a gunman killed more than 20 people in 2012.

Speaking to Bloomberg, someone named Tille Kottmann claimed credit for hacking into Verkada’s systems.

The reasons for the hack, Kottmann said, were, “lots of curiosity, fighting for freedom of information and against intellectual property, a huge dose of anti-capitalism, a hint of anarchism – and it’s also just too much fun not to do it”.

The attack was reportedly unsophisticated, involving use of a “super admin” account to gain access to Verkada.

Bloomberg said that after they had contacted Verkada, the hackers lost access to the video feeds and archives.

A spokesperson for Verkada told news outlets: “We have disabled all internal administrator accounts to prevent any unauthorised access.”

“Our internal security team and external security firm are investigating the scale and scope of this issue, and we have notified law enforcement.”

The company has also set up a support line for their customers.

Meanwhile Cloudflare told several news outlets: “This afternoon we were alerted that the Verkada security camera system that monitors main entry points and main thoroughfares in a handful of Cloudflare offices may have been compromised.

“The cameras were located in a handful of offices that have been officially closed for several months.”

Tesla has yet to comment.

The breach comes after further details of a hack on Microsoft Exchange are beginning to emerge.

The attack used previously unknown flaws in the email software – and sometimes stolen passwords – to steal data from targets’ networks.

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IOS 14 Privacy Updates

Leave a Comment / Social Media, Technology / By / March 24, 2021 / , , ,

Apple in February 2021 introduced the latest version of its iOS operating system, iOS 14.4, which was released on September 16. iOS 14 is one of Apple’s biggest iOS updates to date, introducing Home Screen design changes, major new features, updates for existing apps, Siri improvements, and many other tweaks that streamline the iOS interface.

In my opinion one of the biggest changes is the Updated Privacy protections require developers to get permission before accessing devices on a local network, and there are new options for limiting access to select photos or providing apps with only approximate location data. All apps are also required to get user permission before tracking them across websites, and new icons show up on the Home Screen when an app is using a camera or microphone.

For instance, one now can request Facebook not to pass our information to companies outside of Facebook which will eventually create a LAWSUITS war between Apple and Facebook. If you want to know how to tell Facebook not to sell your information to third party companies’ do a simple internet search “How do I stop Facebook from sharing my information with a third party?” and many results will pop up.

For your consideration below some steps to

  1. Go to Settings & Privacy > Settings.
  2. Scroll down to “Your Facebook Information” and select “Off-Facebook Activity”.
  3. Select “Manage Your Off-Facebook Activity”
  4. Fallow instructions below

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