MacRumors

Facebook paid “hundreds of outside contractors” to transcribe user audio clips from its Messenger app, reports Bloomberg.

Employees who worked on the transcription were not told where the audio was recorded or how it was obtained, nor were they told why Facebook needs conversations transcribed.

Facebook says that while it had indeed been transcribing audio, it no longer plans to do so. "We paused human review of audio more than a week ago,” Facebook told Bloomberg.

Facebook’s decision to pause its audio transcribing comes following scrutiny of human review programs from Apple, Amazon, and Google. The three companies use employees to review voice assistant requests and accidental activations for improvement purposes.

One firm that Facebook uses to transcribe Messenger conversations is TaskUs, a company that also reviews Facebook content for possible policy violations.

Facebook says that users who had voice chats transcribed had opted in, and that the transcriptions were used to make sure Facebook’s AI correctly interpreted the messages. Despite this, Facebook did not disclose to users that third parties may be reviewing audio, which led some of Facebook’s contractors to “feel their work is unethical.”

Facebook’s data use policy does mention the collection of “content, communications, and other information,” but there’s no specific mention of audio.

Facebook says its “systems automatically process content and communications you and others provide to analyze context and what’s in them.” It includes no mention of other human beings screening the content. In a list of “types of third parties we share information with,” Facebook doesn’t mention a transcription team, but vaguely refers to “vendors and service providers who support our business” by “analyzing how our products are used.”

While Facebook claims it has stopped the audio transcription program, those concerned should refrain from using Facebook services like Messenger and WhatsApp.

Google and Apple have temporarily suspended their human audio review programs, while Amazon is letting Alexa users opt out. In the future, when Apple re-implements human review of Siri queries, there will be a clear privacy policy and opt-out option.

Spotify and Apple are in talks over a potential "truce" that would allow Siri to play songs, playlists, and albums from Spotify via voice commands from iPhone users, reports The Information.

Apple in iOS 13 is introducing SiriKit changes that will allow ‌Siri‌ to play music, podcasts, audiobooks, and radio from third-party apps, which seems to be the feature that the two companies have been discussing.

The SiriKit changes will let Spotify and other developers build ‌Siri‌ support into their apps, letting users control audio playback with ‌Siri‌ commands. Users will be able to use commands like "Hey ‌Siri‌, play Fleetwood Mac from Spotify" to access Spotify instead of Apple Music.

Apple has similar ‌Siri‌ features for third-party messaging apps, allowing ‌Siri‌ commands to be used to send messages using WhatsApp and other apps instead of the Messages app. ‌Siri‌ commands also work with third-party ride sharing, workout, payments, photo, and VoIP apps.

Should Apple and Spotify come to an agreement about the new feature, ‌Apple Music‌ is expected to remain the default music streaming service on Apple devices when users ask ‌Siri‌ to play songs, according to one of the sources that spoke to The Information.

The conversations between Apple and Spotify come following a March antitrust complaint from Spotify in the European Union, where Spotify claimed that Apple's App Store rules "limit choice and stifle innovation at the expense of the user experience."

In its complaint, Spotify called out Apple's 30 percent fee for third-party apps in the ‌App Store‌, which Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said gives Apple an "unfair advantage" for ‌Apple Music‌. Ek also complained about Apple's "experience-limiting restrictions," locking Spotify and other competitors out of services like ‌Siri‌.

Spotify's complaint has resulted in a formal investigation of Apple's ‌App Store‌ practices by the European Competition Commission, which is ongoing.

On its "Time to Play Fair" website that outlines its dispute with Apple, Spotify recently changed wording reflecting the SiriKit changes in iOS 13. It used to read as follows: "Apple won't allow us to be on HomePod and they definitely won't let us connect with ‌Siri‌ to play your jams."

After an update, the website now says the following: "Only recently, Apple announced that it will let us connect with ‌Siri‌ to play your jams...but fails to mention our name ("I want to play [X] on Spotify") and your ‌HomePod‌ will default to ‌Apple Music‌." The wording changes suggest Spotify will indeed implement ‌Siri‌ support, but the company still seems to be unhappy with the inability to set Spotify as the default music service on Apple devices.

Apple today announced that students at 12 additional universities will be able to add their student IDs to the Wallet app in the coming school year, allowing them to get around campus and make purchases using an iPhone or Apple Watch.

The expansion includes Clemson University, Georgetown University, University of Tennessee, University of Kentucky, University of San Francisco, University of Vermont, Arkansas State University, South Dakota State University, Norfolk State University, Louisburg College, University of North Alabama, and Chowan University.

Students simply hold their ‌iPhone‌ or Apple Watch near a reader anywhere physical student ID cards are accepted — on and off campus. An optional Express Mode bypasses the need to authenticate with Face ID, Touch ID, or a passcode, allowing for the quickest entry possible to buildings around campus.

Duke University, University of Oklahoma, University of Alabama, Temple University, Johns Hopkins University, Marshall University, and Mercer University rolled out contactless student IDs in the Wallet app last year.

Apple's stock has surged around five percent after the United States Trade Representative announced that an additional tariff of 10 percent on approximately $300 billion of Chinese imports will be delayed to December 15 for products such as cell phones, laptop computers, and monitors, per CNBC.

Moreover, the USTR said certain products are being removed from the tariff list based on "health, safety, national security and other factors" and will not be subject to the additional tariff of 10 percent whatsoever. It is unclear if this decision applies to any Apple products or accessories.

The USTR said it will provide additional details and lists of the tariff lines affected by this announcement on its website today.

The new tariff kicks in September 1 for the remaining Chinese imports impacted.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Apple today announced it has partnered with non-profit organization RESOLVE to seek out innovative ways to source gold responsibly.

The problem: gold mining operations in Alaska and the Yukon region have resulted in a reduction in the salmon population in the creeks and streams being mined. RESOLVE's solution: combine mining with habitat restoration to improve the streams so that salmon and other species of fish return.

To accomplish this, RESOLVE introduced the "Salmon Gold" program in 2017 to connect local placer miners with environmentalists and government agencies in an effort to reverse the damage done from historic mining in the region.

Apple, which uses small amounts of gold for certain components in its products, says it will begin sourcing gold from miners participating in the program. This fall, Apple says all Salmon Gold entering its supply chain will be traced from the mine to the refiner using blockchain technology.

Paula Pyers, Apple's head of supplier responsibility:

As we continue to increase our use of recycled materials, we’re seeking out innovative ways to source gold responsibly. Partnering with Tiffany, a pioneer in sustainable sourcing, as well as RESOLVE ensures Salmon Gold can be an example of how the industry can evolve.

Stephen D'Esposito, CEO of RESOLVE:

There's a lot of tension between mining and salmon. Salmon Gold is like a peace treaty between mining and salmon habitat. It's a place where the three sectors can work together: the restoration community, First Nations and the mining industry.

RESOLVE has secured restoration plans with three miners in Alaska and the Yukon, with several more under consideration for next summer.

Parallels today announced version 15 of its desktop virtualization software for Mac, offering DirectX 11 support via Apple Metal, native support for Sidecar in macOS Catalina, and several other enhancements.

Parallels Desktop 15 is the first iteration of the cross-platform software to support DirectX 11 using Apple's hardware accelerated Metal graphics API.

The switch to Metal should bring a noticeable performance boost – Parallels claims 3D graphics rendering is up to 15 percent faster, while Microsoft Office apps should launch up to 80 percent faster.

The enhanced graphics support also expands the number of Windows apps that users can run on their Mac, such as Autodesk 3ds Max 2020, Lumion, ArcGIS Pro, and Master Series.

Gamers meanwhile can look forward to running their favorite titles at faster speeds, with the likes of FIFA 19, Age of Empires Definitive Edition, Fallout 4, Madden NFL 19, Crysis 3, and Mark of the Ninja: Remastered all receiving special mention.

Once macOS Catalina launches in the fall, Parallels' ‌Sidecar‌ support will mean users can wirelessly connect their iPad to their Mac to use as a second display in Windows. There's also new Touch Bar options for Apple Pencil, including Toggle between Pen, Eraser and Mouse modes. Parallels says support for additional Catalina features is currently in development and will be introduced around the release of macOS 10.15.

Notably, the virtualization software is offering better integration with macOS more generally, such as the ability to use screenshot previews in Windows applications and the ability to drag images from Safari, Photos, and other stock Mac apps.

Additionally, Parallels Desktop 15 supports a new category of Bluetooth devices, enabling users to connect an Xbox One Controller, Logitech Craft keyboard, IRISPen, some IoT devices (such as smart home appliances and smart bands) and more. There's also support for Bluetooth Low Energy, making it possible to run an Xbox game in a Windows 10 virtual machine.

Elsewhere, there's now support for the Share menu in Finder, so it's possible to send files from macOS using a Windows email application, and there's now Keychain support, offering quicker login to websites and apps within Windows. A more comprehensive list of changes and improvements in Parallels Desktop 15 is available here.

Parallels Desktop 15 requires macOS Mojave or later to run, and can be purchased for a one-off fee of $99.99, with the more feature-laden Pro and Business editions available at $99 per year.

Users with older versions of Parallels Desktop (including Pro and Business Editions) can upgrade for $49.99, while college students in the United States, Canada, Germany and UK have access to the reduced price Student Edition. A 14-day trial of the virtualization suite is also available.

A security researcher named MG has developed a Lightning cable replacement that can give hackers a way to remotely access your computer, reports Motherboard.

The cables in question (dubbed O.MG Cables) are cables directly from Apple that have been opened up to allow for additional components to be implanted, but the modifications are undetectable and there's no way to distinguish the hacked cable from the original.

When plugged into a target computer, the cable behaves as a typical cable does, connecting to and charging iOS devices, but it also lets hackers remotely connect to a machine to run commands. It comes equipped with scripts and commands that a hacker can run on a victim's machine, along with tools to "kill" the USB implant to hide evidence of its existence.

MG typed in the IP address of the fake cable on his own phone's browser, and was presented with a list of options, such as opening a terminal on my Mac. From here, a hacker can run all sorts of tools on the victim's computer.

"It's like being able to sit at the keyboard and mouse of the victim but without actually being there," MG said.

In a test with Motherboard, MG was able to connect his phone to a WiFi hotspot that the cable was emitting. He said he needed to be within 300 feet to access the target machine, but also said that the cable can be configured to act as a client for a nearby wireless network, potentially allowing for hacking from an unlimited distance.

"I'm currently seeing up to 300 feet with a smartphone when connecting directly," he said, when asked how close an attacker needs to be to take advantage of the cable once a victim has plugged it into their machine. A hacker could use a stronger antenna to reach further if necessary, "But the cable can be configured to act as a client to a nearby wireless network. And if that wireless network has an internet connection, the distance basically becomes unlimited."

MG imagines the cable could be swapped in for a target's legitimate cable or gifted to someone because it looks exactly like an Apple cable, complete with accurate packaging. Each of these cables were made by hand and are being sold by MG for $200, but he is teaming up with a company to produce them as a legitimate security tool.

It's not clear if there is any defense against this kind of hack, but it sounds like these cables are prohibitively expensive and limited in availability at the current time. Those concerned should buy cables directly from Apple without accepting free cables from anyone. Apple may also be developing a mitigation and has previously restricted other USB access techniques through USB Restricted Mode.