As of today, Apple has stopped signing iOS 9.2.1 for compatible iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch models, meaning users can no longer upgrade or downgrade to that version of iOS using iTunes. Apple is now signing iOS 9.3 and iOS 9.3.1 only.
iOS 9.3 has suffered from several bugs since it was released, which may have prompted some users to downgrade to the more stable iOS 9.2.1 release. An Activation Lock issue on some older devices caused Apple to temporarily pull the iOS 9.3 update for some users shortly after iOS 9.3 launched, and the iOS 9.3.1 update was released to fix a second major bug that caused apps to crash or freeze after tapping or long pressing on a web link. Both issues have now been solved.
A Siri vulnerability that allowed access to a user's photos and contacts on a locked iPhone running iOS 9.3.1 was patched server-side this afternoon by Apple.
Shared last night by Jose Rodriguez, the vulnerability used Siri's ability to access Twitter to find an email link or phone number, which could be pressed to open up an editable list of contacts even on a device that was locked. Through access to contacts, a user's full photo library was also visible.
As seen in the video below, the vulnerability relied on asking Siri to perform a Twitter search. If an email address, phone number, or other contact related detail came up, it would give direct access to Photos and Contact data. While the method worked on the iPhone 6s as of this morning, it is now disabled on all devices because it is no longer possible for Siri to conduct a Twitter search on a locked device.
When using a locked iPhone, asking Siri to "Search Twitter" now results in the personal assistant saying "You'll need to unlock your iPhone first." Without the ability to search Twitter on a locked device, there is no way to get the exploit to work. Apple confirmed the fix in a short statement given to The Washington Post.
According to 9to5Mac, a second Siri-related bug was also fixed today. Previously it was possible to enable both Night Shift and Low Power Mode by asking Siri to enable Night Shift after Low Power Mode was turned on, but that is no longer possible. Siri now warns that turning on Night Shift requires turning off Low Power Mode.
In early iOS 9.3 betas, Night Shift did work with Low Power Mode, but in iOS 9.3 beta 4, Apple removed the functionality. Night Shift and Low Power Mode cannot be run simultaneously.
The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation is still working on analyzing the information found on the iPhone of San Bernardino Shooter Syed Farook, reports The Wall Street Journal. FBI general counsel James Baker shared news on the iPhone earlier today at the International Association of Privacy Professionals conference, where he said it's too early to tell if the data on the device is useful.
"We're now doing an analysis of that data, as we would in any other type of criminal terrorism investigation,'' Mr. Baker said, adding: "That means we would follow logical leads." But because the agency has only had access to the data for a short period of time, he said "it's simply too early'' to say whether anything found on the phone has been valuable to investigators.
After a very public legal battle in which the FBI obtained a court order demanding Apple help the government unlock the iPhone used by Farook in a December shooting in San Bernardino, the Justice Department last week announced it had found an alternate method to gain access to the iPhone in question and dropped the lawsuit.
While the FBI has not shared how it was able to unlock the iPhone, nor shared details on what was found, it is believed Israeli mobile software developer Cellebrite, a company that offers "mobile forensic solutions," was enlisted to break into the device.
According to Baker, the FBI has not decided whether or not it will divulge details on what was found on the iPhone and will not make a decision on whether to do so until the full analysis is complete on both the device and the cracking tool used to unlock it.
It remains unclear if the hacking method used to break into the iPhone is only viable for the iPhone 5c used by Farook, but in a previous piece, The Wall Street Journal said the FBI is testing to see if it can be used to unlock other versions of the iPhone.
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.
Bernie Sanders, candidate for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination in the United States, was today queried about Apple in an interview with the Daily News, where he commented on the company's manufacturing policies and rumors that Apple dodges taxes.
When asked if Apple is part of corporate America that is "destroying the fabric of our nation," a question inspired by statements made by Sanders' himself, Sanders said he does not believe that to be the case, instead pointing the finger at big banks like JPMorgan Chase and corporations like General Electric. He went on to clarify that he would, however, like Apple to move manufacturing of some devices to the United States and pay a fair share of taxes.
No, Apple is not destroying the fabric of America. But I do wish they'd be manufacturing some of their devices, here, in the United States rather than in China. And I do wish that they would not be trying to avoid paying their fair share of taxes.
Sanders is not the first presidential candidate to comment on Apple's manufacturing policies, with Donald Trump also claiming he would force Apple to manufacture its products in the United States.
Though the bulk of Apple products are manufactured overseas, Apple has in fact made an effort to move some production jobs back to the United States, something that Sanders and Trump both appear to be unaware of. Apple's Mac Pro line of computers is assembled by Flextronics in Austin, Texas, an effort that cost Apple $100 million. Many third-party components used in Apple devices are also created by suppliers located in the United States, as Re/code points out. Corning's Gorilla Glass, used in iPhones and iPads, is made in Kentucky, for example.
In a December interview with Charlie Rose, Apple CEO Tim Cook gave some color on why Apple products are made in China. "It's skill," he said, going on to explain that China has focused heavily on training people to create machinery and parts for electronic devices.
The US, over time, began to stop having as many vocational kind of skills. I mean, you can take every tool and die maker in the United States and probably put them in a room that we're currently sitting in. In China, you would have to have multiple football fields.
When it comes to taxes, Tim Cook has previously said that Apple pays all of the taxes that it owes. During the same December interview, he said accusations Apple avoids taxes on revenue held overseas is "total political crap." "There is no truth behind it," he said. "Apple pays every tax dollar we owe."
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.
In March, Reddit released an updated version of its Alien Blue app for iOS, which included a free four-year Reddit Gold subscription gift for all Alien Blue users with Pro accounts. At the time, Alien Blue users were able to redeem the gift in the app, with Reddit promising to send the Reddit Gold credit at a later date.
As of today, Alien Blue users have begun receiving private messages informing them that their Reddit Gold subscriptions are activated, so all Redditors who used Alien Blue to redeem their free Gold subscription should be getting access to Gold features in the near future.
Reddit Gold is a membership program that allows Reddit users to turn off ads, activate themes, create custom alien avatars, highlight new comments, sync read links across computers, and more. Reddit Gold is normally priced at $3.99 per month or $29.99 per year.
For those unfamiliar with Alien Blue, it is one of the most popular apps for browsing Reddit on iOS devices. It was purchased by Reddit in October of 2014 and while Reddit initially planned to improve the app with new features, the company ultimately decided to nix its plans for an update and go with a fully revamped Reddit app.
In the Reddit Gold message sent to Alien Blue subscribers, Reddit says that its new iOS app will launch on Thursday, April 7. Reddit hasn't shared many details on the new app, but it is believed that features included in the Pro version of Alien Blue for iOS will now require a Gold subscription to activate, hence the free Reddit Gold for those who previously owned the Pro version of the app.
Reddit has said that once its new iOS app launches, Alien Blue will be removed from the App Store. Customers who have already downloaded the app will be able to continue to use it, but the development team that worked on Alien Blue has moved on to the new Reddit iOS app.
On April 1, Apple celebrated its 40th anniversary, marking four decades since Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne co-founded the company.
To mark the occasion, Apple shared a 40th anniversary video, flew a pirate flag at its Cupertino headquarters, held a beer bash, and launched an Apple Music playlist filled with songs that have been used in past Apple advertising spots.
Apple's playlist includes 40 tracks from a wide range of genres, featuring artists and bands from The Rolling Stones to Adele to Coldplay. Songs from Apple ads highlighting a number of products are included, like Paul McCartney's Dance Tonight, used in a well-known iPod commercial, and Alabama Shakes' Sound & Color, used in a recent iPad Pro commercial.
Apple's "Apple 40" anniversary playlist is available to all Apple Music subscribers and can be accessed under the "New" section under Hot Playlists. It can also be accessed through this link.
Apple this morning launched a new Twitter account for Apple News, giving its Apple News team a way to promote stories and content on the social network. Created last year but activated today, the Apple News Twitter account will be used to share "top stories" and "great reads" curated by Apple News editors in the United States.
Thus far, the account has shared two new stories covering the Panama Papers and an NCAA Tournament championship game from publishers Wired and SBNation.
Follow us here for top stories & great reads from your favorite publishers, curated by our U.S. editors. pic.twitter.com/eLyGKZHVMl
— Apple News (@applenews) April 5, 2016
Apple's biggest push into Twitter came last month with the launch of the Apple Support account on the social network, which is dedicated to answering customer support questions. Though Apple has multiple Twitter accounts for support and services, it does not have a main company-wide @Apple Twitter account in use, but many Apple executives maintain personal Twitter accounts including Tim Cook, Phil Schiller, and Eddy Cue.
Twitter today announced the addition of a new "Message" button to the Twitter apps for iOS and Android, giving users a simpler method for sharing tweets through Direct Messages to start private conversations.
Sending a tweet to a user through a Direct Message is a feature that was originally implemented in 2014, but using the feature required long pressing on a tweet in the timeline and choosing the correct option, a method that wasn't intuitive, especially to new users.
Today's change will add a Message button directly adjacent to the standard Reply, Retweet, and Like buttons, making it more accessible.
Every day, millions of people send Direct Messages to communicate privately with friends, family, experts, brands, and anyone else they find interesting on Twitter. In fact, we've seen the number of messages sent grow over 60% in 2015. And the number of Tweets shared privately has grown even faster, at 200% in just the second half of last year.
With all this interest, we've also heard from many of you that it could be easier to share a Tweet using Direct Message. So now -- in just a few taps -- you can share unique Twitter content from your timeline right into your private conversation.
Twitter plans to make the Message button available through an update that will be released later today. The Twitter app for iOS can be downloaded through the App Store for free. [Direct Link]
Sony today announced plans to bring the PlayStation 4's Remote Play capabilities to the PC and Mac through an update that will be released tomorrow. With the update, PS4 owners will be able to play games remotely through a PC or a Mac.
Remote Play is a feature that lets the PlayStation 4 send audio and video to a peripheral device, but it was previously only compatible with Sony's handheld console, the PlayStation Vita, the PlayStation TV set-top box, and select Sony smartphones and tablets. Remote Play has been around since the PlayStation 3 and the PSP, but Sony has never made an effort to expand it before.
The decision to bring Remote Play to PCs and Macs comes after Microsoft introduced a remote gameplay feature for the Xbox One, allowing Xbox games to be played using a PC that runs Windows 10. Sony's feature is more robust as it also works with Macs and it works remotely -- the Xbox game streaming feature requires a connection through a home network.
Sony makes Remote Play compatibility a requirement for all PlayStation 4 games that don't use peripherals, so most users will find that their entire PS4 game catalogs can be streamed to a Mac or PC.
On Macs, Remote Play will work with the latest versions of Apple's OS X operating system, OS X 10.10 Yosemite and OS X 10.11 El Capitan. On PCs, the feature is compatible with machines running Windows 8.1 or 10 or later. A single DualShock 4 controller can be connected to a PC or Mac via a USB cable to serve as the gameplay controller for Remote Play.
Games can be played in several resolutions and at several frame rates, adjustable based on Internet bandwidth. Resolution defaults to 540p, but can be changed to 360p or a max of 720p. The default frame rate setting is 30fps, adjustable to 60fps.
Remote Play will be available as soon as the PlayStation 4 is updated tomorrow. Once the update goes out, Mac and PC users will be able to download the software to enable the feature from the PlayStation Remote Play website (download is not yet live).
Apple Maps has been updated with all-new transit data in Montréal, providing users with bus, subway, and train routing in Canada's second most populous city. The public transit information is supplied by the city's public transport agencies Agence métropolitaine de transport (AMT) and Société de transport de Montréal (STM).
Montreal Metro subway and STM bus directions are available throughout Greater Montreal, including the main island and throughout the suburbs of Blainville, Boucherville, Brossard, Châteauguay, Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Laval, Longueuil, Repentigny, Saint-Jérôme, Saint-Lambert, and Terrebonne.
Montreal is the second Canadian metro area to support Apple Maps transit after Toronto. However, as we reported last June, transit data actually extends to many cities throughout Southern Ontario, including Barrie, Mississauga, Oakville, Oshawa, Peterborough, Burlington, Hamilton, Guelph, KWC, York Region, and Niagara Region.
Other cities with Apple Maps transit directions include Baltimore, Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, Mexico City, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Sydney, and multiple Chinese metro areas. Transit mode was added to Apple Maps as one of the headline features of iOS 9 last year.
Paid-cable network Starz today announced a new standalone monthly streaming service that will be available to users as an app on iOS, Apple TV, and Google Play stores. Starz's entry into the standalone service market follows fellow networks HBO ($14.99/month) and Showtime ($10.99/month), but will come in at a cheaper price of $8.99/month.
The new Starz app can be authenticated as a companion to users who have traditional cable packages, but won't offer live streaming, unlike Showtime's service. The network did say that one unique feature will be that users can download full episodes of any show to watch offline. The Apple TV version of the Starz app will support the universal search function of the new Siri Remote, as well.
Starz CEO Chris Albrecht said, “Starz has entered the market today with an enormous value proposition for consumers. Our programing will now be more widely available to the 20 million broadband only homes of cord nevers, cord cutters and cord shavers, including Millennials and other underserved consumers who need other viable subscription service options.
To celebrate its launch, the network will make the first episode of the second season of Outlander available on April 7 (two days before its official premiere) to any of the app's users. Starz said that the service will give subscribers access to more than 2,400 selections every month, including original programming like Outlander and the anticipated premiere of American Gods, as well as feature-length films like Avengers: Age of Ultron and Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
The Starz app is available to download today on the fourth-generation Apple TV and iOS App Store [Direct Link] for free.
T-Mobile announced today that its free unlimited music and video streaming programs Music Freedom and Binge On now support an additional sixteen services.
Binge On is a free incentive that enables T-Mobile customers on a qualifying Simple Choice plan to stream unlimited 480p video from dozens of partnered services, including Netflix, HBO NOW, Hulu, and YouTube, without any of the data consumed counting towards their plans. Music Freedom works the same way for streaming music services including Apple Music, Spotify, Pandora, and Google Play Music.
The new Binge On partners include Dailymotion, EPIX, OVGuide, OWNZONES, Viki, YipTV, and 120 Sports, in addition to the three Viacom Networks channels Nickelodeon, Spike, and TV Land. Likewise, the new Music Freedom partners include Amazon Music, Chilltrax, ESPN Radio, OHIO.FM, PreDanz, and Uforia. All sixteen new services are free to stream on qualifying plans starting today.
Update: T-Mobile is also offering up to $200 off any new iPad with the purchase of any new iPhone financed with an Equipment Installment Plan. In addition, the carrier is offering 4 lines with unlimited talk, text, and data, and up to 10GB of LTE data per line, for $35 a line. Both promotions start on April 6 and run for a limited time.
Pebble owners that link the smartwatch to an iPhone on the Verizon network can now use the iOS app's Text Reply feature to respond to text messages that show up on their wrist.
Previously the feature was only available to users on AT&T, but the newly released version 3.11 update to the Pebble app brings the same functionality to Verizon users as well. After enabling the option via the updated app, Verizon customers can now send emoji, customizable canned responses, and voice replies, although the latter is limited to Pebble Time owners.
Other improvements brought by the update include more accurate sleep tracking, additional support for daytime naps longer than an hour, a snooze feature that offers up timeline alerts closer to the actual time of an event, and additional vibration patterns for Time-series Pebble owners.
The smartwatch company has also seen fit to rename its accompanying iOS app, from 'Pebble Time' to simply 'Pebble', indicating that all Pebble devices will be able to run firmware 3.0 and later.
Pebble is a free download for iPhone on the App Store. [Direct Link]
Facebook has introduced a new accessibility tool to its iOS app for blind and visually impaired people to help identify images posted on their social feed.
The function, called Automatic Alternative Text, works via VoiceOver and generates descriptions of photos that are spoken out loud as a user swipes past photos in the Facebook app.
Previously, people using VoiceOver would only hear the name of the person who shared the photo, followed by the term "photo", when they came upon an image in the News Feed.
Thanks to the new function – made possible by advancements in object recognition technology – a richer description is now available. For example, a user may hear, "Image may contain three people, smiling, outdoors."
Automatic alternative text is currently only available in English, but Facebook plans to add the function for other languages soon. To use the feature on an iOS device with the Facebook app installed, go to Settings -> General -> Accessibility -> VoiceOver and turn on the VoiceOver function.
A video surfaced online yesterday purporting to show a vulnerability in iOS 9.3.1 that allows anyone to access photos and contacts on a locked iPhone without having to enter a passcode.
The YouTube video, uploaded by Jose Rodriguez and first spotted by The Daily Dot, depicts a user performing a Siri search followed by a series of relatively simple steps, one of which involves 3D Touch, limiting the exploit to iPhone 6s and 6s Plus devices.
The procedure starts by invoking Siri on the locked phone by holding the home button or using the "Hey, Siri" function, and then asking the personal assistant to initiate a Twitter search. When the returned results include contact details such as an email address, a 3D Touch gesture is used on the contact information to bring up a Quick Actions menu. Tapping "Add to Existing Contact" then brings up the iPhone's Contacts list. By selecting a contact and opting to add a photo to the entry, the phone's photo library can also be freely accessed.
The flaw is only applicable if the iPhone owner has previously granted Siri permission to access Twitter account information as well as to Contacts or Photos, operations which require establishing ownership of the device with the passcode or Touch ID. Additionally, if the iPhone has exited a Touch ID grace period, a passcode is still required before using Siri.
Users worried about the vulnerability can protect themselves by ensuring Siri's access to Twitter and Photos is disabled. On your device, go to Settings -> Privacy -> Twitter and if Siri is listed, turn off its access. Likewise, in Privacy -> Photos, turn any listing of Siri access to the Off position. Revoking Siri's access to your Contacts requires the more drastic action of disabling Siri lock screen activation. To do so, go to Settings -> Touch ID & Passcode and turn off the Siri switch.
Apple released iOS 9.3.1 to the public last week, marking the first update to iOS 9 since iOS 9.3 launched on March 21. iOS 9.3.1 came just over a week after the launch of iOS 9.3 and brought a fix for a significant web link crashing issue that affected many iOS users.
Barclays appears to have enabled much-anticipated support for Apple Pay in the United Kingdom during the early morning hours on Tuesday.
A growing number of Barclays customers on Twitter have been successfully able to add their debit or credit cards from the large British bank to Apple Pay since shortly after midnight local time.
Barclays was notably absent from the list of banks and participating issuers supporting Apple Pay when the mobile payments service first expanded to England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland in July 2015.
Barclays cardholders can set up Apple Pay through the Wallet app on iOS 8.1 or later. Bank-issued cards can be scanned or added manually by tapping the "Add Credit or Debit Card" option. Follow the on-screen verification steps.
Apple Pay is also supported at Bank of Scotland, First Direct, Halifax, HSBC, Lloyds Bank, M&S Bank, MBNA, Nationwide, NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland, Santander, Tesco Bank, TSB, and Ulster Bank in the United Kingdom.
When a customer buys an Apple product in an Apple retail store, it's packaged in a white plastic drawstring bag emblazoned with an Apple logo, something that's become an iconic part of the Apple experience. Starting later this month, Apple is introducing changes to its bagging policy, phasing out plastic bags in favor of a more environmentally friendly paper option.
Apple is planning to switch from the plain white plastic bags to paper bags made from 80 percent recycled materials, which Apple says will further its goal of leaving the world "better than we found it." Apple informed employees of the impending change in a note, which was shared by 9to5Mac.
In addition to handing out paper bags, employees are also being asked to adopt a new policy of querying customers as to whether a bag is needed at all instead of simply providing one.
We're committed to leaving the world better than we found it. One bag at a time. So on April 15, we'll switch to paper shopping bags made from 80 percent recycled materials. These bags come in medium and large.
When customers are buying a product, ask if they need a bag. They may decide they don't. And you'll encourage them to be even more environmentally friendly.
If you still have plastic bags in stock, use them before you switch to the new paper bags.
While Apple will begin offering the new bags on April 15, employees have been instructed to continue to use all of the available stock of plastic bags before switching to paper. Once the supply is exhausted, the new paper bags, the design of which is unknown, will be used exclusively.
Given Apple's focus on recycling, clean energy, and reducing its carbon footprint, the company's switch from plastic to paper should come as no surprise. Apple already focuses on minimizing packaging size for its products from iPhones to Macs and two-thirds of the paper used for packaging is from recycled content with the rest sourced from sustainable forests.
In our latest video review, we went hands-on with two iPhone cases from Moshi, a well-known accessory maker that develops cases, cables, screen protectors, and more for Apple's line of iOS devices.
Moshi's iGlaze Armour and iGlaze Napa, two of the cases we looked at, are available for both the iPhone 6/6s and the iPhone 6/6s Plus. The iGlaze Armour, with its aluminum backplate, is solid and sturdy without adding too much bulk to the iPhone. It offers a good amount of protection, with rubber sides to add padding in case an iPhone is dropped.
The iGlaze Napa features a design that's similar to the iGlaze Armour, but with a vegan leather backing in a variety of colors. It isn't built quite the same way, but it's just as sturdy.
Note: Moshi provided an iGlaze Napa and an iGlaze Armour to MacRumors free of charge for the purposes of this review. No other compensation was received.