Articles

Mon
24
Mar
Dennis Faas's picture

FB Dating Turns to Crypto-Sextortion: Here's What to Do

Infopackets Reader Jenna M. writes: "Dear Dennis, Thanks for your article on Being Harassed on Instagram - it was a very informative read. I have a much more complicated issue: I separated from my husband last year and recently decided to give ... Facebook Dating a try. A few days in, I matched with a man who said he was an architect from a nearby city. He was attractive, polite, and claimed his wife had cheated on him. He told me he was originally from Germany and his daughter lives there. His profile said he lives in Minnesota - but his phone number has a New York area code. Not long after ... (view more)

Mon
24
Mar
John Lister's picture

Alexa Recordings Will Go to Amazon: What it Means

Alexa devices will send all recordings of user voice commands to Amazon from March 28, 2025. The company is removing (and overriding) a user setting that stopped this happening. The change affects devices such as the voice controlled Amazon Echo. ... Until now, these devices had the capacity to recognize and understand what a user was saying using only local processing. That allowed the devices to have an optional setting to stop the recordings being sent outside of their home. Amazon says the change is a byproduct of what it's calling an improvement. Alexa is being replaced by Alexa+, a system ... (view more)

Fri
21
Mar
Dennis Faas's picture

Being Harassed on Instagram? Here's How to Stop It - Fast

Infopackets Reader Sarah B. writes: " Dear Dennis, Please help - I'm being harassed on Instagram . A few months ago, I met a guy on Instagram claiming to be stationed overseas in the US Military. He moves from base to base, which makes it difficult ... for him to stay in touch with people. Initially, he was sweet, charming, and always had a good excuse for why we couldn't video chat - so we exchange some photos instead. At first, he just wanted someone to talk to, but not long after, he hinted that he was struggling financially. He needed money for things like Internet access, food, and other ' ... (view more)

Fri
21
Mar
John Lister's picture

iPhone Voice Transcriptions Goes Horribly Wrong

A Scottish grandmother received an obscene and insulting message thanks to a complete fail by Apple's voice transcription. It completely misunderstood a voicemail left by a local car dealership. The call was made to Louise Littlejohn by a worker at ... the garage who intended to invite her to a promotional event for a new car. The call went to voicemail so he left a message. Apple then "transcribed" the call with an AI-powered system and delivered a text message, something that's meant to save users time rather than have to listen to the message. According to the BBC, which listened to the audio ... (view more)

Thu
20
Mar
Dennis Faas's picture

Being Harassed Online? Here's How to Make It Stop

Infopackets Reader Mark R. writes: " Dear Dennis, I just came across your article on How to Stop Cyber Harassment and I'm reaching out because my teenage son is brutally being harassed online . He recently met a girl in a chat group on Reddit; she ... seemed nice at first, and claims to live nearby. They chatted for a few days, then things got more 'personal': she convinced him to move to Snapchat, where they exchanged some private messages and pictures. After that, the tone shifted instantly and now she's demanding money. She's taken screenshots of all of his Instagram followers and says ... (view more)

Wed
19
Mar
John Lister's picture

Internet Shutdowns Continue To Rise

Intentional Internet shutdowns by governments reached new heights in 2024, according to a digital rights campaign group. Access Now recorded 296 shutdowns across 54 countries. The figures don't include shutdowns caused by natural disasters, ... technical errors, or other unintentional reasons. Instead, they specifically account for cases where a government or related authority deliberately blocked access. The statistics are likely most reliable as a measure of year-on-year change, showing a rise from 283 shutdowns in the previous year. More notably, the number of countries experiencing shutdowns ... (view more)

Mon
17
Mar
John Lister's picture

Smartwatch Sales Suffer Surprise Slump

Smartwatch sales have reportedly declined for the first time, signaling potential challenges ahead for the wearable tech industry. Experts attribute this downturn primarily to slowing innovation and recent legal setbacks faced by Apple, a major ... market leader. According to Counterpoint Research, smartwatch shipments dropped 7 percent in 2024 compared to the previous year, with Apple's shipments notably falling by 19 percent. Given Apple's commanding market share - approximately one-quarter of all global smartwatch sales - this decline significantly impacts the market. (Source: ... (view more)

Fri
14
Mar
John Lister's picture

Google AI Can Now Detect Phone Scams in Real Time

Google Pixel phones can now detect potential scams in text messages and voice calls in real time. The company says the technology runs locally on phones, meaning it shouldn't compromise privacy. After a beta testing program, Google is rolling out ... Scam Detection for messages to any handset running Google Messages . This app is available for download on the Google Play Store and can replace the default messaging app on most Android phones. Users who install it gain access to Google’s latest messaging features, including spam protection, end-to-end encryption, and AI-powered scam detection. ... href="/news/11523/google-ai-can-now-detect-phone-scams-real-time" class="more-link">view more)

Thu
13
Mar
Dennis Faas's picture

How to Stop Cyber Harassment and Online Blackmail - Fast

Infopackets Reader Sam J. writes: "Dear Dennis, My teenage son got caught up in an online sextortion scam. He thought he was talking to a girl his age on Instagram, but it turned out to be a scammer who tricked him into sharing private photos. He ... already sent the blackmailers $500 in Steam cards. Now, they're threatening to send those images to his friends and family unless we pay more. He's terrified, ashamed, and deeply depressed. As a father, I feel completely helpless. How can I stop cyber harassment and online blackmail in order to protect my son? Please help!" My response: If you or ... (view more)

Wed
12
Mar
John Lister's picture

Right To Repair Bills Go Nationwide

All 50 states have now introduced a "right to repair" bill aimed at making it easier for users to fix their own electronic devices. But only six have passed laws, with lawmakers in many states having abandoned their efforts. The specific wording of ... a right to repair bill varies significantly from case to case. Some of the most common principles include users having the legal right to source components or hire a third-party specialist to perform a repair. In other cases, users may have the right to access repair manuals. A common point of debate is what happens with warranties. In some cases, ... (view more)

Mon
10
Mar
John Lister's picture

New Foldable iPhone: Game-Changer or Just Hype?

Apple is reportedly working on a foldable iPhone with no visible crease in the screen. While several manufacturers have already introduced folding phones, Apple has seemingly held off, possibly due to concerns about design aesthetics. The ... introduction of an Apple foldable device could set a new benchmark in the industry, but it is expected to come with a hefty price tag. Folding Phones: Gimmick or Innovation? Folding phones have evolved from a niche concept to a somewhat legitimate category within the smartphone industry. The idea behind them is simple: they offer the compact portability of a ... (view more)

Fri
07
Mar
John Lister's picture

iPhone Dictation Replaces 'Racist' with 'Trump'

Apple has fixed a supposed bug that caused iPhones to mix up the words "Trump" and "racist". But a speech recognition expert says Apple's explanation was implausible. The issue was with the Dictation tool in iPhones that lets users speak and have ... their words transcribed ready to use as text, for example to send as a message. Numerous videos posted online by users showed them saying the word "racist" but their phone showing the word "Trump" before correcting the error shortly afterwards. Although Apple quickly fixed the issue after the videos went viral, it does appear the videos are genuine. ... (view more)

Wed
05
Mar
John Lister's picture

Google: SMS Text Security Codes No Longer Secure

Gmail is to stop using SMS text messages as a way to authenticate accounts. It's concluded the security measure is no longer secure or efficient. The SMS message test is a common example of two-factor authentication, the idea that accounts should ... always be protected by two different factors, often including something the customer knows (such as a password), something they have (such as a smartphone), and where they are (using an IP address). This means most of the time the customer can simply log in with a password from their normal location or IP address. With two-factor authentication ... (view more)

Mon
03
Mar
John Lister's picture

Report: 'Dark Mode' Effects Limited in Real Life

So-called video display "dark modes" on mobile devices may use more energy than ordinary display modes according to new research. The effect of the modes on human behavior may be counterproductive. The claim comes from BBC Research ... (view more)

Fri
28
Feb
John Lister's picture

Edge Browser Gets up to 40 Percent Faster

Microsoft claims it has made key parts of the Edge browser dramatically faster. The update affects specific features of the browser rather than simply the page loading time. According to Microsoft, 14 different features have been sped up, with an ... average boost of 40 percent. However, it's only specifically listed a few of the affected features: Browser Essentials: a status windows that lists some of the key performance features such as which tabs have been put into sleeping mode to minimize memory user. Downloads: the display of which files the user has downloaded (or is midway through ... (view more)

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