Ars Technica: Researchers report >4,000 apps that secretly record audio and steal logs. “A single threat actor has aggressively bombarded Android users with more than 4,000 spyware apps since February, and in at least three cases the actor snuck the apps into Google’s official Play Market, security researchers said Thursday.”
smartphones
CNET: Your phone sucks, but your photos don’t have to
CNET: Your phone sucks, but your photos don’t have to. “No matter if you have the high end Samsung Galaxy S8 or the budget Alcatel Idol 5S or even an old iPhone 6, chances are you take photos with your phone. And whether your phone has the best camera or a modest camera, there are three quick tweaks to make your photos look better — all with using the f-word: Filters.”
Berkeley: Megamovie app makes photographing total eclipse a snap
Berkeley: Megamovie app makes photographing total eclipse a snap. “When downloaded and installed, the app walks users through a simple process to point your smart phone at the sun using an appropriate filter to protect the camera’s sensors. Once protected and pointed properly, the camera determines where you are and automatically starts taking photos of the sun 15 seconds before totality at your location, snaps periodic shots throughout the total eclipse – which will last a maximum of 2 minutes, 40 seconds, depending on where you are – and takes a series of photos during the 15 seconds after the total eclipse has ended to capture the ‘diamond ring’ effect.”
USA Today: How to photograph time-lapses of Total Eclipse
USA Today: How to photograph time-lapses of Total Eclipse. “For most of us, getting photos of the sun with our tiny smartphones just won’t cut it. But you know what will? A cool time-lapse of the scene, as we watch the sun slip briefly behind the moon, and day becomes night and then day again. How to get a great time-lapse shot? You’ve come to the right spot. Especially if you’re interested in doing it on a smartphone or with the tiny GoPro camera. “
Quartz: Scientists made people turned off their notifications for a day, and saw an effect years later
Quartz: Scientists made people turned off their notifications for a day, and saw an effect years later. “Just one day of shutting down your notifications can be a fulfilling experience, simply thanks to the comparative lack of distraction and stress that comes from answering to a device in your pocket every few minutes. And while it may seem like a tiny difference, changing a small habit can alter your whole perspective.”
The Stack: New tool allows smartphone camera to record fingerprints
A little outside my remit, but cool: New tool allows smartphone camera to record fingerprints. “A new prototype biometric tool, designed by researchers in India, enables a smartphone camera to act as a fingerprint scanner. Saksham Gupta, Sukhan Anand and Atul Rai from Department of Computer Science at Delhi Technological University used an Android smartphone to extract fingerprints from close-up shots of a finger. The researchers used a 16MP camera with a 1920×1080 resolution to get the results.”
Wired: How To Record Calls On Your Smartphone
Wired: How To Record Calls On Your Smartphone. “Recording a call used to require an external gadget that connected a digital recorder to a desk phone’s base and handset. It’s still one of the most reliable ways to capture a conversation, but it’s not exactly convenient. These days, smartphone apps and cloud services make recording conversations easy and convenient—whether you’re chatting with White House officials or not.” Just don’t do it for evil…
