bbh

Xed said:

ITGUYINSD said:

As I read through the article, almost everything made no sense unless these people are absolutely clueless.  Who doesn't have alerts setup on CC accounts that notify you when charges are made?  Did they use "1111" as the PIN for the watch?  Did they ignore every best practice for keeping your information secure?  When does "theft" become negligence on the victim's part?

Unlimited credit limit?  Sounds like they have more money than brains.  I know AMEX and most banks are very cautious of unusual activity.  Something is fishy.

1111 isn't the only common PIN that people use, it wouldn't take long to try a lot of them as I don't think the Watch has a wipe after 10 tries. They do have a 1 minute wait after 5 incorrect attempts, but that means you can through 10 common passcodes in under 1.5 minutes.

It's also possible that someone saw them put in a PIN on their Watch or iPhone previously. Regardless, the Watch with Wallet is a weak point in security so people need to take more precautions so these things are less likely to happen. (Note that I wrote less likely, not impossible—these things will still happen.)

Yes, the Apple Watch DOES have an "erase data" after 10 failed login attempts. I just activated mine.  I am on version 8.5.1.

mrstep said:

TripleTrouble said:

My Orbi Router set (RBR50s) is the worst piece of kit I've ever owned (at least since the Lowes Iris smart home fiasco). Bad build, bad user experience, bad networking, bad app, bad customer service, what's there to like?

I ended up going out and buying a Deco (been fairly happy with it) - my Orbi would consistently drop the WiFi connectivity of devices.  They'd claim to be connected, but have no data pass through.  Turn off WiFi, turn it back on, and you'd get data for anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour or two.  Of course, that meant you'd never know *when* it would stop, wouldn't see texts/mail in a timely manner... And it all started after some firmware update they did - it had been pretty good up until then.  After the update, I gave it about a year to get fixed, and it never did.  Awful to use at that point.  Maybe they've fixed it, I don't trust Netgear at this point.

People seem to like the Google stuff, Deco has been been good for my house, I really wish Apple had stayed in the router game... But I'll never get near an Orbi again.

I, too, would like to give a "pat on the back" to DECO. First rate performance, including the ability to "Blacklist" piggybackers, and set the operating lights on a schedule so they don't light up the bedroom at night. Spendid performance all around and easy to set up. DECO W3600 with Satellite.

jdw said:

Apple is still not making the majority of people feel comfortable with its plan, and as such Apple has the moral obligation to at the very least DELAY its plan until it can better convey to the public why they will be 100% protected.  That remains true even of some contend this is being blown out of proportion.

Apple needs to explain IN DETAIL how it will proactively help anyone falsely accused of engaging in illicit activities seeing that Apple would be primarily responsible for getting those falsely accused people in that situation in the first place.  That discussion must include monetary compensation, among other things.

Apple needs to explain how it intends to address the mental toll on its own employees or contracted workers who will be forced to frequently examine kiddy porn to determine if the system properly flagged an account or not.  THIS IS HUGE and must not be overlooked!  On some level it is outrageous that the very content we wished banned from the world will be forced upon human eyes in order to determine if a machine made a mistake or not.

Only when these points have been adequately addressed should Apple begin implement their plan or a variant of it.  The next operating system release is too soon.

Apple truly has done a terrible job of explaining what is actually happening and what actually does happen downstream of a photo being flagged. First, nobody is actually looking at your photo or any other photo. They are comparing a CSAM algorithm with an algorithm generated when your photo is uploaded. If your "photos" cross the threshold of too many suspect photos, a human confirms that the ALGORITHM of the suspect photos matches the CSAM algorithm. No body ever looks at your photo. This is not a case of someone looking at your pictures, and declaring that "to me, this is child pornography". 

And, if you are still unconvinced and wrapped up in the hysteria surrounding this issue, all you have to do is System>Photos> iCloud Photos to OFF. Slide the button to the OFF position. There are numerous ways to back up your photos and have them available on numerous platforms anywhere in the world without using iCloud Photos. But...unless you totally rely on your own personal backup solution (I have a 2 Drive Synology NAS), chance are any other place you choose to remotely store your photos is most likely using the CSAM system already. 

I just returned from a week in Tokyo with a side trip to Hiroshima. All in all, I preferred the presentation and info in the Google Maps. I thought walking directions in both were lame. By the way, this was on my T-Mobile iPhone X (unlocked, of course) which worked just fine in Japan. T-Mobile includes Text and Data in, I think, all of their plans.