Apple’s iOS 17, released last week, contains several interesting privacy and security features. Here’s a quick overview. Lockdown Mode Apple introduced Lockdown Mode in iOS 16 which was designed to protect iPhones against “extremely rare and highly sophisticated cyber attacks”. While Apple didn’t mention the NSO Group’s Pegasus by name, they did say that the …
As if responding to my previous blog article on web fingerprinting, Mullvad (a very respectably VPN company) has just released a new web browser specifically designed to hide your identity – partly by attempting to defeat fingerprinting. As you might expect, there are pros and cons. Here’s my first-blush review. What is the Mullvad Browser? …
It’s that time of year again! Time to put the past behind us and look forward to a brand new year, full of possibilities and hope! I mean, it can’t get much worse, right? Okay, I take that back… no reason to tempt fate. Here are some privacy and cybersecurity tips you should seriously consider …
[UPDATED 12/7/2022: I’ve added more coupons!] Every year, I publish an annual guide to the best and worst gifts, based on two and only two criteria: privacy and security. But I decided that I wanted to actually create a gift that people could give to others that would help them protect their devices and data. …
For those of you who are not familiar with what I’m about to describe, you’re probably going to think I’m off my rocker. But I’m here to tell you: your smart TV is almost surely spying on you. I’m not just talking about the apps you’re running, which of course are spying on you. I’m …
Last Monday Apple released a big update to its flagship mobile operating system, iOS (the software that runs your iPhone). Today I’ll give you a run down of the new security and privacy features in iOS 16. (There are tons of other features, too – if you want to check out the full list, click …
For some reason, men feel compelled to share pictures of their genitalia, somehow certain that others will be thankful for the gift. And if the settings on your Apple devices are too permissive, you may end up being an unwilling recipient. This hit the news headlines recently when a flight to Cabo was nearly grounded …
Cloud file synchronization is extremely convenient and today it’s nearly ubiquitous. You might not even be aware that you’re using it right now. These services allow you to synchronize the contents of a special file folder across multiple devices through the internet. When you add a file to this folder, or make a change to …
Mozilla just released a new version of their Firefox web browser. The key new feature is something they’re calling Total Cookie Protection. This feature was accessible in earlier versions of Firefox, but now it’s supposedly on for everyone by default. But is it? The very fact that I have to ask the question should raise …
Convenience is often at odds with security and privacy. In other words, we often need to add some friction to our lives in order to be more secure and private. There are many inconveniences we’ve all learned to live with in the physical world. We lock our houses when we leave. We hide valuables in …
