Mobile Forward

Apple Removes Malware-Infected Apps from its Chinese App Store

Sarah Perez, for TechCrunch:

Nearly forty popular applications infected with malware – a result of app developers being tricked into downloading a compromised version of Apple’s Xcode developer tool kit. […]

The malware could potentially impact hundreds of millions of users, [security firm Palo Alto networks] said. […]

A compromised version of the Xcode software was uploaded to Baidu’s cloud storage site, promising a faster download than the official version […]. […]

This was bound to happen, given iOS’ popularity and its success with prominent consumers. Apparently Xcode was weaker than iOS. But, at least in this case, you needed some pretty naive developers:

But to even install this affected version of the Xcode software, developers had to ignore a warning which indicated the software was damaged and should be moved to the trash […].

Tuesday Assorted Links

1. Samsung Takes Smartwatch Fight to Apple Considering that there’s no release date, price, or launch market specified, I think this headline is 2X the overstatement that it would be anyway. It runs Tizen, by the way. A variant will have a 3G modem. In terms of the modem and call functionality, I’m sincerely looking forward to seeing how that performs and what consumers think.

2. ‘It’s time’: Lenovo sends out invites for a Moto 360 2 unveiling on September 8th

3. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 uses machine learning to fight malware

Instead of relying on a static list of threats to protect you, it’ll actually watch out for suspicious app behavior. […]

“Snapdragon Smart Protect is engineered to look at the actual behavior of device applications in real time and almost instantly detect and classify any application behavior that is considered suspicious or anomalous,” Qualcomm wrote in a blog post. “Suspicious applications are classified into severity levels of malware […].

4. Apple partners with Cisco to boost enterprise business I get uneasy when I read things like this. There’s no meaningful consumer problem to solve here. And for Apple, what’s the worst down-side to *not* doing this? To me, it means X fewer people working on new products or helping existing customers have a meaningfully better experience.

One big problem, Messrs. Cook and Chambers said, is ensuring employees get adequate networking performance in the workplace. Apple and Cisco said they aim to establish a “fast lane” for iOS devices in the corporate world, prioritizing wireless and Web connections so critical business applications aren’t compromised by a streaming cat videos and other nonbusiness fare.

5. Xiaomi said to release notebook in 2016 with help from Inventec and Foxconn Will it use Windows? First Windows device of more to come?

Monday Assorted Links

1. On recent rumors of an Apple MVNO: two thoughts, from John Gruber and Jean-Louis Gassée, sum up the reality perfectly, in my view:

Apple is a partner with all the carriers around the world that support iPhone. They can’t compete against them while partnering with them. (link to Gruber’s post)

“[Apple’s] one and only goal is selling devices. Everything else is in support of that goal. Would [an Apple wireless carrier] sell twice as many iPhones? Probably not.” (link to Gassée’s post)

2. Samsung Invents another Round of Concepts for future Smartphones with Multiple Displays. Exciting. Glad to see someone tackling this problem. This is one of many patents Samsung has filed. The specifics of this one don’t matter as much as the notion that Samsung (and others) are working to make this a reality. Someday.

3. Xiaomi ties up with Taiwan’s Foxconn to assemble smartphones in India. This aligns with Xiaomi’s focus on cost reduction (because it sells at razor thin gross margins) and helps it pursue the hearts and minds of consumers.

4. HTC stored user fingerprints as image file in unencrypted folder. Lovely. Reminds me of one of the six reasons I’ve used an iPhone since the 3GS: industrial design, ease of use, camera, apps, software updates, and … security.

6. Back to the future: Nokia prepares for mobile comeback. Increase in hiring / activity, in preparation for 2016/17 brand-licensing comeback.

6. Graava is a new action camera that does the editing for you. Watch the two minute video. I like the idea of it. I don’t need the actual product, though. Will we ever see something comparable in a smartphone? It reminds me of HTC’s “Zoes”.

Waiting for Android’s Inevitable Security Armageddon

Ron Amadeo, for Ars Technica:

Android was originally designed, above all else, to be widely adopted. Google was starting from scratch with zero percent market share, so it was happy to give up control and give everyone a seat at the table in exchange for adoption. […]

Android still uses a software update chain-of-command designed back when the Android ecosystem had zero devices to update, and it just doesn’t work. There are just too many cooks in the kitchen: Google releases Android to OEMs, OEMs can change things and release code to carriers, carriers can change things and release code to consumers. It’s been broken for years.

I couldn’t have said it better. The headline seems apt, too. I usually don’t write about security. 1) My experience is limited; 2) iOS isn’t perfect, either; and 3) it’s not quite a dynamic, cutting-edge topic. But the number and scale of issues on Android is getting ridiculous. Google made the trade-off between rapid scale and solid security. Scale won. And so “open” is now also a double-entendre.

Sunday Assorted Links

Still digging out from vacation. Lot of interesting developments.

1. Huawei, Xiaomi to hike adoption of in-house-developed smartphone APs. I think they’re focused on reducing their component costs, and on diversifying or securing supply, rather than on any sort of performance boost. An interesting excerpt, however:

Xiaomi and Huawei’s strategy is expected to directly impact AP providers such as MediaTek and Qualcomm. Within the global top-5 smartphone vendors, Apple, Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi and LG, which together contribute over 60% of worldwide shipments, four of them have already adopted in-house developed APs or have been aggressively increasing their adoption, which could seriously damage independent ARM-AP suppliers as well as x86-based solution supplier Intel.

Note, however, that Leadcore, the AP manufacturer working win Xiaomi claims that “Xiaomi wants its own custom-designed processors to differentiate its products and control its destiny“. I think that’s a bunch of marketing spin, and the “differentiation” is really a cost focus.

2. Microsoft Launches ‘Translator’ Free Apple Watch App. I haven’t tried it yet. In principle, sounds like a good idea; a good fit with the fact that a smartwatch is, in my view, essentially a tool. And it’s not surprising that Microsoft has a team(s) working to quickly deliver apps for Apple Watch.

3. Big Android Makers Will Now Push Monthly Security Updates. … because there’s something magical and comforting about the nice, round 30-day number?

4. Michael Lopp (Rands in Repose): “Busy is a bug, not a feature.” I suppose it depends on the role. I agree that for a leader to be continuously busy, or “too busy”, is not a good sign. Though it is more complicated than that (“war time” vs. “peace time”, etc.). Michael is now at Pinterest. Another interesting part:

“It’s gonna sound like I’m lazy but I swear I’m not lazy,” he says. “My job is to get myself out of a job. I’m aggressively pushing things I think I could be really good at and should actually maybe own to someone else who’s gonna get a ‘B’ at it. But they’re gonna get the opportunity to go do that [and continue to learn in the process]. My job is to — it sounds like I just want to sit here and drink coffee and talk about bread — but it’s about pushing it down, so these things, which naturally come to me [go to others in the company].”

5. Smartphones are hurting our children – but the real culprit is bad parenting. The headline says it all.

The Importance of Security and Privacy in the Future of the Car

Nick Statt, for CNET:

“These [US Senate report] findings reveal that there is a clear lack of appropriate security measures to protect drivers against hackers who may be able to take control of a vehicle or against those who may wish to collect and use personal driver information,” the report reads. […]

Hackers no longer need a direct connection to the vehicle [because] malware from Bluetooth-connected smartphones and security holes in onboard software, like OnStar, provide numerous avenues to take control remotely. Because examples of hacks happening to everyday drivers remain largely undocumented […] automakers are not taking them seriously. […]

[Also], automakers are constantly gathering information about drivers, including locations traveled to and how long the car remains parked. Companies then store that data with little protection, sometimes even in third-party data centers whose own security may not have proper safeguards. The report said automakers rarely inform consumers about the information they’ve collected.

Sounds like an opportunity to think different.

Saturday Assorted Links

1. Apple Watch App From Starwood Will Literally Open Doors. Keyless check-in is cool. One of many ways that smartphones and smartwatches will connect us to things and places.

2. BlackBerry targeted for acquisition, say sources.

Microsoft and a number of China-based handset vendors, including Xiaomi Technology, Lenovo and Huawei, are being indicated as potential investors, the sources noted.

3. BlackBerry to Lay Off Undisclosed Number of Employees in Device Business. The company, like others, stopped innovating. And it also simply stopped adapting.

4. Researchers find Android factory reset faulty and reversible.

The group estimates that as many as 500 to 630 million Android devices might not be capable of completely wiping the data saved in their internal disks and SD cards.

The estimate is far from exact, and the real number could be meaningfully lower, but it’s still in the hundreds of millions. As John Gruber, of Daring Fireball would say, tongue in cheek: “Open always wins.”

Market Scan Highlights

Peruse the whole thing here (it’s easy). Some highlights, with my comments.

1. Microsoft will bundle its apps on Cyanogen’s Android OS (The Verge)

  • Raises Cyanogen’s credibility, visibility, and viability. Seems like low risk for Microsoft… no?

2. Apple Acquires Array Camera Developer LinX (Image Sensors World)

  • Neat improvement in quality (see link). Looks like Samsung and LG couldn’t afford the price. Apple doing more and more with Israeli co’s. Amazing high tech density.

3. Apple Invents a Simple Voice Command to unlock your iPhone (Patently Apple)

  • Yes, it’s just a patent. But more and more dots point toward “always on voice” coming to Apple products. At least that’s what Amazon Echo tells me.

4. Apple to equip next iPhone with Force Touch technology (DigiTimes)

  • You’d heard that, I know. But the article mentions other vendors using the technology, in 2016.

5. Samsung “will focus its efforts on flexible smartphone units” in 2015 (DigiTimes)

  • Just good to watch this topic.

6. Xiaomi Finds Themselves On The Receiving End Of Counterfeit Products (Ubergizmo)

  • Oh, the irony.

[Read more…]

Tuesday Evening Assorted Links

1. Google’s MVNO detailed in leaked app with per-GB data plans, rollover and shared data, and auto-switching between partner networks

2. Sprint Will Come to Your Home or Office to Set Up Your Next Phone. Is it that much work to do, when it helps you keep high-value consumers? Please email me with thoughts.

3. CCS Insight: Google’s Android One program has had ‘limited’ impact on the market. I can’t remember the last time anyone (media or otherwise) mentioned Android One.

4. Trusted Voice unlock is rolling out to some Android users

5. 15 Reasons Apple Watch Is Going To Be Way Bigger Than People Think

6. Apple is reportedly planning to build ‘well over 20 million’ watches this year

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