News written by James Delahunty (April, 2017)

The New York Times has revealed that the ride-hailing service tracked iPhones used by customers in a bid to tackle fraud.

The idea was to identify criminals that install the app on stolen devices, use stolen credit cards to book journeys and then wipe the device and repeat.

"Being able to recognise known bad actors when they try to get back on to our network is an important security measure for both Uber and our users," Uber commented.

However pure Uber's intentions may have been, such fingerprinting measures are in violation of Apple's privacy policies, and Tim Cook himself reportedly ordered Uber to cease the activity or face expulsion from the App Store.

The NYT article also claimed that Uber went as far as to ringfence Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, to avoid detection of the practice by Apple employees.

Source: New York Times

As part of its new deal with Universal Music Group (UMG), Spotify is allowing artists to limit the availability of new albums on its platform to paying subscribers only for two weeks.

Spotify recently announced that it had reached 50 million paying subscribers, but the music streaming service has yet to report a profit since its 2008 debut. It relies heavily on licensing music from the big players in the industry to keep its lead over rivals like Apple or Tidal.

As part of its renewal negotiations with Universal, Spotify has agreed that Universal artists can choose to limit their new albums releases to paying subscribers only for a two week window.

"We know that not every album by every artist should be released the same way, and we've worked hard with UMG to develop a new, flexible release policy," Spotify Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Daniel Ek said, reports Reuters.

"Universal artists can choose to release new albums on premium only for two weeks, offering subscribers an earlier chance to explore the complete creative work, while the singles are available across Spotify for all our listeners to enjoy."

Western Digital has unveiled its first portable solid-state-drive (SSD) just months after finally releasing its first Desktop / internal SSD.

My Passport SSD comes with either 256GB, 512GB or 1TB of solid state storage, priced at $100, $200 and $400 respectively. It is compatible with USB Type-C and USB Type-A (via adapter) ports, reaching speeds up to 515MB/s.

For the security and privacy conscious, My Password SSD features password protection thanks to 256-bit AES Hardware Encryption with WD Security software. It's also built to be tough, with WD claiming it could survive a fall from up to 6.5 feet (1.98 meters).

See more: Western Digital

via: Engadget

Apple bricked iPhones and iPads that were repaired / serviced by third-party technicians, an Australian regulatory body alleges.

Apple is being sued downunder for allegedly bricking hundreds of iPhones and iPads with software updates. That's the claim being made by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) in a lawsuit against the Cupertino giant.

Specifically, the regulator claims that Apple bricked hundreds of iPhones and iPads and then refused to fix them. According to the regulator, Apple refused to fix the devices because they had been previously been serviced by non-Apple technicians.

Apple customers who had downloaded software updates during September 2014 and February 2016 were later prompted with a message that the device "could not be restored and has stopped functioning."

Upon reaching out to Apple, customers were told that Apple was not required to provide a remedy.

"Consumer guarantee rights under the Australian Consumer Law exist independently of any manufacturer's warranty and are not extinguished simply because a consumer has goods repaired by a third party," ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said.

Microsoft has revealed the final specs of its upcoming Project Scorpio console, promising true 4K gaming at 60 frames per second.

Digital Foundry spent time at Microsoft's Redmond campus and got to see Project Scorpio in action as it stands, along with confirmed final specs. Under the hood, the console contains a CPU with eight custom x86 cores clocked at 2.3GHz, still using AMD's Jaguar architecture, rather than the latest Ryzen CPU architecture.

A custom GPU with 40 customised compute units at 1172MHz will be the real powerhouse of Project Scorpio, enabling native 4K gaming at 60fps. Project Scorpio will also boast 12GB GDDR5, compared to 8GB GDDR5 in the PS4 Pro. 4K UDH Blu-ray is also supported.

Microsoft promised at E3 in 2016 that Project Scorpio will be the most powerful gaming console ever, eclipsing the PS4 Pro and it's own Xbox One S.

There is no design for Scorpio to show off yet or any details on release date or pricing. For more information on Scorpio as it stands, read this article at Eurogamer.