https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/22/us/politics/totok-app-uae.html

ToTok, an Emirati messaging app that has been downloaded to millions of phones, is the latest escalation of a digital arms race.

ToTok is a cleverly designed tool for mass surveillance, according to the technical analysis and interviews, in that it functions much like the myriad other Apple and Android apps that track users’ location and contacts.

On the surface, ToTok tracks users’ location by offering an accurate weather forecast. It hunts for new contacts any time a user opens the app, under the pretense that it is helping connect with their friends, much like how Instagram flags Facebook friends. It has access to users’ microphones, cameras, calendar and other phone data. Even its name is an apparent play on the popular Chinese app TikTok.

https://www.theverge.com/2019/12/20/21029499/decade-fails-flops-tech-science-culture-apple-google-data-kickstarter-2010-2019

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-tiktok-navy-idUSKBN1YO2HU

https://edition.cnn.com/2019/12/17/tech/epilepsy-strobe-twitter-attack-trnd/

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2019/12/apple-google-and-amazon-team-up-for-joint-smart-home-standard/

“The goal of the Connected Home over IP project is to simplify development for manufacturers and increase compatibility for consumers.”

https://ww.9to5mac.com/2019/12/18/facebook-accesses-your-location/

https://www.androidpolice.com/2019/12/15/google-pauses-chrome-79-rollout-on-android-after-bug-wipes-data-in-some-apps/

data from localStorage and WebSQL — two types of storage commonly used by web apps and packaged apps — wasn’t migrated properly.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/lifelabs-pays-hackers-to-recover-data-of-15-million-customers/

Data breach took place in early November, and hackers also gained access to 85,000 laboratory test results.

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/epg4xm/amazon-ring-camera-security

Ring lacks basic security features, making it easy for hackers to turn the company’s cameras against its customers.

https://www.fastcompany.com/3064539/self-driving-mercedes-will-be-programmed-to-sacrifice-pedestrians-to-save-the-driver

Instead of worrying about troublesome details like ethics, Mercedes will just program its cars to save the driver and the car’s occupants, in every situation.