Google bans most Android apps from displaying lockscreen ads
It is near impossible to avoid ads these days, but Google has just introduced a new policy that makes at least one area of your smartphone a safe haven.
The new policy means that most apps will no longer be permitted to display ads on the lockscreen. But while this is something that will please Android users, it's not something that the company has really trumpeted.
Google launches Datally for Android, a tool to monitor and control mobile data usage
For many people -- particularly in certain parts of the world -- mobile data is an expensive commodity. If you're someone who likes to keep an eye on exactly what's using up all of your allowance -- and take control of it -- Google's new Android app, Datally, can help.
Datally has been designed to not only reveal which apps are using up data, but to provide a way to rein it in. Formerly known as Triangle whilst in beta, the app lets you block background data usage on a per-app basis, and makes it much easier to access data-related settings.
Microsoft Edge beta for Android gains password syncing and more
Microsoft has just given mobile users a more compelling reason to use Edge as their web browser -- and heaven knows one was needed. The latest update to the mobile browser brings a genuinely useful feature: password syncing.
The announcement that Edge was coming to Android and iOS came somewhat out of the blue, and now it seems that Microsoft is intent on making it a real contender for the mobile browsing crown. Password syncing is the headline addition to the browser, but it's not the only thing that's new.
Privacy: a huge proportion of Android apps are secretly tracking you
A joint research project between Yale University's Privacy Lab and French non-profit Exodus Privacy has uncovered widescale tracking in a large number of Android apps. The likes of Tinder, Spotify, Uber, Twitter and Snapchat -- as well as masses of lesser-known apps -- were found to be riddled with snooping components relating to no less than 25 well-known trackers.
In all, around three quarters of apps were found to gather personal information about users via a variety of third-party tracking techniques. Researchers have published their findings online so Android users can check if their favorite apps are snooping on them.
Oreo arrives on the OnePlus 5 through OxygenOS open beta
The OnePlus 5T may have just rolled out, but the Chinese smartphone maker has not forgotten its older handsets. Having rolled out a beta version of Android Oreo to the OnePlus 3 and 3T, now the OnePlus 5 is getting the same treatment.
Making good on the promise it made at the launch of the OnePlus 5T, the company has launch the first OxygenOS Oreo open beta for the OnePlus 5. It is available for anyone to download and install, and the full, stable release of Oreo is due early next year.
Privacy: Google caught tracking Android users' whereabouts even if location services are disabled
For those concerned about their privacy, location services is just one more setting to disable on their phone. But Google has now revealed that it is not only able to, but actually does track the location of Android users even if location services are disabled.
More than this, Google records the addresses of nearby cell towers -- thereby giving a very good idea of location -- even when there is no SIM card in a phone and no apps are used. This data has been collected since the beginning of the year.
MediaProjection vulnerability leaves 77 percent of Android phones open to screen and audio recording attacks
More than three quarters of Android phones are vulnerable to screen and audio recording by attackers. By exploiting the MediaProjection service, an attacker can easily trick a user into granting the relevant rights to a malicious app.
Although the vulnerability has been fixed in Android 8 Oreo, users running Lollipop, Marshmallow or Nougat remain at risk. MediaProjection is -- by design -- able to capture screen activity and audio, and it does have legitimate uses, but by using a technique known as tap-jacking permission can be given for it to be used for more nefarious things.
Adblock Plus tries to entice UC Browser users to Adblock Browser
Adblock Plus is using the disappearance of the popular Android app UC Browser from Google Play to promote its own mobile web browser.
An open letter to people looking for the currently-unavailable UC Browser calls on mobile web users to give Adblock Browser a try. The privacy-focused browser includes, obviously, an adblocker and, as Adblock Plus cheekily points out, "we haven't been kicked out of the store."
UCWeb sheds more light on the disappearance of UC Browser from Google Play
The Android web browser UC Browser disappeared from Google Play recently, and there has been great speculation about just what caused the app to be pulled. Now the company behind it has spoken out, giving a little more detail about what has happened.
While it was previously thought that "misleading and unhealthy methods of promotion" were to blame, it turns out that a setting within the app was problematic.
LastPass is working with Google to ensure its Android app is not delisted
Google recently announced that it was going to take action against apps that misuse its Accessibility Services API. There are a number of big-name apps that make use of this API, including the likes of LastPass and Tasker.
Users of the password management tool were concerned to hear that their favorite app could be affected. But the company has spoken out to say that it is working with Google, and there will be "no immediate impact" to its users.
ASUS ZenFone V Live Android smartphone is beautiful, affordable, and exclusive to Verizon
Apple is selling the $1,000 iPhone X nowadays, and yeah, there is a place for it. Shockingly, when the "X" first came out, people were not only willing to pay a high premium for Apple's latest, but they waited in line to do so. Think about that -- queuing up to part with a grand! If you have that kind of money, more power to you, but I know a lot of people are hurting financially out there -- the iPhone X is simply not achievable for them.
If you don't have a lot of money, do not worry -- you can still get a quality smartphone for much less. You can opt for an older iPhone model, or if you are particularly low on cash, choose Android. Google's operating system powers many affordable devices, and now, ASUS unveils a very intriguing model that is exclusive to Verizon. The "ZenFone V Live," as it is called, has respectable specifications, looks great, and best of all, it costs an insanely low $168.
OnePlus 5T first-impressions review
When looking at the OnePlus 5T, it is difficult to believe that it is not a completely new flagship killer. You can thank the novel new display for that. It takes up more space on the front, giving you the impression that you are in for a completely different experience.
The new display is also larger, but it has small bezels all-around, which means that the whole device feels manageable in the hand. The aluminum body, which sports a Midnight Black finish on my review unit, has a quality feeling, which is what you expect from a OnePlus device.
This is the OnePlus 5T
OnePlus started a trend last year when it introduced the first "T" upgrade for its then-flagship killer, the OnePlus 3. On paper, the new model wasn't all that different to the original, but all the changes added up to make the OnePlus 3T much more refined.
Now, it is the turn of the OnePlus 5 to receive the same treatment, as OnePlus today officially announces the OnePlus 5T. Unlike the first time around though, the differences are not as small. The new kid on the block looks like a completely different flagship, thanks in no small part to a new, cutting-edge display.
UC Browser pulled from Google Play for shady activity
UC Browser -- the Android web browser with more than half a billion downloads to its name, and which has proved particularly popular in India -- has been pulled from Google Play.
In addition to download from the Play Store, the browser came preinstalled on a number of handsets, and it gained popularity thanks to its speedy performance and low system requirements. But the fact that it "used 'Misleading' and 'Unhealthy' methods of promotion" led to it being nixed.
Preinstalled EngineerMode app on OnePlus phones gives root access without unlocking the bootloader
Rooting Android phones is fairly common these days, and it opens up the possibility of doing things that would not otherwise be an option. But if you are rooting your phone, you want it to be you who is in charge of the process. If you have a OnePlus phone, you may be interested -- and a little disturbed -- to learn that the company is preinstalling an app that acts as a backdoor to root access.
The app is called EngineerMode and it is preinstalled on the OnePlus 3, 3T and 5. It is possible to exploit the app to gain root access to a device -- all it takes is a simple command and a password that can be determined fairly easily. On one hand this is a worrying discovery; on the other, it opens up a way to root OnePlus phones without unlocking the bootloader.
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