Articles about Apple

The Vault 7 leaks this week suggest that the CIA has been able to exploit vulnerabilities in a wide range of popular hardware and software, including Windows, macOS and Linux. One of the suggestions is that the agency produced EFI (Extensible Firmware Interface) rootkits for MacBooks called DarkMatter.

To help calm the fears of MacBook owners, Intel Security has pushed out a tool to check for such rootkits. Apple issued a statement earlier this week indicating that it had addressed "many of the issues" exposed by WikiLeaks, but Intel Security's further intervention will bring some peace of mind to concerned users.

Continue reading →

One of the best ways to save money on an Apple product is to buy refurbished. Not only do you enjoy a significant discount but the device also passes a rigorous inspection and comes with a factory warranty as well.

The 2016 MacBook Pro, which was introduced in October 2016, is the latest device Apple added to its Certified Refurbished program, being introduced in multiple configurations to its online store. Here's what you should know about it.

Continue reading →

The Vault 7 document and code cache released yesterday by WikiLeaks revealed that many big software companies were being actively exploited by the CIA. Apple, Microsoft, Google, Samsung, and even Linux were all named as having vulnerabilities that could be used for surveillance.

Apple was one of the first of the companies mentioned in the documents to speak out and address concerns and security. But while the iPhone manufacturer has quickly indicated that it has fixed "many" of the vulnerabilities, Microsoft and Samsung have merely said they are looking into the issues raised. Other companies and groups mentioned have made no comment at all.

Continue reading →

Yesterday WikiLeaks unleashed Vault 7 online, revealing a wealth of information about the CIA's hacking tools and techniques. Included in the data dump was the suggestion that the CIA was actively exploiting vulnerabilities in iOS and other software to listen in on people. Apple has responded by saying that "many" of these security holes have been fixed.

Importantly, the company is unable to say that all of the vulnerabilities being used -- or that have been historically used -- by the CIA have been addressed, but it does insist that it "will continue work to rapidly address" problems that are found. A number of iOS security flaws have been exploited by the CIA to surveil individuals, or even take remote control of devices.

Continue reading →

Over 90 percent of enterprises have some Mac usage and 99 percent have iPads and iPhones according to the results of a new survey of IT professionals by Apple device management specialist Jamf.

Almost all of the organizations surveyed in 2016 report an increase in both Mac and iOS device adoption over the previous year and much of this is driven by employee choice.

Continue reading →

Thanks to its Unix foundation, macOS is a rock-solid desktop operating system. While it is not infallible, there are far fewer malware threats for Apple's OS compared to, say, Windows 10. With that said, Microsoft's desktop offering is more targeted due to its monstrous market share.

As more and more consumers buy Mac computers, evildoers will have increased incentive to write malware for macOS. Luckily, users of Apple's operating system that choose to use Google Chrome for web surfing will soon be safer. You see, the search giant is improving its Safe Browsing initiative to better warn macOS users of malicious websites and attempts to alter browser settings.

Continue reading →

We reported back in August that failure rates of iOS devices had overtaken those of Android for the first time.

The latest State of Mobile Device Performance and Health report from Blancco Technology Group shows that this trend is continuing with the iOS failure rate at 62 percent in the final quarter of last year.

Continue reading →

In 2017, if you aren't leveraging cloud storage for your iPhone or iPad, you are doing something wrong. By uploading photos and other files to iCloud or Dropbox, for example, and then deleting them locally, you can increase the amount of available local storage. With that said, sometimes you do not want to use the cloud exclusively.

If you need to expand the available local storage on your iPhone or iPad, there are many flash drives that connect either wirelessly or using a lightning connector. SanDisk has two such popular offerings -- the iXpand Flash Drive (which connects using lightning) and the Connect Wireless Stick. The problem, you see, is that both were limited to a maximum of 128GB, while newer iOS devices came with up to 256GB internally. Today, SanDisk announces that both drives are being upped to 256GB to match the current max found on Apple's mobile devices.

Continue reading →

While construction of Apple's immense spaceship campus, officially known as Apple Park, will continue well into 2017, the iPhone maker today announces that the first employees will move in in just a couple of months.

In April, Apple will start moving over 12,000 people to its new 175-acre campus. The iPhone maker says that it will need more than half a year to finish this process.

Continue reading →

Last year Apple was hit with $14 billion tax bill after the European Commission decided the company had enjoyed "illegal tax benefits" in Ireland. Apple said that it would appeal against the ruling which Tim Cook described as "maddening", but Europe is showing increased interest in cracking down on technology companies taking advantage of tax loopholes.

The appeal has now been placed, and Apple is asking the appeal court to either partly overturn the Commission's ruling and pay its legal fees, or completely overturn the ruling. The fact that Apple is setting forth two possible outcomes would indicate that it feels a full annulment of the original ruling is unlikely, but it has submitted a 14-point appeal.

Continue reading →

While tablets may not be as popular nowadays compared to a few years ago, they are still totally relevant devices. Even as large-screen smartphones gain in popularity, some consumers still enjoy owning a tablet too. For instance, I own an iPhone 6s Plus, but I absolutely adore my iPad mini 4; my Apple tablet gets used every day.

If you are the proud owner of an Apple iPad, and you want to protect it, there are countless cases available. Today, GEAR4 announces yet another, and it hopes it will grab some attention in the crowded market. The rugged "Buckingham" flip case is available for iPad mini 4, Air 2, Pro 9.7, and Pro 12.9.

Continue reading →

One of the things that the iPhone is missing compared to some of its main Android rivals is wireless charging support. While this may not sound like a major omission, many consumers nowadays -- especially buyers in this segment -- expect a modern smartphone to have this technology. And it looks like Apple might finally offer it.

In what can only be considered as a big first step towards an iPhone with wireless charging support, Apple has joined the Wireless Power Consortium (WPC), the group responsible for promoting the Qi standard that is prevalent in devices that offer wireless charging -- like the Samsung Galaxy S7.

Continue reading →

Apple is a company that puts a big focus on security and privacy. Unlike Google, the iPhone-maker does not make the majority of its money from advertising and harvesting user data. Heck, Tim Cook and company even famously fought a government request to help it break into an iPhone. Ultimately, if you value your privacy, Apple products can arguably be trusted a bit more than its competitors.

With all of that said, today, a bit of a failure was discovered on Apple's part regarding user privacy. You see, when an Apple user deleted their web browser history, they assumed it was gone forever -- and rightfully so. While the data no longer appeared on Apple devices, it has been discovered by ElcomSoft that it persisted on iCloud. To make matters worse, this data is easily recoverable.

Continue reading →

The LG UltraFine 5K is supposed to be the monitor to get if you're a MacBook user wanting a modern, high-resolution Thunderbolt display. On paper it certainly looks like it. It even has Apple's endorsement, being presented by the company at its October event last year, alongside the latest MacBook Pros.

But, as we just found out, the UltraFine 5K has a serious problem: it can't deal with Wi-Fi interferences, which makes it unusable around routers. For a device that costs almost $1,000, that is a serious issue. The good news is that LG has come up with a fix. The bad news is that existing owners are not going to like it.

Continue reading →

In 2014, Apple introduced the first big iPhone, the iPhone 6 Plus. Since then, the company has offered a phablet version for each new incarnation of its hugely successful device. While Apple doesn't say how many buyers prefer it over the standard model, reports show that it accounts for a significant portion of sales.

In US, the Plus models have gained considerable traction, with Consumer Intelligence Research Partners saying that they made up 35 percent of the iPhone installed base as of 31 December 2016. And their popularity is growing, as a year prior that figure stood at 25 percent.

Continue reading →