Articles about Mobile App

Talent borrows, genius steals – or so the saying goes. In the world of software, there is certainly a lot of borrowing of ideas, and Google is no stranger to bringing influences from other browsers to Chrome.

The latest example sees Google copying an idea that was implemented by Apple some time ago. Designed to aid navigation, Chrome now has a “predictive back animation” much like the one that was introduced in Android 16 for app navigation. But just what does this latest feature mean for users – and when can you expect to see it?

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Google Maps is so ubiquitous that it is hard to imagine that there are any unsupported platforms remaining, but there are still a few. This is highlighted by arrival of Google Maps for Garmin smartwatches via the Connect IQ Store.

This free app means that owners of key Garmin devices can now benefit from turn-by-turn navigation on their wrist. The newly released app is targeted primarily at walkers, cyclists and runners, but it can also be used when driving or performing other activities if this feels helpful to users.

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Notifications are part and parcel of life, being both useful and interesting. But they can also be problematic. Google is aware that the notifications generated by websites can be “spammy or even deceptive”.

The worst offenders can attempt to trick people into sharing personal information or downloading dangerous software. Google is using machine learning to fight back, launching warnings about warnings of unwanted notifications.

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Clearly keen to keep pace with its main rival TikTok, Instagram has officially launched its video editing app designed to help creators produce more impression content. Available for iOS and Android the free video editing app goes by the name Edits, and it has many of the same features as TikTok’s CapCut.

Edits was first announced back in January, but now it is available for everyone to download. Instagram says that is helps you to “make great videos on your phone”, billing it as a “video creation app designed for creators”. It seems to be something of a work in progress, but does Edits have what it takes to appeal to the masses?

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While it is widely known that Android is based on Linux, it is not a typical Linux distro in many ways. There are a lot of standard features and components of Linux that are simply not available in Google’s mobile operating system.

This is starting to change. Developers -- or, indeed, anyone looking to tinker around a little -- will soon be able to use the Linux Terminal, opening up new and interesting worlds of possibility.

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Apple devices have historically had a reputation for being immune to malware, but a new report from Jamf reveals that it's tracked 300 malware families on macOS and found 21 new ones in 2023.

Jamf's latest Security 360 report examined a sample of 15 million desktop computers, tablets and smartphone devices they protect, across 90 countries and multiple platforms (macOS, iOS/iPad, Android and Windows).

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The use of AI tools for mobile app development and testing is growing, and developers and testers are keen to further expand the use of these tools, according to a new report.

The study from Kobiton finds 60 of respondents say they are currently using generative AI tools in their QA cycles to update scripts or code, 55 percent are using these tools to analyze test results, and 47 percent are using them to generate test scripts.

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A major new threat has made its presence felt in the last few months. Cybercriminals have expanded the use of screen spoofing or overlay attacks from web applications to trusted mobile apps.

What’s more, the availability of as-a-service technology has lowered the threshold for attacks. We spoke to Dr. Klaus Schenk, SVP security and threat research at Verimatrix, to learn more about how these attacks work and what can be done to guard against them.

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It can hardly have escaped your notice that Meta officially launched what it is hoping will be its Twitter killer, Threads, this week. The new social platform has already proved astonishingly popular, with millions upon millions of users signing up in a matter of hours.

But while there is a great deal of excitement about what Threads has to offers and how it could disrupt social media, there has also been disappointment at the limitations of the mobile apps. If you're one of the many users who wishes that Threads had more in the way of features, options and settings, Meta has just launched a beta program which anyone is free to join.

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The growth in mobile device and app usage has created a growing attack surface, with 60 percent of global web traffic now coming from mobile devices. So it's not surprising that increasing numbers of cybercriminals and nation state actors want to exploit these areas of vulnerability.

The latest Global Mobile Threat Report from Zimperium finds that 80 percent of phishing sites now either specifically target mobile devices or are built to function on both mobile devices and desktops.

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While most iOS users will remain iOS users for life, and the same can be said of those who choose Android, there are some people who switch allegiances. There are also some who like the idea of switching platforms, but are put off by the potential complexity.

To help anyone looking to make the jump from an iPhone to an Android handset, Google has quietly launched an app called, appropriately enough, Switch To Android. But while the app sounds great in theory, it is found sadly wanting.

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As the internet is increasingly accessed from mobile devices, mobile apps need to be considered as part of a company's security strategy.

A new report from BitSight finds that three out of four mobile applications evaluated contained at least one moderate vulnerability. It also finds material and severe vulnerabilities in some popular apps.

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Threats to web, mobile and API-based apps are developing rapidly and the average time taken to fix them isn't improving, with critical vulnerabilities remaining open on average for 202 days.

NTT Application Security has released its latest AppSec Stats Flash report looking at the current state of application security and the wider threat landscape. It finds the utilities sector the worst, with with 66 percent of applications in the industry having at least one serious exploitable vulnerability throughout the year.

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Emoji are well-loved, and every time new ones are released, they are received with much excitement. But how about the idea of creating your own emoji?

This is what Google made possible earlier this year when it released Emoji Kitchen. While this does not let you design your own emoji from scratch, it does give you the chance to combine existing emoji to create new, strange and funny creations. Now the tool has been updated to make it even better than ever.

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Having already enjoyed success on macOS, Android and Windows, the security and privacy focused Avast Secure Browser has made its way to iOS and iPadOS. With security at the forefront, the undoubted headline feature of the browser is the integrated VPN facility.

On top of this, there is ad blocking and tracker blocking, both of which go a long way to improving your online experience and ensuring that your data does not fall into the wrong hands. The ad blocker is customizable, so you can choose to block absolutely everything, or opt to allow less annoying ads to be displayed.

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