Privacy is a growing concern in today’s world. Follow along with all our coverage related to privacy, security, what Apple and other companies are doing to keep your information safe, and what steps you can take to keep your information private.
Neon, the app that pays you to share your audio recordings with an AI system, says that it will return despite its recent massive security breach.
The app shot up the App Store ratings after promising to pay users hundreds or even thousands of dollars per year for allowing their audio conversations to be used to train AI chatbots …
Expand Expanding Close
We learned back in February that the British government had secretly ordered Apple to create a worldwide backdoor into iCloud. We said at the time that the demand was “as technically clueless as it is outrageous.”
Apple responded very intelligently, and it seemed from a development last month that the UK had withdrawn its demand. We’re learning today that this isn’t in fact the case …
Expand Expanding Close
9to5Mac Security Bite is exclusively brought to you by Mosyle, the only Apple Unified Platform. Making Apple devices work-ready and enterprise-safe is all we do. Our unique integrated approach to management and security combines state-of-the-art Apple-specific security solutions for fully automated Hardening & Compliance, Next Generation EDR, AI-powered Zero Trust, and exclusive Privilege Management with the most powerful and modern Apple MDM on the market. The result is a totally automated Apple Unified Platform currently trusted by over 45,000 organizations to make millions of Apple devices work-ready with no effort and at an affordable cost. Request your EXTENDED TRIAL today and understand why Mosyle is everything you need to work with Apple.
Earlier this year, Apple announced that it was leading the charge on a cross-industry effort to bring end-to-end encryption (E2EE) to the RCS Universal Profile, which is published by the GSMA. Apple told 9to5Mac in March it would come to the iPhone in a future software update. Google soon after jumped in, stating it too was ‘committed to providing a secure messaging experience.’
I didn’t think it was completely unreasonable to assume we’d see this showcased at WWDC 2025…that didn’t happen. Then I thought maybe in one of the iOS 26 betas? Also nothing. So, what happened to cross-platform E2EE for RCS messaging? Is it still coming?
Expand Expanding Close
Researchers have discovered major Tile security flaws that could let both the company itself and a tech-savvy stalker track your location. These arise from two crucial differences between the security used for AirTags and Tile tags.
The flaw could even be exploited to allow a malicious actor to falsely frame a Tile owner for stalking, by making it appear as if one of your Tile tags is constantly in the vicinity of somebody else’s tag …
Expand Expanding Close
Earlier today, we covered the skyrocketing success of Neon, an app that pays users in exchange for recording their phone calls. Now, the app has gone offline, following the discovery of an egregious security breach. Here are the details.
Expand Expanding Close
A bizarre app that invites you to record and share your audio calls so that it can sell the data to AI companies has become the second most downloaded social app in the app store.
Neon Mobile says that users can sell their privacy for hundreds or even thousands of dollars per year by allowing their audio conversations to be used for AI training …
Expand Expanding Close
For many years, it was accepted wisdom that Mac malware wasn’t really an issue. One of the reasons for that was that the market share was simply too low to make it a worthwhile target for attackers.
Today, of course, is a very different world. Macs are the fourth most popular brand of personal computers, and as owners of a premium brand, Mac owners make a juicy target. Does that mean you need third-party antivirus software on a Mac, or are the built-in security protections good enough? A very thorough test sought to find out …
Expand Expanding Close
Mobile carriers are very slowly getting better at detecting and blocking scam texts, but it seems the fraudsters may still be staying ahead of the game.
Scammers are now using a technology known as SMS blasters, backpack-sized devices that can trick smartphones into thinking they are cell towers …
Expand Expanding Close
In a threat and incidents report released today, France’s Information Security Agency confirmed that Apple issued a new wave of threat notifications earlier this month. Here are the details.
Expand Expanding Close
After warning 9to5Mac last month about undetectable Mac malware hidden in a fake PDF converter site, Mosyle, a leader in Apple device management and security, has now uncovered a new infostealer. Dubbed ModStealer, the malware has remained invisible to all major antivirus engines since first appearing on VirusTotal nearly a month ago.
In details shared exclusively with 9to5Mac, Mosyle says ModStealer doesn’t just target macOS systems, but is cross-platform and purpose-built for one thing: stealing data.
Expand Expanding Close
A Plex data breach in 2022 exposed usernames, email addresses, and encrypted passwords. The company required all users to change their passwords as a precaution, and now history seems to be repeating itself.
The company is again emailing users, using virtually identical wording to describe to report a new data breach with the same data obtained …
Expand Expanding Close
9to5Mac Security Bite is exclusively brought to you by Mosyle, the only Apple Unified Platform. Making Apple devices work-ready and enterprise-safe is all we do. Our unique integrated approach to management and security combines state-of-the-art Apple-specific security solutions for fully automated Hardening & Compliance, Next Generation EDR, AI-powered Zero Trust, and exclusive Privilege Management with the most powerful and modern Apple MDM on the market. The result is a totally automated Apple Unified Platform currently trusted by over 45,000 organizations to make millions of Apple devices work-ready with no effort and at an affordable cost. Request your EXTENDED TRIAL today and understand why Mosyle is everything you need to work with Apple.
If you’re reading this week’s Security Bite on your desktop, look closely at your browser’s address bar. Notice how the main (root) domain is bolder, while the rest of the URL is a lighter grey? This is not an accident, it’s a purposly implemented psychological trick called salience bias. This little design choice has protected users from phishing attacks for over a decade.
Expand Expanding Close
A TransUnion data breach has exposed sensitive personal information for millions of US consumers, including dates of birth and social security numbers.
However, reports of a major Gmail security problem affecting all 2.5 billion users are false, though loosely based on a far more contained incident back in June …
Expand Expanding Close
9to5Mac Security Bite is exclusively brought to you by Mosyle, the only Apple Unified Platform. Making Apple devices work-ready and enterprise-safe is all we do. Our unique integrated approach to management and security combines state-of-the-art Apple-specific security solutions for fully automated Hardening & Compliance, Next Generation EDR, AI-powered Zero Trust, and exclusive Privilege Management with the most powerful and modern Apple MDM on the market. The result is a totally automated Apple Unified Platform currently trusted by over 45,000 organizations to make millions of Apple devices work-ready with no effort and at an affordable cost. Request your EXTENDED TRIAL today and understand why Mosyle is everything you need to work with Apple.
In an earlier edition of Security Bite, I predicted that Apple would finally announce end-to-end encryption (E2EE) to the RCS Universal Profile at WWDC 2025. That didn’t happen, but Apple did introduce two nice spam-protection tools along with a series of smaller updates designed to make the iPhone safer for everyone. Now that iOS 26 is basically in its final form ahead of wide release in tandem with the launch of iPhone 17, here’s a rundown of my favorite privacy features.
Expand Expanding Close
Apple’s commitment to end-to-end encryption is so strong that it withdrew a key privacy feature from the UK market rather than be forced to compromise it globally. The company also faced pressure on this front from the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA).
In a surprising twist, the White House came out in support of strong encryption, and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is now urging Apple and other tech giants to stand firm on the issue …
Expand Expanding Close
9to5Mac Security Bite is exclusively brought to you by Mosyle, the only Apple Unified Platform. Making Apple devices work-ready and enterprise-safe is all we do. Our unique integrated approach to management and security combines state-of-the-art Apple-specific security solutions for fully automated Hardening & Compliance, Next Generation EDR, AI-powered Zero Trust, and exclusive Privilege Management with the most powerful and modern Apple MDM on the market. The result is a totally automated Apple Unified Platform currently trusted by over 45,000 organizations to make millions of Apple devices work-ready with no effort and at an affordable cost. Request your EXTENDED TRIAL today and understand why Mosyle is everything you need to work with Apple.
TikTok has been found selling GPS trackers through its Shop feature that are being marketed by viral videos explicitly encouraging secretly tracking a romantic partner. What’s most alarming is that these videos have millions of views, and metrics show that over a hundred thousand have been sold.
I usually reserve Security Bite for digital security topics, but this discovery was too riveting to ignore. As first reported by 404 Media, the trackers are being compared to Apple AirTags—but for the wrong reasons…
Expand Expanding Close
Earlier today, the Russian government announced a new rule requiring all phones and tablets to ship with MAX, its state-backed messenger app, preinstalled. Here are the details.
Expand Expanding Close
A former Meta product manager has claimed that the social network circumvented Apple’s privacy protections, as well as cheating advertisers, and fired him when he repeatedly raised the issue internally.
Meta is said to have found ways to identify Apple users even after they refused consent for app tracking, in order to avoid an estimated $10 billion loss of revenue …
Expand Expanding Close
The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) carried out a record number of phone searches of travelers arriving at, or returning to, the US in the last quarter.
The legal position on these searches is unclear when it comes to US citizens, but there are steps you can take to protect your privacy …
Expand Expanding Close
More than 370,000 Grok AI chats have been published on the Grok website and indexed by search engines, making them public.
In addition to the interactive chats themselves, Elon Musk’s xAI company also published photos, spreadsheets and other uploaded documents …
Expand Expanding Close
The UK has retreated from a controversial order that would have forced Apple to provide a backdoor to American users’ data, according to a statement from US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. Here are the details.
Expand Expanding Close
If you were holding a competition for the scummiest business model, then data brokers would be very high up the list. These companies make money by buying personal data from app and website owners and selling it to companies who want to spam us.
A US Senator has now drawn attention to the latest sketchy practice by these companies: making it harder for us to opt out by hiding that option from search results …
Expand Expanding Close
9to5Mac is brought to you by Incogni: Protect your personal info from prying eyes. With Incogni, you can scrub your deeply sensitive information from data brokers across the web, including people search sites. Incogni limits your phone number, address, email, SSN, and more from circulating. Fight back against unwanted data brokers with a 30-day money back guarantee.
Apple uses two different forms of encryption for your iCloud data – a strong form for particularly sensitive data like the Health and Journal apps, but a weaker one for a lot of other data you still wouldn’t want falling into the wrong hands.
Fortunately the company gives you the option of switching to strong encryption for all your iCloud data, and while there are a few steps involved, it’s a worthwhile security and privacy safeguard …
Expand Expanding Close
Apple has frequently argued that it is reasonable for it to have monopolistic control over the sale of iPhone apps because it vets them for safety and security. This has been called into question over scam apps accepted into the App Store, and the same questions are being asked regarding the Tea app.
The so-called dating advice app has been revealed to have major security vulnerabilities, which have exposed private chats and personal data of tens of thousands of women …
Expand Expanding Close