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(03/04/18 11:33pm)
by Eben Griger
A new setting recently appeared in Facebook’s iOS app, called “Protect.” As it turns out, protecting users is pretty much the last thing it does.
Clicking on “Protect” brings you to the Apple App Store and asks you to install the Virtual Private Network (VPN) Onavo. What a VPN does, and what Onavo should do, is stop users’ internet provider from seeing what they are doing online, specifically what websites are visited and when. This prevents things like targeted ads and price changes based on search history (a practice airlines have been known to do) to follow VPN users.
The reality of Facebook’s VPN service is different. While blocking all history from internet providers, it still sends all of its users’ data right to Facebook. So while users may not be using the Facebook app, anything they do online while Onavo is active is still sent to the social media company.
Differing from most VPNs in another way, Onavo stays active all the time, not just when using an internet browser. This means that anything done before manually disabling Onavo, from apps to mobile data, can be seen by Facebook. While the App Store page does inform users of this, its still not exactly what most expect from an app that supposedly protects its users’ privacy.
While all of this may seem suspect, it’s not a real problem unless Facebook decides to start using all of that user generated data, right? Well the Wall Street Journal found that’s already happening. Facebook uses the data collected from Onavo to make business decisions, specifically what startups to acquire based on user popularity. By taking in user data through Onavo, Facebook can pre-emptively buy and eliminate any competition before it gains enough traction to become a threat.
Sources: Gizmodo, Wall Street Journal, Wired
Image: Twitter
(02/12/18 8:12pm)
An Indianapolis tech entrepreneur warned that Indiana’s refusal to protect its LGBTQ+ population through legislation helps solidify the state’s public image as “the land of bigots” in an open letter Tuesday.
(02/10/18 10:11pm)
by Eben Griger
An Indianapolis tech entrepreneur warned that Indiana’s refusal to protect its LGBTQ+ population through legislation helps solidify the state’s public image as “the land of bigots” in an open letter Tuesday.
Josh Driver, CEO of tech start-up Selfless.ly and the man behind Open for Service, released “an open letter to the state of Indiana,” in response to the state’s failure to pass a hate crime bill in the form of Senate Bill 418. Indiana remains one of five states without such a bill, which increases the penalties for crimes influenced by the victim’s race, ethnicity, religion, gender or sexual orientation.
In the letter, Driver addresses Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which turns three this year, calling it “disastrous,” but also recognizing the RFRA as “the wakeup call technology companies needed to find their voice.” According to Driver, the legacy of the RFRA along with the lack of a hate crime bill may drive people and companies away from Indiana, Amazon in particular.
Indianapolis is one of the final choices for Amazon’s HQ2, which the New York Times says could boost the economy by $50 billion. While the the impact of the RFRA seems to be dissipating, Driver says the state’s lack of “common sense legislation” may become an issue for state growth.
“Personally, as the founder of a tech startup, I want to know that Indiana has my back. You can give me tax credits and incentives all day long, but I’m looking for authentic support. I need to know that the tech talent I need to grow my business is welcomed here.”
Andrew Hurst, a trans Ball State student, echoed much of the same sentiment.
“I have a lot of trouble with it, living here and trying to be proud of where I live,” Hurst said. “Loving the people here and also knowing that there are many people who don’t want to acknowledge my rights or my safeties.”
Driver ends his open letter with “Hoosier hospitality is still alive and well. It just needs to come out of the closet.” Hurst has the same idea when it comes to the times changing in the Hoosier state, but also has some reservations.
“While I’m very disappointed in Indiana, I also think that this too will pass,” Hurst said. “The problem is the amount of damage that will be done while we wait for that."
Driver's open letter has shown the importance of state legislators. To find out who your Indiana state legislators, go here to learn more.
Source(s): Venture Beat, New York Times
Image(s): Huffington Post
(02/01/18 12:45am)
Last weekend marked Ball State’s 2nd annual participation in the Global Game Jam event, which sees contestants attempt to create a stand-alone game in just 48 hours. We (Eben Griger and Nolan Leahy) had a chance to playtest some of the final products and talk to some of those involved. Here’s what we tested and what the developers had to say:
(01/31/18 10:55pm)
by Eben Griger
Former “Glee” actor Mark Salling was found dead of apparent suicide Tuesday. Last month, Salling had pleaded guilty to downloading 25,000 images of prepubescent children and was set to receive a sentence for his crime on March 7.
Police had been asked to perform a welfare check on Salling’s home, which led them to find his body at the shore of a nearby river, in a wooded area. According to TMZ, Salling “had been dead for some time.”
Salling’s death has caused some controversy on social media, with “Glee” producer Tim Davis tweeting the following:
Today we lost another #Glee cast member.Yes, he committed crimes against children.Yes, it's horrific. But #MarkSalling was a broken man, no doubt an abuse victim himself. I loved Mark, and am sad when I consider the devastation of his parents. PLEASE withhold your cruel comments.
— Tim Davis (@loudmouthmuch) January 30, 2018
Let me be clear. Having compassion for #MarkSalling in no way minimizes his crimes, nor does it minimize the pain and devastation of the victims of those crimes. I'm just saying stop adding to his family's pain. This was their son. If you're without sin, feel free to cast stones.
— Tim Davis (@loudmouthmuch) January 30, 2018
Responses to Davis tweets have accused him of trying to deflect away from Salling’s crimes, and have called out him likening pedophilia to everyday sins.
Sources: TMZ, Twitter
Image: The Press Telegram
(01/15/18 6:23am)
(01/14/18 3:16am)
James Franco, star of movies such as The Disaster Artist and This is the End, was the subject of controversy after his Golden Globe win this past week.
(12/02/17 8:21pm)
Former Today Show host Matt Lauer has released a statement regarding the sexual assault allegations against him. This comes a day after NBC received two new complaints about Lauer’s behavior.
(11/08/17 3:26pm)
In what might be the quickest turn-around between allegation and repercussion, the manager of Overwatch e-sports team San Francisco Shock Max Bateman was let go just 14 hours after the abuse allegations were shared over Twitter.
(11/06/17 4:21pm)
Last Thursday, as a guest on Dr. Oz, actor and comedian Corey Feldman named the man that sexually abused him as a teen: fellow actor John Grissom. Oz also said that Feldman gave him more names off-air. Grissom and Feldman co-starred in License to Drive (1988) and Dream a Little Dream (1989), along with fellow star Corey Haim, Feldman’s longtime friend and fellow victim.
(11/03/17 7:09pm)
by Eben Griger
Thursday, as a guest on Dr. Oz, actor and comedian Corey Feldman named the man that sexually abused him as a teen: fellow actor John Grissom. Oz also said that Feldman gave him more names off-air. Grissom and Feldman co-starred in License to Drive (1988) and Dream a Little Dream (1989), along with fellow star Corey Haim, Feldman’s longtime friend and fellow victim.
This follows last week’s story about Feldman’s plans for a movie in which he would expose his abuser, as well as others within Hollywood and the studio that it is all connected to. This week, it seems he’s accelerated the process.
While on air, Feldman called the Los Angeles Police Department to file a report against Grissom. When contacted by The Hollywood Reporter, the LAPD confirmed that they had been contacted by Feldman, but no official report had been filed.
In 2001, Grissom was arrested on a child molestation charge unrelated to Feldman, which he was found guilty of in 2003 and served time. It was also revealed that Grissom has violated “Megan’s Law,” the law that requires convicted sex offenders to register with the state they are residing in.
Sources: USA Today, Hollywood Reporter, Byte
Image: E Online
(11/02/17 10:13pm)
Hollywood alums Dustin Hoffman (The Graduate and All the President’s Men) and Brett Ratner (The Revenant and Prison Break) now have accusations of sexual misconduct coming out against them. Hoffman has been accused of harassment, and Ratner of full-fledged assault.
(11/02/17 6:22pm)
Back in February, Byte put out a review for Bossa Studio’s (Surgeon Simulator and I Am Bread) alpha build of Desksplash, a game who’s “concept lies somewhere between Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater’s graffiti mode and Splatoon.” According to Bossa Studios, unless Decksplash gets some serious play, the game isn’t leaving it’s alpha stage. Ever.
(11/01/17 2:15pm)
by Eben Griger
Actor Andy Dick, 51, has been let go from his role in the film Raising Buchanan after several harassment claims were made against him while he was on set. These claims include sexual propositions, groping and unwanted kissing and licking.
In an interview, Dick denied groping people’s genitals but did admit to licking people and propositioning them for sex. “That’s my thing,” Dick said referencing the licking. “It’s me being funny. I’m not trying to sexually harass people.”
Dick is known for his contentious comedy and behavior, both of which are often intentionally controversial. “My middle name is ‘misconduct.’ They know what they signed up for,” Dick told The Hollywood Reporter. Why anyone would want to be proud of that, I have no idea.
The list of sexual assaults in Hollywood keep growing, with Harvey Weinstein, James Toback, Bill O’Reillly, Roy Price, Chris Savino and now Kevin Spacey all having allegations coming out against them.
Sources: USA Today, Hollywood Reporter
Image: Hollywood Reporter
(10/28/17 7:16pm)
Cory Feldman, former child actor and current frontman of the band Truth Movement, has announced a movie devoted to the subject of child abuse and pedophilia in Hollywood. This announcement came via YouTube video posted by Feldman himself.
(10/27/17 3:34pm)
Nintendo has announced their newest in the Animal Crossing franchise, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp. As the name implies, the new game is coming to mobile devices, rather than the Switch or 3DS, late Nov 2017.
(10/25/17 10:15pm)
by Eben Griger
Nintendo has announced their newest in the Animal Crossing franchise, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp. As the name implies, the new game is coming to mobile devices, rather than the Switch or 3DS, late Nov 2017.
In the game you manage a campsite, rather than a town. Gameplay revolves around building furniture and amenities like pools and lounges for animals (each one has their favorite thing). Complete quests for camp-goers to build up their friendship levels, and you get materials to craft these things. Quests can be anything from picking apples, to fishing, to bug catching.
High end furniture and amenities take longer to create, and some crafting materials can prove elusive, but like any mobile game, microtransactions are the answer. You can spend “Leaf Bucks” to speed up crafting times or get crafting materials. This currency can be obtained through real-world purchases or through in game activities (though no doubt in smaller quantities).
Friends are a big part of this game too. You can visit the camp sites of friends and occasionally find your friends wandering around your camp site (provided your friendship level is high enough).
Pocket Camp also includes things like a marketplace for new clothes, a fully customizable RV, seasonal events and a real-time day/night cycle.
Source: YouTube
Image: YouTube
(10/18/17 3:28pm)
Visceral Games, the studio behind Dante’s Inferno, Battlefield Hardline, and the Dead Space series, is “ramping down and closing,” according to EA’s Executive Vice President, Patrick Söderlund. This announcement came over a blog post, along with information on the Star Wars game the studio had been developing.
(10/15/17 12:00pm)
Back in April, the Federal Communications Commission passed a vote that took away price limits for Internet Service Providers that service rural customers. Specifically, customers “within a half mile of a location served by a competitive provider.”
(10/15/17 6:05am)
In an increasingly common discovery, yet another company has been found to be collecting user data without permission. OnePlus, a mobile phone company, has been collecting data from its Android-esque operating system, OxygenOS.
