location

Google Maps is changing the way it stores Location History. It's arguably a boost for privacy but may be a surprise for some users who appreciate the feature. The change is to the timeline feature that's included in both the desktop and mobile app ... versions of Google Maps. It lets users see a complete record of all places they've visited while using a mobile device with location tracking switched on. The feature will also add detail and context, for example including any picture from a visit that are saved in Google Photos, or figuring out when a user went on a trip or vacation. It can be ... (view more)

Google has launched a "find my phone" feature that can work even after the battery has run out. It's part of a major upgrade delayed by a dispute with Apple, though privacy remains a hot topic. The big upgrade is to the "Find My Device" network of ... what Google says is more than a billion Android devices including phones, watches and earbuds. It aims to overcome the problems that it's not necessarily viable (or desirable) for all portable devices to constantly be connected to cellular networks or WiFi, broadcasting their location ready to be tracked by their owner. Instead the idea is that each ... (view more)

Google is to give users of its VPN service more control over the location they want their traffic to appear to come from, rather than just selecting a country. It should overcome a problem with localized webpage information. A virtual private ... network (VPN) is designed to overcome problems with an inherent aspect of the Internet: that both Internet data and its origin are readily accessible by default. One analogy likens it to vehicles passing through a giant glass tube. Even when the data itself is encrypted, the origin and destination can still be discovered. In the analogy, a VPN is like ... (view more)

Have you ever tried to watch a trending online video, only to find that it's not available in your region? A Smart DNS proxy is a solution can help. Here's how it works: A Smart DNS proxy can be used to unblock geo-restricted content from around the ... world. It does this by collecting data related to your geographical location and re-routing it through a computer server located in a region where access to the blocked content is permitted. They do this by changing your Domain Name System (DNS) settings so that the websites you visit think you're in a location where you are permitted to access ... (view more)

Google is fixing an Android bug that let hackers remotely capture videos and images without permission. The bug could also have revealed the user's precise location, making it particularly dangerous if exploited by stalkers. Security researchers at ... Checkmarx discovered the bug in several default camera apps on a variety of Android phones, including the Google and Samsung apps. (Source: arstechnica.com ) The bug could only be exploited once malware was on the phone, but even then it still shouldn't have allowed such an attack. That's because it involved using a rogue app on the phone to access ... (view more)

A premium email service has been slammed for letting users track other people's locations simply by sending a message. It's not a new issue, but has raised legal and ethical questions. The email service is called Superhuman and costs $30 a month. ... That covers a host of features, such as being able to "unsend" a message before its read, plus an "artificial intelligence" tool to decide and highlight which incoming messages are most important. While reviewers are split between whether it's a fantastic service for power users or just a jumped-up Gmail, one designer has laid into Superhuman for a ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Tina J. writes: " Dear Dennis, I recently did a clean install of Windows 10 May 2019 Update (version 1903) on my main PC. My C drive is an SSD and only has 120GB of available space. As such, I have modified my the location of my ... Documents, Pictures, Music, and Video so that it points to the D drive which has 2TB of available space. In the past this hasn't been an issue, but since the Windows 10 May 2019 update, I cannot redirect my Pictures or Documents folder to the D drive - though both the Music and Videos folders had no problems changing locations. When I try to move ... (view more)

Google is extending its parental monitoring tools to cover teenagers as well as children. There's a pretty major flaw in the program however. The change is to "Family Link," which Google introduced last year. That's a way for pre-teens to have a ... Google account of their own, letting them use an Android handset, but with heavy parental supervision and controls. Key features include parents being able to control which apps the child is allowed to install, when they can use their devices, and how long they can use the device for in total during the day. Parents can also access location ... (view more)

Uber has ditched a policy that meant it could track a user's location for five minutes after the cab has dropped them off. The move could be related to a change in management. Until last November, users had the option to only give the 'ridesharing' ... app permission to access location data on their phone while they were actually using it. Following an update, users had to choose between giving permission for continuous tracking or having location details switched off completely. Customers Choose Between Privacy and Convenience The latter option meant that although the app would still work, users ... (view more)

Apple stands accused of failing to enable a potentially life-saving iPhone technology. Advanced Mobile Location (AML), already used in Android handsets, lets emergency services staff know precisely where a caller is located. The accusation comes ... from the European Emergency Number Association (EENA), which coordinates the European equivalent of 911 call technology. It already works with Google on AML, which is credited with saving multiple lives. The idea of AML is that it doesn't require any special action on behalf of the user: there's no need to change settings or install dedicated ... (view more)