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US attorneys general prep antitrust investigation into Google

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Google
Will Google be the first of the tech giants to face an investigation?
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

More than half of U.S. state attorneys general are preparing an antitrust investigation into Google.

This will mark a major ramp-up in the battle between U.S. regulators and Silicon Valley tech giants. The investigation is likely to be announced Monday. Other tech giants also may face antitrust scrutiny.

Google says iPhone security holes went unnoticed for 2 years

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for story on iPhone security
iPhone security had a few holes.
File photo: Cult of Mac

Google’s Project Zero team said it found gaping security holes in iPhone software that left users exposed to hackers before Apple fixed the flaws earlier this year.

Project Zero released a report on the flaws for the first time Thursday night. The team’s Threat Analysis Group found 14 different exploits that hackers used to gain private data, including photos, messages, contacts and real-time location information from iPhones.

Apple sued for alleged lack of transparency over iCloud data

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iCloud
Apple isn't completely clear about where your data ends up.
Photo: Apple

A class-action lawsuit filed this week takes aim at Apple for storing some iCloud data on third-party servers.

The company is accused of breaching consumer trust to sell iCloud subscriptions. It states iCloud data will be “stored by Apple,” but offloads some of it to Amazon and other companies.

Google’s massive cash pile is now bigger than Apple’s

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Google
Apple's been spending cash lately while Google's been hoarding it.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple’s decade-long run as the company with the world’s largest cash pile has finally come to an end.

Financial paperwork filed by Apple and Google’s parent company Alphabet revealed that the search engine giant now has $15 billion more in the bank than the iPhone-maker does.

Chrome update brings better Incognito, kills Flash by default

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Google-Chrome
It's now possible to bypass certain paywalls.
Photo: Cult of Mac

Google Chrome just got a big new update that improves upon two important features.

The version 76 release disables Flash by default to improve browsing performance, while Incognito Mode has been tweaked to prevent websites from detecting it.

The change means that you will now be able to bypass paywalls on some websites.

See Pixel 4’s new Face ID clone in action

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Pixel 4
The Pixel 4 will challenge the iPhone later this year.
Photo: Google

Google’s next flagship smartphone will borrow one of the iPhone’s most popular new features when it launches later this year.

Full details of the upcoming Pixel 4 will be revealed this fall. For now, Google seems pretty content to keep spilling out teasers of the new phone. The company already gave a glimpse of the giant new camera on the back. Today we’re getting a look at the new Face ID copy-cat feature and another big surprise.

Check out the teaser:

Apple’s big spend on Intel modems is pocket change in Silicon Valley [Opinion]

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Samsung wants to follow Apple in building a giant services business
Samsung wants to follow Apple in building a giant services business
Photo: Mathieu Turle/Unsplash CC

The $1 billion Apple spent on Intel’s modem business is the second-largest acquisition in the company’s 42-year history.

Still, while a huge amount of money by most normal standards, rival tech giants regularly dwarf Apple’s big spend on Intel. For a variety of reasons, Apple just doesn’t roll that way.

U.S. launches huge antitrust investigation into major tech companies

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Apple leases new offices near to Apple Park
Are Apple and other tech companies too big?
Photo: Duncan Sinfield

Stock prices of the major U.S. stock companies all took a tumble in after-hours trading today after the U.S. Justice Department revealed that it is launching a broad antitrust investigation into tech companies.

The department has not said which companies will be investigated specifically but it’s pretty likely that Apple, Amazon, Google and Facebook will be swept up in the case.

How to ditch Google and switch to DuckDuckGo

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The door mat at DuckDuckGo HQ.
The door mat at DuckDuckGo HQ.
Photo: DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo is a private search engine. Unlike Google, it doesn’t track your internet use, save your searches, or track your location. DuckDuckGo’s reason for existing is to protect your privacy on the internet, but it’s also a great search engine. And when it doesn’t find the results you want, it’s easy to run that search in Google.

Today we’ll see how to switch all your searches to DuckDuckGo, and how to add a one-tap Google backup search.

The good news is that you don’t have to do anything weird or difficult to switch to DuckDuckGo. Both iOS and macOS offer it as a default option in their settings. On the Mac, this setting is in Safari. On the iPhone and iPad, you’ll find it under Safari in the Settings app.

Real humans listen to what you say to Google Assistant

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Google Home Mini
Your Google Home Mini might not be the only one hearing what you say to it.

When you talk to a Google Home smart speaker, you might have an unsuspected eavesdropper. The company admitted today that it uses humans to review a small percentage of voice interactions.

This is true for all types of voice-control systems, like Amazon Alexa and even Siri. But Apple’s system has some crucial differences.

Google starts testing AirDrop clone for Android Q

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AirDrop
‘Fast Share’ will roll out later this year.
Photo: Apple

Google is working to deliver an AirDrop clone that will allow Android users to quickly share files with nearby devices.

Its new “Fast Share” feature, which will also make its way to Chrome OS, can be used to send images, videos, links, and other files without an internet connection. It can already be enabled on some Android Q devices.

How to ask Google to auto-wipe your activity data on iOS

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Google-app-activity-data
It takes care of itself.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

You can now ask the Google app on iOS to automatically wipe your location and activity history.

The new feature, which was showcased during Google I/O in late May, takes the hassle out of covering your tracks. You only have to set it up once and it will take care of itself going forward. Here’s how to get started.

Microsoft plans dual-screen Surface tablet with Android apps

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Microsoft-Surface
It will look very different to a standard Surface tablet.
Photo: Microsoft

Microsoft is rumored to be working on a new dual-screen Surface tablet that will run Android apps.

The slate, which is codenamed Centaurus, will reportedly pack two 9-inch displays that fold together like a book. Supply chain sources expect it to launch in the first quarter or first half of 2020.

Be very careful about buying used Nest security cams [Update]

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Nest-camera
Who’s watching you through your Nest?
Photo: Nest

UPDATE: See the statement received from Google at the bottom of this story.

You might want to think twice about buying used Nest security cameras.

A new report reveals that secondhand models can allow previous owners to spy on new users — even if they correctly follow Nest’s instructions on resetting the device. There’s currently no fix for the security flaw.

Apple becomes world’s fourth-largest gaming company

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Fortnite iOS 14
Everyone should welcome skill-based matchmaking.
Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Apple is now the world’s fourth-largest gaming company, according to a new report.

It is ranked higher than gaming giants like Nintendo, EA, and Activision — thanks mostly to the popularity of mobile gaming on iPhone. Apple is estimated to have earned $9.453 billion from games during 2018 alone.

Uh-oh! Huawei delays its first foldable smartphone

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Huawei’s Mate X isn’t exactly svelte.
You’ll have to wait until September for the Mate X.
Photo: Huawei

If you’re itching to get your hands on a foldable phone and you thought choosing Huawei over Samsung would be a good idea following the Galaxy Fold’s delay, think again.

Huawei has confirmed that it, too, is delaying its first foldable handset. The Mate X is now pegged for a September debut so that extra tests can be carried out to avoid another Galaxy Fold fiasco.

Leaked Pixel 4 sports square camera bump like 2019 iPhone

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Pixel 4
Pixel 4 mockup for case makers.
Photo: Unbox Therapy

Square camera bumps are shaping up to be one of the biggest smartphone trends of 2019.

Leaked images of Google’s upcoming Pixel 4 smartphone surfaced online today, revealing some surprising design changes for the handset, including a square in the back that packs multiple cameras. It looks awfully similar to the leaked iPhone 11 renderings we’ve seen so far.

Take a closer took: