Apple is making iMessage and FaceTime harder to hack by turning on two-step verification for both services in an effort to tighten security for iOS and Mac users.
The extra security goes into effect today and gives users an extra layer of protection against hackers or anyone else trying to log in to your iMessage account to either impersonate you or steal data.
One of the great things about iMessage and FaceTime is that it encrypts your messages automatically, making it very, very difficult for hackers to spy on the messages you send.
But guess what? If U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron gets his way, iMessage and FaceTime encryption might soon be a thing of the past.
The U.S. Department of Justice has issued a chilling warning to Apple executives as a response to increased privacy protections added to iOS 8: Children might die because we can’t hack into bad guys’ iMessages.
Deputy Attorney General James Cole met with Apple executives last month, reports the Wall Street Journal, to discuss privacy issues, but after making the ridiculous claim that the blood of dead children will be on Apple’s hands if it doesn’t give the NSA access to iMessages, the talks have ended in a standoff.
Apple could find itself facing a class action lawsuit over the loss of “countless” text messages, courtesy of its iMessage service.
California resident Adrienne Moore filed a case against Apple back in May this year, saying that she missed out on receiving text messages after giving up her iPhone 4 and moving to a Samsung Galaxy S5.
Moore’s victory in court means that she now has the ability to pursue a class action lawsuit against Apple. She is also seeking unspecified damages.
One of the longstanding complaints about iMessage is how it can stay active even when you switch to an Android phone. The result is that texts often get sucked into some sort of purgatory where they never actually reach your contacts.
Today Apple released a new web tool that permanently deregisters phone numbers from iMessage. Anyone can enter their phone number and cut all ties with Apple’s messaging platform for good.
Whether you’re a Mac novice or a seasoned veteran, there are a ton of tips and ticks out there for mastering OS X Yosemite. In Part 2 of our Yosemite tip series, we gather more of the very best.
I recently watched The Lady try to convince a friend of ours to download WhatsApp. The friend is moving to the United Kingdom, and we want to stay in touch. Our friend tried to say that email would do the job, but we all know that will never work.
Our friend doesn’t want WhatsApp (maybe because it’s owned by Facebook), and she doesn’t own an iPhone, so iMessage is out. Thankfully, there are plenty of free and good alternatives. Some are more secure, some have more features, and none of them is owned by Facebook.
Let’s take a look at what’s available and how these very different messaging apps compare on a number of key features.
Anyone who has ever tried jumping from iOS to Android, while keeping the same cell number, will know about the horror of trying to get hold of their messages.
The so-called “iMessage purgatory” means that unless you first deactivate your iMessages before ditching your iPhone, Apple’s servers will think that you’re using its proprietary messaging platform. The upshot? Say goodbye to your messages.
While the problem has been gaining more awareness recently as a result of class-action lawsuits filed against Apple, it’s just gotten worse, courtesy of a recent server glitch. The glitched rendered moot one of Apple’s key methods for sorting out the issue.
So you get a seriously racy iMessage from someone incredibly inappropriate, and you want to send it along to one of your close confidants. What do you do?
It used to be that you’d tap the Edit button in Messages to be able to forward them.
In iOS 7, there is no Edit button. Nor can you swipe to the left, as that just brings up the timestamps.
Getting a screenshot on your Mac using the default keystrokes can be adventure in dexterity to say the least. This Cult of Mac Deals offers you a one stroke solution to this dilemma…and at a price that’s tough to beat.
DreamShot uses just one keyboard shortcut to take and send screenshots to all apps, services, and destinations on your Mac that deal with images. Keeping your current system in place, DreamShot is the brain of your screenshot workflow, tying it all together into one seamless experience. And Cult of Mac Deals has it for 50% off – just $4.99.
Sure, you use the Messages app to send along SMS and iMessages all day long. You know how to use Emoji’s, too, with a tap on the international keyboard button on your iPhone.
I bet you even use regular text emoticons, like semi-colon and parenthesis to create a wink, or colon and parenthesis to create a smile.
But have you ever tried to have your iPhone turn your text-based emoticon into an Emoji? I bet you haven’t.
Some users have reported problems with sending text messages to their friends and family after the upgrade to iOS 7.
Typically, when iMessage is unavailable, your iPhone should send messages as SMS ones instead, denoted by the green chat bubble as opposed to the regular blue.
If, however, your iPhone won’t send texts automatically, here’s a possible fix.
The FCC may or may not be ready to give in-flight cellphone calls the green light, but until you can phone home from 40,000 feet up Southwest is now going to let customers pay $2 for an all-day iMessage pass.
One of the great things about Messages, for me, is the “read receipt.” I know if my child has seen my messages to them, of if they’ve just been “delivered” but not read. I like it.
Some folks, though, might want to turn off this feature so they don’t give off the signal that they’ve actually seen a message. it goes a long way towards plausible deniability when things go wrong.
If you’re one of those folks, though, you might have noticed that when you upgraded to iOS 7 that–even if you have the preference for receipts toggled to OFF, you might still be sending out read receipts.
Luckily, there’s an easy fix.
The big iPad event might be over, but take heart fellow Apple fans, there are still plenty of great Apple stories to chat about on our all-new CultCast. This episode: the iPhone stops giving motion sickness to the pukers; some of your favorite Apple apps get big redesigns; the new Macbook Pro gets benchmarked; Apple puts your passwords in the iCloud; and more!
Join us for our second CultCast this week! Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let baseline roll. And don’t miss episode 96 for our MEGAsode coverage on all that was announced at Apple’s big Oct. 22nd event.
Airmail, the wonderful third-party email client for Mac, which we’ve written about a number of times here on Cult of Mac, has today been updated with a whole host of new features and improvements for OS X Mavericks. In addition to quick reply from notifications, the release also adds new icons for the Notification Center, offline editing, local drafts and sent folders, and lots more.
Apple has assured iMessage users that it does not have easy access to the messages sent through its servers and that it has no desire to read them anyway. The statement comes after security researchers at QuarksLab claimed the Cupertino company could intercept iMessage communications between its users if it wanted to.
It’s been two years now, since Steve Jobs passed, so on our newest CultCast, we remember Mr. Jobs, examine how he pushed those around him to their creative bests, and ponder how his absence impacts the company he left behind. And stick around until the end where we’re rebroadcasting, in full, one of Steve’s most special appearances.
Have a few laughs whilst getting caught up on each week’s finest Apple stories! Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the unadulterated audio enjoyment begin. Show notes up next.
Have you had issues sending or receiving iMessages since you updated to iOS 7? Although Apple claims problems only exist for “a fraction of a percent” of its users, a large number of iMessagers have been complaining about failed messages since iOS 7 was released.
Today Apple acknowledged that iMessage has been having problems, and a fix is coming in a future iOS 7 update.
It seems a lot of users who upgraded to iOS 7 last month are having issues with iMessage. Apple’s Support Communities forums are full of complaints from disgruntled iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users who cannot send or receive iMessages anymore, and you’ll find plenty of people voicing their frustrations on Twitter, too.
Initially it seemed Apple’s servers were the problem — as they often are when iMessage has problems — but that’s not the case. Instead, it appears to be a simple bug that can be easily rectified with a quick bit of tinkering. Here’s what you need to do.
Skitch, Evernote’s nifty image editing tool, has this week been given a new design and new features for iOS 7. In addition to a completely redesigned interface, the app now offers announcements for tips and information, new toolbars, and more.
Apple’s iMessage service is pretty terrific, but it has one big limitation, and that is that it’s only available on Macs and iOS devices. At least officially. But there is an unofficial app that brings iMessage to your Android-powered smartphone. It works just as advertised, but we strongly advise you not to use it.
Think your messages are private? Think again!
A Cult of Mac reader, asking to remain anonymous, sent in a tip about how he caught his girlfriend reading Messages on his iPhone.
Privacy is important to this fellow, but he suspected that his love was sneaking peeks at his text and iMessages.
So he took a couple of steps to catch her in the act.
Ever need to send a buddy a quick screenshot or file? How about sending a file from your iPhone to your friend on a Mac?
Getting files from one computer to another is a fairly easy task, what with email and services like Dropbox around, but I’ve been using Messages to send files to friends, family, and even myself lately.
Here’s how to do it.
If you’re having problems accessing the iCloud this morning, it’s not just you: Apple’s official Systems Status page indicates that multiple iCloud users are having problems accessing Apple’s services.
