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#1648: iPhone passcode thefts, Center Cam improves webcam eye contact, APFS Uncertainty Principle

After the Wall Street Journal’s chilling account of how iPhone thieves obtain users’ passcodes and proceed to take over their digital lives, Adam Engst offers guidance on protecting yourself from such attacks. He also reviews the unique Center Cam, a tiny webcam on a gooseneck stalk that lets you maintain eye contact while on video calls, and coins the APFS Uncertainty Principle, which states that APFS makes it impossible to determine exactly how much space any given action will free up on your Mac. Finally, we share a 1984 photo from the Steve Jobs Archive. Notable Mac app releases this week include BBEdit 14.6.4 and VMware Fusion 13.0.1.

Adam Engst 12 comments

Center Cam Solves Webcam Eye Contact Problem

Center Cam puts a tiny webcam on a thin gooseneck stalk such that you can position it right over another person’s video window, ensuring that watching them makes it seem that you’re looking them in the eye. If only it weren’t so sensitive to light.

Adam Engst 45 comments

How a Thief with Your iPhone Passcode Can Ruin Your Digital Life

The Wall Street Journal reports on a spate of attacks in which iPhone thieves obtain your passcode and then change your Apple ID password, disable Find My, make purchases with Apple Pay, and more. Some attacks are as simple as the miscreants surreptitiously watching you enter your passcode; others involve violence. Read on to learn how to protect yourself.

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BBEdit 14.6.4 Agen Schmitz No comments

BBEdit 14.6.4

Updates the "last saved" indicator in the status bar below the text area to include a marker if the document has unsaved changes. ($49.99 new, free update, 23.5 MB, macOS 10.15.4+)

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