iBrick: Apple’s ‘Error 53′ deliberately destroys iPhones repaired by third-parties

There’s a serious issue bricking Apple iPhones that update to iOS 9, and Apple’s response to the problem isn’t winning it any fans. The problem, known as “Error 53,” occurs in devices that have been repaired by third-party technicians or by other unauthorized repair centers. The catch? Apparently it’s being triggered by upgrading to iOS 9 — at least right now.

We say “right now,” because this DailyDot story from 2015 references an Error 53 issue that dates back to the author’s upgrade to iOS 8.3. In that case, however, the author notes that the iPhone had never been damaged or repaired in any fashion.

The Guardian reports on the case of journalist Antonio Olmos who had to have his iPhone repaired by a third party while on assignment in Macedonia. The repair worked perfectly until he agreed to update the device’s operating system. Once he did that, the phone died irrevocably with an “Error 53″ message.

What’s Error 53?

Apple explained the situation to The Guardian as follows:

We protect fingerprint data using a secure enclave, which is uniquely paired to the touch ID sensor. When iPhone is serviced by an authorized Apple service provider or Apple retail store for changes that affect the touch ID sensor, the pairing is re-validated. This check ensures the device and the iOS features related to touch ID remain secure. Without this unique pairing, a malicious touch ID sensor could be substituted, thereby gaining access to the secure enclave. When iOS detects that the pairing fails, touch ID, including Apple Pay, is disabled so the device remains secure.

When an iPhone is serviced by an unauthorized repair provider, faulty screens or other invalid components that affect the touch ID sensor could cause the check to fail if the pairing cannot be validated. With a subsequent update or restore, additional security checks result in an ‘error 53’ being displayed … If a customer encounters an unrecoverable error 53, we recommend contacting Apple support.

But there’s nothing Apple support can do. Period. There is no reset, no known method of fixing the problem, no way to restore data or bring the device back from the dead.

The worst part is, no one is certain exactly what kind of repairs trigger the problem. Some of the people who’ve had Error 53 brick their devices report that the problems they encountered had nothing to do with the Home Button and did not require replacement of those components. Apple’s own error page says nothing about the problem.

Apple, meanwhile, doesn’t go out of its way to inform anyone that this is an issue. I’ve been an iPhone owner for seven years and I cover the company professionally; this is the first I’ve heard of a mandatory hardware lock-in that effectively prevents third parties from safely fixing iPhones with TouchID sensors. Kyle Wiens of iFixit told Guardian Money, “The problem occurs if the repairer changes the home button or the cable. Following the software upgrade the phone in effect checks to make sure it is still using the original components, and if it isn’t, it simply locks out the phone. There is no warning, and there’s no way that I know of to bring it back to life.”

Don’t drop your iPhone, kids. And if you do, don’t take it to a third party. This is a blatant attempt by Apple to force its customers to use expensive first-party service and support options. But more than that, it’s an uncommunicated attempt to force them to do so, in which nobody knows there’s an intrinsic problem with a third-party service until their phone is already dead.

Oracle kills Java browser plug-in

Oracle said that it will finally kill its Java browser plug-in. This move does not come as soon as possible — in the past years, the Java browser plug-in was a easy target for hackers and malware authors. A 2014 report from Cisco said that a whopping 91% of all attacks were targeted at Java.

The situation has improved afterwards ; Cisco’s mid-year 2015 report revealed that for sometime Java was a serious course for concern,the company had made strides on mitigating its attack profile and enhancing total security. As of last year, attacks against Flash were increasing alarmingly, while that of Java declined overall.

Even after these improvements, Oracle is still scaling down the Java plug in when it releases Java 9, and removing it totally at some point after that date. Both Edge and Chrome have already nuked browser support for Java from orbit; Firefox announced plans to do so late last year. Historically, Oracle has been slow to respond to vulnerabilities in Java, and its sandboxing was never as foolproof as the company advertised.

Oracle’s stated reasons for killing the browser plug-ins doesn’t mention the broken sandbox model or the lack of an automatic security update process. Instead, it reads:

As Java evolved to become one of the leading mainstream development platforms, so did the applet’s hosts – the web browsers. The rise of web usage on mobile device browsers, typically without support for plugins, increasingly led browser makers to want to restrict and remove standards based plug in support from their products, as they tried to combine the set of features available across desktop and mobile versions. The Oracle JRE can only support applets on browsers for as long as browser vendors provide the requisite cross-browser standards based plugin API (e.g. NPAPI) support.

In other words, Java was a cool, cutting-edge technology, until pesky browser companies decided to kill it.

If you don’t specifically need Java, we recommend uninstalling it. It’s the kind of application that you’ll know if you need (and won’t miss, if you don’t). IE11 still supports Java from within the browser if you need to use it, but Chrome has phased it out and Mozilla is in the process of doing so. Oracle’s migration document suggests that firms which rely on Java’s browser plug-ins should begin investigating “plug-in-free alternatives.”

Computer security is, by its nature, a moving target. Every now and then, however, Team White Hat scores a genuine victory. With Adobe Flash rapidly fading and Java plug-ins facing a near-term expiration date, the Internet should be genuinely safer — at least, for a little while.

Snap chat Leak Reveals An Upgraded Messaging Experience With Audio & Video Calling, Stickers & More

A number of new features have been spotted within the existing code for Snapchat’s mobile app, including audio and video calling, as well as stickers within Snapchat’s chat interface, among other things. Assuming Snapchat actually rolls out the updated code to its broader user base, the additions could make the app more competitive with traditional messaging applications like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Google Hangouts, or even Chinese messaging app WeChat, the latter of which Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel has said he admires.

Specifically, the CEO said he appreciated the way Asian messaging apps make money – including via digital content, games, commerce and more. And with Snapchat’s Alibaba backing, it’s not surprising that the app may be going more in the direction of Asian messaging apps, and their in-app commerce potential. That’s something that integrating stickers into chat could help to enable.

After all, Snapchat’s earlier experiment with charging for in-app selfie lenses was shut down this month, indicating the company is still on the lookout for other sources of revenue. And stickers are a lucrative business for apps like WeChat and Line, which make millions by selling stickers on their platforms.

In addition to possibly paving an avenue toward monetization, rolling out stickers to Snapchat’s chat interface could make the app a better rival to the dominant mobile messaging applications today, as would the new audio and video calling features.

Snapchat currently supports video chat – but it’s difficult to use because both friends have to be present in the app at the same time in order to start video chatting. That makes the feature less practical than the calling features found within other messaging apps, including also Apple’s built-in communications app FaceTime and cross-platform messaging apps, like Skype.

According to the leaked screenshots, which show what’s dubbed Snapchat’s “ChatV2” interface, users will be able to tap on new buttons on a bar to kick off an audio or video call. The recipient will then get a pop-up that will allow them to ignore, join or listen into the call. There are also new presence indicators that show if a person is listening, talking or watching, which appear underneath your interactions within chat.

The code and screenshots were uncovered by the developers by Snapprefs, a third-party utility that lets you add more features to the Snapchat application through the Xposed framework. The team was able to make the feature set visible for some minutes, they said, which is how they were able to take the screenshots. The code was found within the Snapchat APK (its Android application), they said.

We should note that the presence of these new features hidden in the app doesn’t necessarily mean they will soon become public, or will appear in the same way when they do roll out to Snapchat’s wider user base. It’s also possible that the company is currently testing these features, and has not yet committed to a public launch (though this is less likely).

10 free tools to assist you in all aspects of your PR efforts

Often times when you’re first setting out,getting the right tools to implement effective public relations and communications techniques can be really tasking — particularly if you’re working on a low budget.
Below is a list of free tools and resources that you can use in all aspects of your PR efforts:

1. Buffer (www.buffer.com) To implement a significant social media strategy, scheduling is highly essential.Scheduling not only allows you to focus on other areas of your communications outreach, but also ensures that should you be tight for time, you’re always in contact with your audience.Buffer offers a free version of their service, but this can be quite limited for companies who want to ramp-up their social media efforts. For $10/month you can upgrade to the Awesome plan which allows you connect up to 10 different social accounts and schedule up to 100 posts.

2. Bit.ly (www.bit.ly) When it comes to communications, metrics are extremely important. Shortened URLs allow you to track the status of your link, regardless of the medium you choose to share it. Bit.ly offers a free version of their service that allows you to shorten URLs and review valuable information associated with them.You can even integrate your bit.ly account with Buffer so that all of your links are automatically shortened.

3. MailChimp (www.mailchimp.com) Maintaining multiple contact points with your audience helps ensure that your product, service or brand is always top-of-mind. Email marketing is a great way to keep your clients, customers and prospects in the loop about new content, news or promotions your company may be sharing. MailChimp’s visual editor is one of the easiest to use, and ensures that your content is always mobile-friendly.MailChimp has a free service that allows you to send up to 12,000 emails to 2,000 subscribers each month.

4. Bitrix 24 (www.bitrix24.com) All communications strategies need certain level
   
   of project management. Britix 24 is a less popular project management software that enables you and your team to track time on projects, delegate tasks, communicate in a social forum, and provides your company with it’s own intranet portal.Bitrix 24 is free for up to 12 employees and offers 5gb of online storage.

5. Google Analytics (www.google.com/analytics/) Solid metrics are both the basic and stepping-stones of a good communications plan. Metrics allow your business to understand which outreach efforts are working, which are the most effective, and pinpoint which areas need improvement.Google analytics is the best tool for tracking visits on your website, as well as acquisitions you’ve obtained through other channels, such as social media. Best of all it’s completely free.

6. Canva (www.canva.com) Visual elements on social media, as well as your
   
   website, have been proven to drive engagement. Now, thanks to Canva, you don’t need to be a graphic designer to produce beautiful graphics to accompany your content marketing efforts. Choose from a number of templates and fonts, and import your own images.

7. IFTTT (ifttt.com) Advertisers, Marketers and Public Relations professionals are
   
   always fighting against time: sometimes there just isn’t enough of it. That’s where automation comes in handy. If This Than Than (IFTTT) assists these professionals automate different aspects of their social media efforts; from sending a direct message to a new follower, to automatically retweeting a tweet with specific keywords, automation helps drive engagement and frees up valuable time.Be careful, though—Too much automation makes you look like you’re a spam bot.

8. Commun.it (www.commun.it) Commun.it is a Twitter management tool with a
   
   specific focus on relationship management. The simple dashboard gives key information as to who your influencers are, who you should be following, who you should unfollow, and what type of content resonates well with your audience.

9. Hubspot CRM (www.hubspot.com/crm/) Now you may be engaging with your
   
   audience, but are you keep tracking of who you’re engaging with, or who might be a valuable lead or prime for a sale? Hubspot, a renowned inbound marketing software company and experts, has recently released a CRM system that is completely free. It allows you to track your prospects in one easy, convenient place and track emails through it’s Sidekick email add-on.

10. Zapier (www.zapier.com) Remember who we said some level of automation is
    
    great? Well Zapier makes it easier to transfer information from one system to another. For example, if a potential lead clicks a link in an email you’ve sent through MailChimp, you can have it automatically add that lead into your CRM, and vice-versa.The free version of this Godsend allows you to set-up 5 zaps, with 100 tasks a month. This number may be good for a smaller company, but larger companies that require more automation may opt for a paid plan.