GOOD NEWS (Jess Weather spoon): DuckDuckGo’s App Tracking Protection is now available for public beta testing on all Android devices | The Verge

     "In a blog announcing the public beta rollout, DuckDuckGo claims that the average Android user has 35 apps on their phone and can experience between 1,000 and 2,000 tracking attempts from over 70 different tracking companies every day. One example cited using just four apps — Southwest Airlines, Zillow, SeatGeek, and The Weather Network — allows over 45 tracking companies to collect user data such as location, email address, phone number, time zone, and device information (including screen resolution, device make and model, language, and local internet provider). This information can then be sold to companies like data brokers, advertisers, and even governments. Tracking data is also used by companies like Meta and Google to build creepily specific advertising profiles that target users and make them feel as if they’re being listened to.

• SECURITY/
• POLICY/
• APPS

DuckDuckGo’s App Tracking Protection beta is now available to all Android users

 / 

The tool blocks third-party trackers within Android apps and could reduce the number of creepily specific ads you see online.

By JESS WEATHERBED

Nov 16, 2022, 6:00 AM MST|

Share this story

DuckDuckGo’s new App Tracking Protection tool aims to prevent apps from tracking Android users and then selling the collected data. 

Image: DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo’s App Tracking Protection is now available for public beta testing on all Android devices after launching in a limited beta almost one year ago.

App Tracking Protection for Android is a free feature from the privacy-focused company that blocks third-party trackers within apps, even when said apps aren’t actively being used. When enabled in DuckDuckGo’s browser, it detects when apps are about to send data to a list of third-party tracking companies on DuckDuckGo’s publicly available blocklist and then blocks most of those data requests. It all happens on the device without routing your data through DuckDuckGo’s servers.

With the App Tracking Protection “Activity Report,” you can see which third parties are trying to track you.

 Image: DuckDuckGo

The App Tracking Protection for Android feature was first unveiled at the end of last year via a private wait list for closed beta testing. Since then, a new feature has been added to the tool that allows users to see what personal data is being collected by trackers in real time prior to blocking, including information like your precise location, age, and your phone’s digital fingerprint. Other changes include general performance improvements, and a 50 percent reduction in apps excluded from tracking protection, many of which rely on tracking to work properly. 

Report from The Verge: Musk asks for Hard-Core Values, Employee commitment to long hours at high-intensity

 "Elon Musk gave Twitter employees an ultimatum in a midnight email: commit to a “hardcore” culture at Twitter or leave with severance. The Washington Post reports that Musk has asked Twitter employees to sign an online form by 5PM ET on Thursday committing to “long hours at high intensity.” If Twitter employees refuse to sign the form then they will reportedly receive three months of severance pay. 

Elon Musk demands Twitter employees commit to ‘extremely hardcore’ culture or leave

 / 

Twitter employees can leave with three months of severance or commit to ‘long hours at high intensity.’ Twitter 2.0 begins at 5pm ET on Thursday.

By TOM WARREN / @tomwarren

Nov 16, 2022, 2:57 AM MST|

. . .Former Uber engineer Gergely Orosz, who has been reporting on Twitter’s internal changes this week, says Musk’s email outlines a “Twitter 2.0” that will be driven by engineers with “those writing great code” taking a more important role inside the company.

The email arrived barely a week after Musk’s first meeting with Twitter employees, and two weeks after he ordered mass layoffs — cutting roughly half of Twitter’s global workforce. “What works at SpaceX and Tesla is people being in the office and being hardcore,” said Musk during his first meeting with Twitter employees following the cuts.

That language was mirrored in the email to Twitter employees today, with Musk demanding that employees “will need to be extremely hardcore.” Musk has previously asked Tesla workers to “go super hardcore” to meet targets.

Here’s Musk’s full email to Twitter employees:

Going forward, to build a breakthrough Twitter 2.0 and succeed in an increasingly competitive world, we will need to be extremely hardcore. This will mean working long hours at high intensity. Only exceptional performance will constitute a passing grade.

Twitter will also be much more engineering-driven. Design and product management will still be very important and report to me, but those writing great code will constitute the majority of our team and have the greatest sway. At its heart, Twitter is a software and servers company, so I think this makes sense.

If you are sure that you want to be part of the new Twitter, please click yes on the link below:

Anyone who has not done so by 5pm ET tomorrow (Thursday) will receive three months of severance.

Whatever decision you make, thank you for your efforts to make Twitter successful.

Elon

Musk previously pushed Twitter employees to launch a new version of Twitter Blue with paid blue check verification with a deadline that would result in firings if it wasn’t met. The new Twitter Blue, which now costs $7.99 per month and gets you a blue verified check mark, eventually launched and quickly led to impersonation and chaos on the social network.

Related

• Inside Elon Musk’s first meeting with Twitter employees
• Elon Musk ignored Twitter’s internal warnings about his paid verification scheme
• Elon Musk is putting Twitter at risk of billions in fines, warns company lawyer
• Elon Musk’s Twitter layoffs leave whole teams gutted

Musk reportedly ignored Twitter’s internal warnings about his paid verification scheme, and Twitter was forced to halt new Blue enrollments after just two days due to issues that resulted in advertisers pausing campaigns. Musk now says Twitter Blue will relaunch on November 29th “to make sure that it is rock solid.”

Musk has also fired as many as 5,500 additional contract Twitter employees recently, and admitted to firing an engineer for correcting him on Twitter. Others who complained publicly also got axed, including some who reportedly complained in the company’s private Slack."

Update, 5:15AM ET: Article updated with more email details from Gergely Orosz.

Correction, 7AM ET: The ultimatum is for Thursday at 5PM ET, not Wednesday. We regret the error.

Update, 8:50AM ET: Article updated with Elon Musk’s full email.