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Tech Hangover

Tech Hangover: Zoom has a major problem

It’s not me, it’s you.

Tech hangover zoom
Image: KnowTechie

We get it, you have a life. There’s no way you can read all of the day’s news in one single shot, let alone visit every web page, which is why we’re here to help. Well, sort of.

There’s a ton of tech news we weren’t able to cover throughout the day (hey, give us a break, we’re a small independent outfit), so to help you stay up to speed with everything we didn’t get to, we rounded up some of the biggest stories, which should help you keep up to date. Hence the tech hangover. 

Here’s some tech news you probably missed out on today (and when we say you, we mean us, but also…you).

Zoom Meetings Aren’t End-to-End Encrypted, Despite Misleading Marketing

How to change zoom background

Image: Kevin Raposo / KnowTechie

For a company that’s been riddled with privacy concerns and security flaws, this does not surprise me at all. Be safe using it.

As long as you make sure everyone in a Zoom meeting connects using “computer audio” instead of calling in on a phone, the meeting is secured with end-to-end encryption, at least according to Zoom’s website, its security white paper, and the user interface within the app. But despite this misleading marketing, the service actually does not support end-to-end encryption for video and audio content – The Intercept

Zoom is Leaking Peoples’ Email Addresses and Photos to Strangers 

Zoom video conferencing app

Image: Zoom

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Popular video-conferencing Zoom is leaking personal information of at least thousands of users, including their email address and photo, and giving strangers the ability to attempt to start a video call with them through Zoom. – Motherboard

Apple purchases hyperlocal weather app Dark Sky, ending API and killing Android apps

Apps smartphone

Image: Unsplash

A lot of folks in the tech world are all up in arms in this, but honestly, it’s just a weather app. There are literally hundreds of these. Don’t worry, everything will be fine.

In a big move to improve its weather app, Apple has purchased the highly popular iOS app Dark Sky. Along with the acquisition comes the end of Dark Sky for Android as well as an end to the API that’s used by popular apps like Carrot Weather, and more. – 9to5Mac

Houseparty app offers $1m reward to unmask entity behind hacking smear campaign

Houseparty

Image: Houseparty

There’s a lot of speculation around surrounding this. People are definitely getting hacked. But who’s to blame? Is this hack even real?

Houseparty, a video conferencing desktop and mobile application, said it would pay a $1 million bounty to anyone who could unmask the entity behind what the company described as “a paid commercial smear campaign.” – ZDNet

The Fitbit Charge 4 is a much more powerful fitness tracker disguised in its old body

Fitbit charge 3

Image: Fitbit

Google previously bought Fitbit. This is the latest product to be released under its new owners.

The first Fitbit after Google announced it intends to buy the company last fall looks… well, like every other Fitbit that came before it. And it’s apparently intentional, as the company wants to expand on one of its most popular fitness trackers that’s long due for an update. – The Verge

Comcast says voice and video calls have skyrocketed 212 percent during widespread self-isolation 

Comcast nbcuniversal building

Image: Reuters

Yea, no shit Sherlock. Also, the sky is blue. The grass is green. Yada yadda yadda.

Voice and video calls have more than tripled on Comcast’s network over the past month since people across the US started working from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic. – The Verge

And in just case you missed some of our stuff earlier, here’s what you may have missed:


Notable Mentions

Trump Won the Internet. Democrats Are Scrambling to Take It Back. 

Campus is closed, so college students are rebuilding their schools in Minecraft 

Trolls are breaking into AA meetings being held on Zoom video calls and harassing recovering alcoholics 

Have any thoughts on this? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

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Kevin is KnowTechie's founder and executive editor. With over 15 years of blogging experience in the tech industry, Kevin has transformed what was once a passion project into a full-blown tech news publication. Shoot him an email at kevin@knowtechie.com or find him on Mastodon or Post.

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