An expert in digital forensics and family violence says surveillance by spyware is rare – more often it happens via everyday features such as location sharing * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast We’re looking for apps I don’t remember downloading, and which platforms can access my smartphone’s camera or microphone; who else can see my calendar, my notes, my emails. We also check the basics: whether my device is actually registered to my name and email address, and whether I have two-factor authentication turned on. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...

Warning: It’s hard to swallow and leaves a bitter taste * See more of Fiona Katauskas’s cartoons here Continue reading...

Change is part of a beta release in Australia that expands on existing detection defaulted for under-13 users Apple is introducing a new feature to iMessage in Australia that will allow children to report nude images and video being sent to them directly to the company, which could then report the messages to police. The change comes as part of Thursday’s beta releases of the new versions of Apple’s operating systems for Australian users. It is an extension of communications safety measures that have been turned on by default since iOS 17 for Apple users under 13 but are available to all users. Under the existing safety features, an iPhone automatically detects images and videos that contain nudity children might receive or attempt to send in iMessage, AirDrop, FaceTime and Photos. The detection happens on devices to protect privacy. Continue reading...

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Some people in wealthy areas are upset * Sign up here to get an email whenever First Dog cartoons are published * Get all your needs met at the First Dog shop if what you need is First Dog merchandise and prints Continue reading...

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One in four Australians don’t have access to essential technology. The Smith Family says a national device bank could help close the gap * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A Westfield shopping centre isn’t an obvious place to get homework done. But for Deborah Botende, it was one of her only options. Botende grew up in foster care in Brisbane and had no internet access at home. Throughout high school, she’d stay back after her retail shift to use the shopping centre’s wifi – completing her schoolwork on a secondhand laptop. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...

Asio boss Mike Burgess says social media impact is a ‘step-change’ in the threat posed by extremism * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The head of Australia’s peak intelligence agency has warned that people like the Christchurch terrorist are being radicalised on social media, and artificial intelligence is likely to make it much worse. The director general of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (Asio), Mike Burgess, told a social media summit in Adelaide on Friday that social media is “both a goldmine and a cesspit” that creates communities and divides them, and the internet was “the world’s most potent incubator of extremism”. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...

Or is he just getting fired up? * See more of Fiona Katauskas’s cartoons here Continue reading...

Meta’s new Fraud Intelligence Reciprocal Exchange (Fire) tool to work with seven banks in a bid to tackle scams * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Australians could see fewer deepfake images of celebrities being hauled off in handcuffs, or promoting a fraudulent cryptocurrency investment on Facebook, after Meta launched a new one-stop shop for banks to share information on scams that has blocked 8,000 pages and 9,000 celebrity scams in its first six months of operation. From January to August 2024, Australians reported $43.4m in losses from scams on social media to Scamwatch, with close to $30m relating to fake investment scams. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...