SmartPhone Motion Sensors Can be Used to Crack Your PIN

Image Credit:AP

So you thought that the PIN lock present in the modern Smartphones is best way to safeguard your device from others. Apple’s tussle with government authorities where they were unable to unlock the iPhone without the rights set of PIN has also helped in cementing this notion. However a recent study conducted by the cyber security experts at Newcastle University in UK presents a completely different view with facts and figures. Their study has successfully showcased that the hackers can make use of the sensors present in the Smartphones to crack the four digit PIN which will give access to wide amount information.


In their study the researchers found that when a mobile user visits a website then code present on the page can be utilized in accessing the phone’s motion as well as orientation. This allows the hackers to correctly guess the PIN present on the device lockscreen. During this study researchers were able to guess the PIN in the first attempt for 75 percent of the time and in the third attempt for 94 percent of the time. This might be shattering news for a number of die hard users of smartphones but it also helps in showcasing how vulnerable modern devices are.


People are tired of being asked for Passcode


The major reason behind the feasibility of hacking into the device through analyzing the motion and movements of users is very simple. Most of the people are tired of being asked for permission therefore they tend t accept anything present on the website or app while installing or accessing them. Websites usually collects a lot of information about the users in order to bring better users experience but this can be used by the hackers for their own benefit. They can direct the users to such websites which is specifically designed to collect the location data as well as the motion sensors data in order to unlock the device remotely.


Today more number of websites is concerned with collecting the location information by bringing location pop up on the site. Secondly sensors are going to be become more commonplace in near future once people start adopting the smart home and kitchen based electronic products. This study shed light on the way hackers can make use of the motion sensors present on the Smartphones but later on it can be brought to other devices as well to gain access to critical information.


Preventive measures to take


The best way to get over this problem is to make use of highly complex passcodes on the Smartphones. An earlier research has already showcased that the Smartphone users tend to make use of dead easy combination of 1111 and 1234 in 27 percent cases when they have to opportunity pick anything in the 4 digit set. The major reason behind it is that people find it easy to remember and it is highly convenient to unlock the device quickly. Secondly one should always keep the mobile operating system up to date by receiving and installing the latest security and system upgrade patches on regular basis. Thirdly one should always download apps on their device from the trusted sources like App Store, Google Play store and other credible third party stores. And don’t forget to kill the apps after using them.

How to Keep iPhone Autocorrect in Check

If you write a lot with the virtual iPhone keyboard, you will likely get used to the auto-correction, but you can deactivate it if necessary. If the auto correct is deactivated, it is recommended to leave the normal correction activated at least. This still indicates errors but does not automatically repair them. The relevant options can be found in the General and Keyboard settings. Regardless of whether Auto Correct is activated or deactivated, errors sometimes occur when typing quickly. So far you have probably deleted the erroneous word to the point where the error happened and rewritten it from there on. It does not have to be! Here you can learn how to correct your words faster.

Actually, we would just like to tell a friend or a friend that we can still have a coffee after the meal. However, we are typing "sitll" instead of "still".

Instead of deleting the wrong word and re-writing it, just press the backspace key on the virtual keyboard of your iPhone. If the blue bar is at the end of the wrong word, a correction suggestion should appear which you select by tapping. Of course this does not work with every word. If necessary, press the Backspace key a couple of times until you reach the end of the wrong word.

If you have selected the correction, the incorrect word is replaced by the correct one. The correction function becomes annoying when you write with friends and use a dialect or dialect phrases. The iPhone does not recognize the various dialects and therefore makes relatively nonsensical suggestions for improvement or directly makes improvements in the case of auto-correct. We'll show you how to disable this feature easily. 

Disable iPhone Auto Correction

If you want to disable the auto correct on the iPhone, go to the settings and select the General item. Scrolls a little down and taps on keyboard. There you will find the menu point Auto Correct, which you can activate and deactivate with a fingertip.

If you have problems with automatically corrected dialect or abbreviations, you probably work with auto-correction. You should disable it in this case. Apple has put the Auto Correct function so deep into the system settings. After all, iOS devices are selling around the world and one can assume that people with the most diverse dialects write texts on their iPhones. However, there is still no way to switch the function on and off quickly.

What you should consider when writing the text with the iPhone

The relatively small keys on the screen keyboard and some pre-set automatisms can be terribly annoying when writing to the otherwise exceptionally user-friendly iPhone:

When typing, keep in mind the upper / lowercase key. At the beginning of the block and after a block end character, the capitalization is activated automatically, recognizable by the white arrow symbol. Unfortunately, this really meaningful automatism is in some cases inappropriate, for example if you have a shortcut like "etc." insert.

Even more annoying are unwanted suggestions, because if you do not tap the cross symbol on the top right, your text will quickly get mixed up.

Especially if you want to go fast, you can quickly get to wrong keys - if a wrong word suggestion is inadvertently inserted or the capitalization unintentionally activated, the chaos is perfect.

Apple's Self Driving Car Program Detailed in DMV Training Doc

Apple – Automated System – Self-Driving Vehicles

Apple had been granted permission recently by the California Department of Motor Vehicles to publicly test the autonomous driving technology on the Californian roads.

A new document of Apple has come up detailing the self-driving car training program for drivers. The new document offers more evidence that Apple is actively operating on autonomous driving technology internally. The official papers were obtained by Business Insider entitled `Development Platform Specific Training’, which tends to refer to the `Apple Automated System’, utilised in self-driving vehicles.

Apple had established an `Automated System’ for self-driving vehicles and intends putting select staffers through a training program in order to control the vehicles. As per the documents, the drivers of Apple need to pass seven various tests before their complete training. Every driver is given two practice runs together with three trials in order to pass each test which is said to be a private course.

The documents specify that the technology utilised by the drivers comprise of Logitech hardware as well as basic driving schemes such as tight U-turns with sudden braking or acceleration. Every test includes a goal together with steps to supersede the autonomous system while training with the scheme.

Focus on Self-Driving Software

Though Apple has the liberty to test anything internally and privately, it is the California permit that enables it to test three 2015 Lexus RX450h hybrid sport utility vehicles as per the DMV documentation that had been published recently, which is the same vehicle utilised in the self-driving tests of Google.

Though it had been presumed for some months that Apple had been constructing its own electric vehicle, the recent rumours have claimed that presently Apple has been focusing on self-driving car software instead which is shown by the latest public-facing development. A letter to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in December had shown that disclosed first hand work on self-driving technology of Apple. Self-driving car technology is said to be one of the most prominent arenas in Silicon Valley.

Earlier known as self-driving car unit of Google, Waymo is presently in a high-stakes combat with Uber over its autonomous car tech and analysts have estimated that the industry could be worth trillions of dollars. Apple had refrained from commenting on this issue.

Possibility of Self-Driving Car Platform

For the past three years the work of Apple had been something of an open clandestine and the company initially had intention of creating its own autonomous vehicles. However it turned to an autonomous driving software platform resulting in internal strife and leadership problems.

The company is now creating a driving system under the management of Bob Mansfield wherein the car team have been given till the end of this year in order to substantiate the possibility of self-driving car platform. Such a type of structure would probably permit Apple to partner with car manufacturers as a type of development of CarPlay.

 Apple being ready in testing the software on public roads shows that the development seems to be fairly far-off. If the company tends to take the vehicles out on the streets of California, its works would require to be publicly shared with the DMV established on the law of California.

Apple's AR Smart Glasses Could be in the Works

Apple’s AR Smart Glasses

Apple could be working on some undisclosed hardware comprising of a pair of AR smart glasses. It has been revealed after an incident report had been apparently leaked to Gizmodo signifying that the company had been playing with some kind of ocular prototype.

Gizmodo, the Apple document stated it acquired an incident wherein an employee had reported eye pain on using a new prototype. Gizmodo had reported that the employee was of the belief that the pain could be the outcome of using the device together with the testimony that the seal of the device had been broken, an indication that it had been tampered.

Though apparently the incident report tends to utilise language with the intention of concealing what type of prototype it is, Gizmodo wonders that it could be some kind of smart glasses. Another incident indicated that an employee had been sent to the optometrist after working with another prototype and thereafter experienced eye pain and saw `laser flashes’. Since the wording seems vague, it is not known if the two prototypes had any link or what they were meant to do.

Bringing AR to iPhone

Apple had already shown concern in augmented reality or AR. Tim Cook, CEO had mentioned that he envisages a big future for AR which would impact the world as much as the smartphone that Apple had supported to propagate with the iPhone.

 Cook had constantly responded to AR-related queries on quarterly earning calls stating that he is of the belief that the technology seems to have more potential than its virtual reality counterpart and had implied at plans of Apple of entering the space.

Nonetheless, as of September, Apple tends to continue hiring both AR as well as VR professionals which has left the possibility that it could develop products in both the classifications. Some rumours have already claimed that Apple could be working on means of bringing AR to the iPhone, while still others state that Apple is working on a pair of wearable glasses alike to Google Glass.

 But many are speculating whether the glasses by Apple could succeed where Google Glass fell short. The company has been exploring the smart glasses market according to reports and hence it is not clear when the completed product would materialize.

Earliest Time-Frame - 2018

The earliest time-frame is said to be 2018 for the product though Apple could delay the project much longer or alter its direction as in the case of its automotive goals. It is also a known fact for months that Apple had been gathering AR talent and putting heads together in working in secret on some kind of consumer product.

Apple has already been in talks with prospective suppliers, as per Bloomberg for components such as near-eye displays. Moreover it also tends to have the capability with companies such as PrimeSense, Metaio and Flyby which are the start-ups that had been dedicated to AR software, 3D mapping together with computer vision before Apple had attained them over the period of the last three years.

 The intention was to create a pair of glasses which could be linked wirelessly to iPhone as well as overlap information on the field of vision of the wearer. The AR does not come without its flaws. Google Glass had been a huge failure providing AR a bad public image thus displaying just how far the technology should go before it can be eventually utilised on the face.

This Tiny iOS Change Will Make Your iPhone Even Zippier

After a long wait Apple has finally rolled the update for the iOS 10.3 which is expected which will started hitting the devices from Monday. Those who got the chance to get the latest update early on their devices are claiming that their device is surprisingly faster than earlier. iPhone is running with a new vigour and performance is simply way better than it was being produced before the update.

But this isn’t the surprisingly thing which we would love to share with the iPhone users. It is widely known that the new update tends to improvise on the performance of the OS which ultimately helps in getting better output from the existing hardware. But this update has shown a new insight into how the iPhone can be made run much better even after the update.

The key hidden feature

The latest update brings a relatively new kind of fancy file system which plays a judgement role in freeing up the storage space on the OS. But this isn’t the only major improvement made in the iOS by the developers at the Apple. One of the Apple engineer going by the name of Renaud Lienhart has revealed on the Twitter one of the undocumented tweak implement in the OPS. This particular tweak has helped in improving the performance of the iPhone to a whole new extent.

What this tweak is all about? 

The update iOS 10.3 brings a wide range of snappier animation for the OS which allows it to perform exceptionally well. All the animation present on iOS was tweaked as well as shortened to a great extent by the team of the Apple engineers.

The animation which has been the talking point in the whole case of performance boosting relates to almost every aspect of the operating system experience. This animation can be seen in the opening, closing or switching between different apps. It would be absurd to think that simply optimizing the animation will help in getting better performance out a device. Rather this has helped in improving the responsiveness of the OS to the user’s commands or gestures which ultimately gives a feeling of improved performance on the iPhone. This tiny change has made it easier to perform multitasking on the iPhone.

Why wait? Just Update to 10.3 & See the difference

If you are tired with the slow performance of your iPhone then waste no time and update your device to the latest 10.3 version. This will allow you to get the speed boost and it is very good thing to keep your device updated with the latest version of OS as it helps in safeguarding the devices from wide range of bugs and it brings a whole range of fixes. A major bug has been rooted from the iOS with this update which is called Safari ransom bug. In short 10.3 update not just speeds up your iPhone but it also helps in keeping device secure against the bugs.