March 16 & 17, 2024 Show Notes
Start of Spring Break / St. Patrick's Day Weekend Edition
🎙️ Show airs live
Saturday: 10:05am-Noon
🔁 Rebroadcast
Sunday: 1:05pm-3pm
🎧 Podcast
Anytime
The crew this week:
Ricky Winter
Co-Host
Tech Experience Manager at London Drugs Tillicum
store 250-360-2753
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1) Watch out for scam Canada Revenue Agency "refund" texts
With tax season upon us, scammers are busy sending texts claiming to be from the CRA, urging you to claim your refund.
A screenshot of one of these text is shown on the left, and unlike a lot of previous ones, this one actually looks pretty good!
But if you look closely, you'll see that it's not from the CRA, but from a gmail.com address, and, the link they want you to click on, 2024taxs.com is also not the Canada Revenue Agency.
That link takes you to a fake Interac website with logos for all the major Canadian banks and credit unions, urging you to click on yours.
If you do, it takes you to a real-looking log-in page for your bank or credit union (but with the wrong address at the top). They're hoping you'll give them your log-in info so they can start stealing your money. NEVER click on links in texts or emails like this!
The CRA will NEVER text you, and if they email you, the email will NEVER contain a link for you to click on.
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2) Repeating because it's important:
Apple has released a huge and important iPhone and iPad update: iOS/iPadOS 17.4
Apple's big and important 17.4 update includes security patches, bug fixes, and some new features including new emoji, podcast transcripts, a tweak to the new Stolen Device Protection settings for iPhones, and a new level of encryption for iMessage to prevent quantum-computing hacks. More here.
The update is iOS/iPadOS 17.4 and it's big — at least 1.7GB for most users.
If your iPhone or iPad doesn't have enough storage space to install the update, it'll offer to temporarily offload apps (while preserving all app data) to make room. If there still isn't enough free space, you can plug your device into a computer and use iTunes to download and install the update.
Instructions on how to do that are below…
3) Repeating because it's important: new iPhone Stolen Device Protection settings
iOS 17.4 adds an additional option to the new Stolen Device Protection setting in iPhones which debuted in 17.3.
The original setting made a thief (or you) to wait an hour before being able to change your iPhone Passcode or Apple ID password or to turn off "Find My iPhone" unless the device was at your home or work. The new option lets you make that one-hour wait mandatory no matter where your device is.
If you're selling your iPhone, be aware that if you have this option turned-on, you won't be able to factory-reset it for one hour after you start the process!
Turn it on at Settings, Face ID & Passcode (or Touch ID & Passcode), and scroll down to Stolen Device Protection.
4) If you have a Mac, Apple has released an important update — but don't install it if you print important stuff
Apple last week released macOS Sonoma 14.4, which patches 20 security holes. It also contains bug fixes and some new features including an Enhanced AutoFill feature for PDFs.
However, it turns out the update is also breaking connections to some printers, and a fix for that is not out yet.
As a result, if you really count on being able to print things, we recommnd you hold off installing the macOS 14.4 update until a fix is issued.
On the other hand, if you don't have a printer, or only print occasionally, we recommend you install the update, because the security patches it includes are important ones.
5) If you used the Flo Health & Period Tracker, the BC Supreme Court has certified a class-action lawsuit over how the app violated your privacy
The Flo Health app has been used by millions of women around the world to track their menstrual and fertility cycles.
But the company that made the app — Flo Health Inc. — has admitted that it sent users' very private info about their periods and pregnancies to data analytics divisions of Google, Facebook, and two other firms.
A BC Supreme Court Justice has now certified a class-action lawsuit over that privacy breach.
The legal action covers more than a million Canadian women who used the app between June 2016 and February 2019, excluding those in Quebec, where a separate class-action lawsuit was already certified in November 2022.
If you used the Flo Health app between June 2016 and February 2019, stay tuned for a likely out-of-court settlement.
The Canadian Press
B.C. class action alleges menstruation cycle tracking app breached users' privacy
VANCOUVER — A British Columbia Supreme Court judge says a class-action lawsuit can move forward over alleged privacy breaches against a company that made an app to track users' menstrual and fertility cycles. The ruling published online Friday says the action against Flo Health Inc. alleges the company shared users' highly personal health informati...
6) Here's an easy way to avoid being scammed:
If you get an email or a text about a problem with an account or service, or about a package that can't be delivered, or an invoice/receipt for an item or service you didn't order, or about a refund owed to you, or about a prize you've won, assume it's a scam, especially if it urges you do something right away.
If you think it might be real, check with your bank, or with the merchant, but NEVER call the number, and NEVER click on the button or link.
Tech News Of The Week
Items start at #10, so the numbers don't get thrown-off if we add more security items above!
Tip: if an item in these Show Notes has the icon on the right in the upper-right corner, you can click/tap on it to make the additional info open in a new tab.
10) Telus has followed the lead of Rogers and Bell, and is offering a $34/month plan with unlimited Canada/USA calling and texting (but not roaming), and 50GB of 5G data per month
The $34/month offer is only for new activations, not for current customers who are paying more. And the offers from the big three and their budget brands (Koodo, Fido and Virgin+) are still not as good as the current rates being offered by Freedom Mobile, which, for $34/month also include Canada/USA roaming.
11) Renew your passport if it expires within six months!
Many countries, including the USA, will not admit you if your passport will expire within six months.
If your passport will expire within six months, renew it now. If you're not sure when it expires, pull it out and check!
Passport office staff say they're constantly encountering panicked people who were sure their passport was still valid, only to have discovered when they went to go travelling, that it had actually expired months ago.
You can usually get a passport renewed within a few weeks, but if you need it sooner, you can pay $50 extra for Express service which will get it to you within a week, or you can pay $110 extra for Urgent renewal which will enable you to pick it up within three business days, or if you have proof of travel booked in less than that, within two days including weekends.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has an excellent website on Passport renewals and applications…
Even if you're not planning to travel outside Canada, it's still a great idea to have a valid passport, which can be invaluable as photo ID if you lose your driver's licence or BC ID card.
13) As the US goverrnment threatens to ban TikTok in the USA unless Americans who use it have their data stored only in the USA, the government of Canada is secretly conducting a "national security review" of TikTok
The security review — which is ongoing — was launched last September at the direction of the Trudea cabinet, but was not announced because it deals with potential risks to national security.
Word of the review comes after the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill this week to ban TikTok unless its China-based owner, ByteDance, sells its stake in the business to some American firm. If the U.S. Senate passes similar legislation, President Biden says he'll sign it into law.
The push has bipartisan support, but now some Republicans are balking, because Republican presidenbtial nominee Donald Trump has done an about-face and now says he opposes a TikTok ban because that would only make Facebook more powerful.
15) Here's how to find where where the cherry blossoms are blooming
VictoriaBuzz.com has created an interactive map showing where the best bloom locations are…
16) Taylor Swift's "The Eras Tour" concert is now streaming on Disney+
You no longer have to pay extra to watch "The Eras Tour (Taylor’s Version)" here in Canada.
The extended version of the concert which was shown in theatres (this one has four extra songs) is now available at no extra charge to anyone who has a Disney+ subscription.
And, unlike on Google Play and Amazon Prime, not only do you not have to pay extra to watch it, but you can also watch it as many times as you want.
A Disney+ subscription here in Canada is available in three tiers: Standard with Ads is $8/month; Standard is $12/month or $120/year, and Premium, which lets you stream in 4K HDR, is $15/month or $150/year.
17) Minimum recommended internet speeds in the USA are now double the minimum here in Canada, because our standard hasn't been upped since 2016
THe FCC (Federal Communications Commission) in the USA has issued new benchmarks for internet speeds, recommending carriers offer a minimum of 100Mbps downloads and uploads of 20Mbps.
That's four times the previous recommended speeds, which were last adjusted in 2015.
Here in Canada, our communications regulator, the CRTC, is still recommending ISP's offer minimum internet download speeds of 50Mbps and uploads of 10Mbps — recommendations which have not been changed in eight years. The recommendations are based on what speed the average person needs in order to enjoy problem-free use of computers, TV's and other internet-connected gear.
18) If you want to buy an iPad, hold off till the new ones are announced shortly, because they'll be much more powerful.
Apple is expected to announce several new iPad models later this month, and they're all expected to come with substantial boots in performance, either for the same price as curreent models, or for slightly more.
19) If you have an iPhone or iPad, its surprisingly simple to capture a long webpage as a single screenshot
Our good friend Charles Martin has created a simple tutorial on how to capture and edit long webpages…
20) Spellcheck is broken in the latest version of the Outlook Mail app
Microsoft's new Outlook Mail app, which replaces the Windows Mail app, is getting great reviews — especially for its new features that let you with one click report scam emails or block emails you no longer want to get.
But the latest build of the app has a glitch that has temporarily broken the app's spelling auto-correct.
If the built-in Mail editor tool senses a word that it thinks you misspelled, it still underlines it with a red squiggle as shown on the left.
But, if you left-click on the word, or right-click on the word, neither option brings up the usual list of potential spellings that you used to get, or the ability to tell the editor that the spelling you used is correct.
If the built-in Mail editor tool senses a word that it thinks you misspelled, it still underlines it with a red squiggle, as shown on the left.
But, if you left-click on the word, or right-click on the word, neither option brings up the usual list of potential spellings that you used to get, or the ability to tell the editor that the spelling you used is correct.
That glitch will likedly be fixed in a forthcoming app update.
In the meantime, if spelling is a challenge for you, use the Outlook.com web-interface — which looks almost identical to the app — where SpellCheck continues to work, if you click on a squiggled word, as shown on the left.
21) By March 31, HSBC Canada customers will all be Royal Bank customers
If you bank or invest with HSBC Canada, you're about to become a Royal Bank client.
RBC agreed in 2022 to pay $13.5 billion CAD to buy the Canadian arm of HSBC.
That buyout was approved by the Minister of Finance at the end of December, and the transition is now progressing at full speed, with the HSBC name slated to disappear here in Canada by the end of the month.
22) Free FujiFilm Chinatown Photowalk on April 5th
If you like taking pictures on a digital camera but wish you could take better shots, you're invited to join Fuji Canada and London Drugs photo experts on Friday, April 5, for a look at their new DSLR cameras, followed by a walkabout in Chinatown where you'll get some great hands-on tips on how to take awesome photos.
This is free, and they only ask you to register so they know how many people to expect!
There'll be in-store demos from 1:30-3pm at the London Drugs store on Yates Street, followed by the PhotoWalk at 6:30pm. Meeting spot and other info is in the EventBrite link below the poster.
23) A Denver grandmother is getting $3.8 million from police, after officers who had not been trained how to use Apple's "Find My" service, raided her home looking for truck thieves.
Denver police seeking to recover a stolen truck loaded with guns, ammo, and cash back in January of 2022 used Apple's Find My technology on another iPhone to locate the vehicle, but picked the wrong house out of a fairly wide area to storm in an effort to catch the thieves.
A jury in Denver has now ordered the police to pay $3.76 million to the 78-year-old grandmother who was in the house they stormed, who was traumatized by the raid.
They chose her home based on a location ping from an iPhone's Find My' app which the officers did not understand and for which they had no training. The pinged location included six properties spread across parts of four city blocks. The jury concluded that the two police officers who ordered the raid had no reason to single out Mrs. Johnson's house as the target.
Homework videos (a.k.a. "time well wasted"!)
Videos start at #40, so the numbers don't get thrown-off if we add more tech news items above!
40) Watch what happened when the Wall Street Journal's senior tech columnist attempted to wear Apple's $3500 USD augmented reality Vision Pro goggles for 24 hours straight…
41) Watch SpaceX launch the world's most power rocket, Starship up to earth orbit, and see the stunning onboard video (at the 74-minute mark) as it re-enters earth's atmosphere…
42) Watch a look at the $5 billion USD mega-sewage-tunnel that's being built under London in an effort to clean up the Thames…
43) Watch the mesmerizing choreography of the members of the Netherlands-based CDK Company as they dance to "Somebody That I Used To Know" by Gotye…
44) Watch people have fun marching to the viral ear-worm hit, "Spaghetti Polonaise" by the German group "Dorfrocker And The Kings Of Günter"…
DORFROCKER on Instagram: "Die längste Nudel der Welt🍝🥳 #spaghettipolonaise #fasching #fastnacht #karneval #polonäse #stimmung #apresski @kingsofguenter"
8,124 likes, 174 comments - dorfrocker_official on February 6, 2024: "Die längste Nudel der Welt🍝🥳 #spaghettipolonaise #fasching #fastnacht #karneval #polonäse #stimmung #apresski @kingsofguenter"
,,,and here's the full track with on-screen lyrics…
45) Watch a superb father-&-son duet of "Time To Say Goodbye" by Andrea and Matteo Bocelli (the song which they performed live at The Oscars last weekend)…
Below is Tech Talk listener Kathy, who texted us this picture of her cycling in Vietnam. She wanted us to know that she's enjoying using an Airalo Global eSIM to send pics of their adventures. She says she successfully also added an Airalo Global eSIM to not just her husband's phone but also to the phone of a friend from Nanaimo. Thanks, Kathy!
…and finally, our "Sign Of The Week" on this St. Patrick's Day weekend…
And so it goes…