Facebook

Facebook working on video-focused app for Apple TV and other set-top boxes

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 1, 2017

Facebook is reportedly working on a video-focused app for media-streaming boxes such as Apple's fourth-generation Apple TV, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal. Last October, the social network launched a feature allowing users to stream videos from the mainland Facebook mobile app to their TVs via Apple TV. Tuning into television's market with a dedicated streaming app of its own would help the company tap more ad dollars.

Read More

Former Android executive Hugo Barra to head Facebook’s Oculus and virtual reality teams

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 26, 2017

When former Android executive Hugo Barra announced three days ago he was leaving Chinese handset maker Xiaomi, he provided standard boilerplate explanation: he wanted to spend more time with his family because living and working abroad has taken a toll on his health and life.

Then again, that's exactly the kind of stuff that you'd expect high-ranking executives to say when jumping ship or seeking greener pastures with another team.

As it turns out, Barra is leaving Xiaomi not because he's burned out but to join Facebook where he will be charged with managing the Oculus team and the company's other virtual reality projects, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced yesterday.

Read More

Facebook rolling out new Privacy Basics feature

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 26, 2017

Facebook is today launching a new Privacy Basics feature on the web to make it easier for users to find the tools that let them control and adjust who sees what they share on the service.

The new section provides access to various topics based on users' most frequently asked questions about privacy and security. Privacy Basics organizes these privacy-related tools in one central place and includes 32 interactive guides in 44 languages.

Read More

Facebook is about to clone Snapchat again, this time in its mainline mobile app

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 25, 2017

Facebook didn't stop at ripping off Snapchat's Stories feature with auto-vanishing slideshows on Instagram. According to a Wednesday report from Business Insider, the social network is currently testing a similar feature in its mainline mobile app.

A company spokesperson told the publication that Facebook Stories will soon start appearing at the top of the mobile Facebook app, allowing you to tap each circle to see a friend's story.

Read More

WhatsApp has a backdoor that allows snooping on end-to-end encrypted messages [updated]

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 13, 2017

In 2016, WhatsApp finally enabled complete end-to-end encryption for both chats and video calls to ensure that no one but the intended recipient can decipher contents of their communications. Unfortunately, it's come to light that WhatsApp's system has been plagued by a major vulnerability which was discovered by Tobias Boelter, a cryptography and security researcher at the University of California, Berkeley.

In an interview with the British newspaper The Guardian, Boelter said the backdoor could let Facebook read end-to-end encrypted content, meaning the social network could be complied with court orders to make decrypted messages available to law enforcement and other government agencies

UPDATE: We've received a response from WhatsApp regarding the alleged backdoor.

Read More

How to log out of all active Facebook sessions from your iPhone

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated March 24, 2020

If you have a Facebook account, then chances are you access it on more than one device. You might forget from time to time to sign out of sessions on other machines you don't intend to use again, such as those in schools or at the workplace, potentially handing over access to your Facebook account to the next person(s) who uses the machine.

Facebook fortunately comes with a feature that lets you sign out of all active sessions on your account with just a few taps. We'll show you how you can do this in this tutorial.

Read More

Group video chat in Facebook Messenger rolling out globally starting today

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 19, 2016

After enabling group audio calling on Messenger with support for up to 50 participants back in April 2016, Facebook today launched group video chatting on its popular messaging service. The ability to video chat in groups is the most requested Messenger feature ever, according to product manager Stephane Taine. The feature is rolling out today on iOS/Android and the desktop version of Messenger.

Read More

Facebook is testing an upcoming Find Wi-Fi feature in the mobile app

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 22, 2016

Facebook appears to be testing a new location-based feature that permits some users to identify free Wi-Fi hotspots through the social network's mobile application for the iPhone and iPad.

As reported by The Next Web, some users, myself included, are now seeing a Find Wi-Fi option in the app's side menu, between the Nearby Places and Nearby Friends options. Tapping it puts up a prompt asking to grant Facebook access to your location so it can find public Wi-Fi hotspots around you.

Read More

How to mention someone in your Instagram story

Anthony Bouchard ∙ Updated March 19, 2021

If you’re an Instagram user and post often, then you probably enjoy the Story feature. You can use photos in your Instagram stories as well as capture short videos. So if you want to make another user a part of your story, you can “mention” them.

Here we’ll show you two easy ways to mention someone in your next Instagram story.

Read More

WhatsApp rolls out end-to-end encrypted video calling

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 15, 2016

Facebook-owned WhatsApp announced yesterday that it had begun rolling out video calling to the more than one billion users it claims across iOS, Android and Windows Phone platforms around the world.

According to TechCrunch, video calls on WhatsApp are end-to-end encrypted just like with FaceTime in order to prevent rogue parties from eavesdropping on your communications.

WhatsApp previously rolled out end-to-end encryption for chats. “We obviously try to be in tune with what our users want,” WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum told Reuters. “We're obsessed with making sure that voice and video work well even on low-end phones.”

Read More