The new Twitter Blue, rebranded and relaunched upon Elon Musk’s takeover of the popular social networking site, launched late last year with some exclusive features for its subscribers. One of these features is the ability to edit your sent tweets, albeit only for a limited time, a limit which has now been increased.
Previously, the amount of time Twitter Blue subscribers had to edit a sent tweet was within 30 minutes of posting. This was considered a reasonable amount of time to fix a spelling mistake or to quickly fix any grammar issues noticed after the fact.
However, there are instances in which you won’t notice a mistake until someone points it out, and that can happen at anytime and not just within a half hour window. To help with this, Twitter has recently announced a change in their policy pertaining to the editing of tweets and has extended this time frame to a full hour.
Blue subscribers now have up to 1 hour to edit their Tweets.
This change is also reflected on Twitter’s Help Documentation, explaining how editing tweets actually work. To the surprise of many, editing tweets does not extend to replies, but only to original tweets and quote tweets.
Edit Tweet: This highly requested feature gives you a 1 hour window to make a limited number of changes to published Tweets. Use it to make updates, tag someone, or reorder the media you attached. Edit Tweet currently only applies to original Tweets and quote Tweets.
Meanwhile, Musk continues to experiment with new features within the platform. The latest announced via a tweet, seemingly in response to Twitch’s new controversial guidelines restricting streamers and causing a lot of backlash within that community and criticism from Musk himself.
This platform will provide email addresses of subscribers (who opt in) to content creators, so that creators are able to leave this platform easily & take their subscribers with them if they want
Though no further details have been shared on this announcement, it is safe to assume that this will function as sort of a mailing list for creators to keep of their subscribers should they ever want to leave the platform. It is unclear at this point how the opt-in process will work, but one could discern that it will be something that can be done in-app either while subscribing to a creator or anytime thereafter.
If you’ve had your Roborock for a while, then you may experience the laser and motor not working quite like it should. Especially if have pets, as that dirt and dust (and other things) can get into the module on top of the robot vacuum and cause it to not clean properly. Potentially running into furniture, walls, etc.
Luckily, there is a way to fix this issue. It mostly has to do with the LDS motor on your Roborock robot vacuum. And below, we’ll show you how to replace it. This is the easiest route to go, as replacing the entire laser module can be quite cumbersome and expensive. We’d only recommend doing this if your vacuum is outside of the warranty phase. Otherwise, you can just send it into Roborock to get it fixed.
How To Replace The LDS Motor On Your Roborock Robot Vacuum
It may seem daunting to replace the LDS motor on your Roborock robot vacuum, but it’s actually pretty simple. Here’s what you need to do.
First, remove the dustbin and the cleaning tool from the robot vacuum.
Next, you’re going to need to remove the cover that goes over the power button, dock and spot cleaning buttons. You will need to use a bit of force to do this, but it will just snap right off.
Remove upper housing trimming
Now, you’ll see that there are six screws holding the rest of the top cover (that covers the dust bin) in place. You’ll need to unscrew those. Then remove the top cover assembly.
Remove top cover assembly
Next, you will need to remove the LDS protective cover. There are five screws around it, hidden under caps. Which are simple to take off.
Remove LDS Protective Cover
With the LDS protective cover removed, there are four more screws around the motor that you need to unscrew.
Remove LDS
There are two more smaller screws that need to be removed, to remove the LDS Motor. Unscrew those.
Remove LDS Motor
Then detach it from the rest of the module. And the motor will pop right out.
Remove LDS Motor (part 2)
Now to put it back together, just redo everything we just mentioned. Starting with reattaching the LDS Motor to the module with those two screws. Then replace the four screws that puts the module back onto the robot vacuum.
Afterwards, you’ll need to use the five screws for the LDS protective cover and put that back in place.
Then you’ll be ready to use the six screws used for keeping the top cover assembly in place.
Pop the top cover back on, and put the dustbin and cleaning tool back inside, and you’re all set.
And that’s it. It might seem daunting, but it is actually pretty easy to do.
NBCUniversal’s anticipated streaming service has finally launched for everyone, starting today. Peacock, as it is known, is now available for $5 per month or $10 per month without ads.
Peacock is actually a pretty interesting streaming service from NBCUniversal, and it’s not like many of the other streaming services out there. Since there is a free tier – for Comcast customers. While services like HBO MAX, Netflix and Hulu have foregone a free tier.
So here, we’re going to tell you everything that you need to know about Peacock, NBCUniversal’s newest streaming service. And it’ll help you decide whether or not you should sign up.
What is Peacock?
Peacock is one of the newer streaming services to hit the market. It is owned by NBCUniversal and provides the majority of its content from the properties it owns. Like NBC, E!, USA and others.
Peacock launched in July 2020. And it has three plans. There is a free plan that is available for all users. Though the free tier does not have all of its content. There is about two-thirds of the Peacock library available on that free tier.
The other two tiers – Peacock Premium and Peacock Premium Plus – have more content and are $4.99 and $9.99 respectively, per month. The Peacock Premium tier has ads, while the Peacock Premium Plus tier has no ads.
This is pretty inexpensive compared to Hulu and CBS All Access which are $6 per month for ad-supported. And Disney+ is $7 but there’s no ads there.
There are essentially three tiers for Peacock. There is the free tier that is available. This was originally available to only Xfinity customers, now it is available for everyone. Xfinity customers can get Peacock Premium for free though.
There is an ad-supported Premium tier that is $5 per month (this is the same tier that Xfiniy customers get for free). And then there is a $10 per month tier, called Premium Plus that does not have ads. It does also have a bit more content, like Premier League games. But the biggest reason to get the Premium Plus version is going to be the ads.
Additionally, Peacock Premium Plus gives you more content to watch, including some never-before-seen footage from The Office. Which is now exclusively on Peacock.
If you’re not a Comcast customer, you may be able to get Peacock Premium for free in the near future though. As NBCUniversal is looking to leverage similar deals with Cox and other ISPs. Which is a bit interesting for Comcast (NBCUniversal’s parent company) to try and do, as this could be a real selling point for switching to Xfinity.
It’s worth mentioning that at launch, if you sign up via an Android device – Android smartphone, tablet, TV or Chromecast – you can get three months free.
Where is Peacock available?
Currently, Peacock is only available in US territories (American Samoa, Guam, Northern Marian Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands). NBCUniversal has not announced any plans to launch it in other countries, just yet. But that might change.
Some original content has been licensed by a broadcaster in Canada though.
On November 15, 2021, NBCUniversal announced that Peacock is launching in the UK and Ireland on November 16.
At launch, Peacock will have over 20,000 hours of content available. This is drawing from the pretty large catalog of NBC shows that it owns.
Many of its more popular shows will be available in the free tier. That includes 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation, Saturday Night Live, Psych, Monk, Royal Pains, Columbo and much more. There will also be The Matrix series, the Bourne Films and Jurassic Park franchise.
Peacock Premium expands the library with more content. Which includes Two and a Half Men, House, Frasier, Cheers, Law & Order and much more. It also brings in some Peacock originals. Some of those major original titles that are available at launch include Brave New World (based on the Aldous Huxley novel), Psych 2: Lassie Come Home, The Capture, and Intelligence. There’s also more on the way through out the year.
Peacock, as expected, is also focusing big on live content. NBC is going to be offering some curated live news and sports coverage. This includes a 24-hour NBC News channel, and there will be a big emphasis on the Olympics, whenever they take place again. It will also include Premier League soccer games, as well as early access to the late night shows. They’ll be available at 8PM instead of the usual 11:35PM and 12:35AM time slots.
WWE on Peacock
On January 25, 2021, NBCUniversal and the WWE Network announced that Peacock will become the exclusive streaming partner for the WWE starting on March 18, 2021.
With this new deal between WWE and Peacock, the WWE Network will be shutting down in the US in April. And for half the price, you’ll get all of the same WWE Network content on Peacock, plus the NBCUniversal library. Which makes this a really great deal for those that are WWE fans.
Peacock customers will get access to the full WWE library. This includes upcoming PPVs, which are not an extra charge, like the UFC is with ESPN+. So for $4.99 per month, you are getting at least one PPV per month (normally priced at $59.99, or $74.99 for WrestleMania), along with plenty of original content.
Sports on Peacock
You’ll be able to watch plenty of sports on Peacock as well. With the Peacock Premium tier being the go-to streaming hub for sporting events. Including the Olympics, when those finally happen again. Since NBC has been the exclusive USA broadcaster of the Olympics for many years, there will be plenty of Olympic content available on Peacock. Both live and on-demand.
There is other sports-related content available on Peacock too. Including the Paralympics, the US Open, US Women’s Open, and Ryder Cup Golf.
However, as you might expect, the majority sports will be available on NBC’s channels, which are free, over-the-air. And that means Peacock is not needed.
Peacock’s Themed Channels
Peacock also has some themed channels. Which is what makes it a big differentiator from other streaming TV services out there. These channels are not actually live streams, but instead act as curated, themed feeds.
One of the more popular ones is the Today All Day channel. Which is an extension of its daily morning show. It combines show clips with Peacock-exclusive segments from Today show hosts.
There are also curated channels for The Office, SNL and Keeping up with the Kardashians. These channels are great for those that just want to watch these shows, and don’t really care about watching them in order.
Update: On January 20, 2022, Peacock started adding local news channels from the NBC affiliates that it owns. That includes:
NBC 5 Chicago (WMAQ)
NBC 10 Philadelphia (WCAU)
NBC10 Boston (WBTS)
New England Cable Network (NECN)
NBC 6 Miami (WTVJ)
It is also planning to add NBC 4 New York (WNBC) and NBC 4 Los Angeles (KNBC) in the coming months.
TV Shows on Peacock
Peacock has every episode of Saturday Night Live, The Office, Keeping up with the Kardashians, among many other popular shows. Here are some of the more popular shows that are available to stream on Peacock right now:
30 Rock
Bates Motel
Battlestar Galactica
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Cheers
Chicago Fire
Chicago P.D.
Chicago Med
Chrisley Knows Best
Covert Affairs
Downton Abbey
Everyone Loves Raymond
Frasier
Friday Night Lights
The George Lopez Show
House
Law and Order
Law and Order: SVU
Law and Order: Criminal Intent
Married…With Children
Mr. Mercedes
Monk
Parenthood
Psych
Royal Pains
Superstore
The Real Housewives franchise
Top Chef
Two and a Half Men
Will & Grace
Yellowstone
Movies available on Peacock
Most Universal-made movies are available on Peacock. The only exception is if they are licensed to other streaming services. For example, most of the Fast and Furious franchise are licensed to other streaming services right now. Including HBO, FX, and STARZ. Once those deals run out, they will be available on Peacock to watch.
Here are some of the more popular movies available on Peacock right now:
Lost in Translation
Shrek
Seven
The Sting
Ted
Trolls World Tour
Peacock Originals
As is the case with any streaming service, Peacock also has a ton of originals that are available to stream, exclusively on Peacock. Here are some of them.
Brave New World: A series based on the classic sci-fi novel from Aldous Huxley starring Alden Ehrenreich and Demi Moore.
Saved By The Bell: The teen comedy series now has a reboot, featuring original cast members Elizabeth Berkley and Mario Lopez.
The Capture: A crime drama from the UK about a soldier who gets accused of a murder.
Cleopatra in Space:An animated series about the previously untold teenage stories of the great Egyptian leader Cleopatra.
Curious George: An animated series based on the classic children’s books about a curious monkey named George. You can also watch the feature film Curious George: Go West Go Wild.
Five Bedrooms:This is an Australian import comedy series. It focuses on five people who meet at a wedding and decide to buy a house and live in it together.
Hitmen:Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins, the hosts of the popular reality series The Great British Bake Off, play best friends who also happen to be paid hitmen.
Intelligence:A UK comedy import starring Friends’ David Schwimmer as an NSA agent who is the US liaison to the UK cyber crimes unit.
Psych 2: Lassie Come Home:The second TV movie based on the classic comedy-mystery series about a man who pretends to be a psychic to help solve crimes.
Where’s Waldo:Another animated series, once again based on classic children’s books about finding a man named Waldo.
Anthony: Anthony Walker was a real black teenager in Liverpool who was killed in 2005 by white racists. This movie imagines what Anthony’s life would have been liked had he lived.
Departure: This series stars Christopher Plummer, as he investigates the mysterious disappearance of a passenger plane.
Code 404: Yep, it’s another UK import. This is a comedy about a cop who is shot and dies, but is revived with the help of computers.
NBC local affiliates
On November 30, NBC local affiliate channels are available on Peacock. But only on the Peacock Premium Plus plan, which costs $10 per month. Here’s the complete list of every channel available:
Peacock is available on most platforms at launch. This includes Android, Android TV, Apple TV, Chromcast, Fire TV, Fire Tablets, iOS, Xbox One, VIZIO SmartCast TVs, LG Smart TVs and Samsung Smart TVs. And there is also a web player available for Mac, Windows and Chromebook.
After the initial launch of Peacock, NBCUniversal brought the service to Roku, Fire TV and the PlayStation 4. Covering just about every platform out there.
Update: On June 24, 2021, Peacock is officially available on Fire TV as well as Fire Tablets.
HBO MAX did something similar when it launched last month, skipping out on Roku and Fire TV. But there is a workaround. Since both of those platforms support Chromecast, and Peacock works with Chromecast, you can simply Cast content to either Fire TV or Roku.
Can I share it with others?
Peacock launched profiles on May 25, 2021. Allowing you to create up to six profiles on a single account. It’s very simple to setup and start using as well. There is also a kids profile that you can set up and control what content your kid(s) are able to watch on Peacock.
Peacock, does however support three concurrent streams. So you can still share it with your family. And there is also a PIN system available for parental controls, so you can keep kids from watching content they should not be seeing.
While Peacock did not launch with 4K, it is slowly but surely adding in 4K titles. On August 29, 2022, a few 4K titles started appearing on the service. So it’s likely to add more in the future.
Here are the titles that are available in 4K:
The Black Phone
The Book of Eli
Discarded Things
Fast & Furious
The Fast and the Furious
Fast Five
For the Love of Jessee
Home Sweet Home
The Huntsman: Winter’s War
The Least of These
Lucy Shimmers and the Prince of Peace
Man’s Best Friend
Minions
Shrek
They/Them
Uncut Gems
You Should Have Left
Additionally, 4K Peacock only works on Comcast’s hardware (the X1, Flex and X-Class TV) as well as Roku and Android TV devices. Other platforms are left out for now. But we expect that to change in the coming weeks, as well as additional titles getting added.
It’s a bit odd that all of the 4K titles right now are older movies.
How many people can stream at once?
Peacock is available on most platforms, which means that multiple people can use it at the same time. But how many people can stream at the same time? The answer is three. Peacock allows for three concurrent streams at a time. Which is right on par with the competition. And it means that you can share it with others in your home (or outside of your home).
Unfortunately, as of right now, you can only create one profile per Peacock account. That might change in the future, though Peacock has not announced anything in regards to that happening.
Parents might be wondering about some parental controls for Peacock. And well, that’s not available. Peacock is advertised as a platform that is available for users age 13 and older. And does not give users a way to block contents from kids watching. However, NBCUniversal does say that it has the ability to notify subscribers when a child under 13 has viewed content on Peacock. Though it’s not quite clear how that works.
How can I sign up for Peacock?
If you’re an Xfinity customer, you will need to sign up through Xfinity X1 or Xfinity Flex. Just enter your email address and you’re all set. That is the only way to get the service for free as an Xfinity customer though. So you are stuck using their hardware.
Otherwise, you can head to Peacock’s website or download the app and sign up from there. Remember, if you sign up from an Android device, you can get your first three months for free. Which is definitely worth doing.
Adware is a type of software designed to make money for bad actors by running ads in the foreground or background of any smartphone in which the adware has been installed. Usually, a smartphone that has adware installed will experience rapid draining of the battery and it will be laggy and run hot. Cybersecurity firm Bitdefender (via BleepingComputer) says that it has discovered that more than 60,000 Android apps, pretending to be legitimate applications, were used to install adware on mobile phones over the last six months.
The adware campaign started this past October and includes apps promoted as fake security software, VPN software for secure browsing, apps with gaming cheats and codes, utility apps, fake tutorials, YouTube/TikTok without ads, and even a bogus Netflix app. Over 55% of the malicious apps were targeting Android users in the U.S. Other countries where the apps were promoted include South Korea, Brazil, Germany, the United Kingdom, and France.
The adware ended up on apps installed using APKs offered on third-party app store websites
It is important to note that these apps were not listed in the Google Play Store and were found in third-party app store websites discovered via Google Search that use APKs (Android Packages) to allow users to sideload these malicious apps on their Android phones. When visiting these websites, users are redirected to ads or prompted to search for the app that they want. The sites are designed to install the apps via an APK which ends up infecting the user’s phone with adware.
Over 55% of the malicious apps were targeted to U.S. Android users
These apps do not create an icon for the home screen which means that if it is not opened immediately using the “Open” prompt seen after installation, the app might not be opened at any time by the user. So the developers of these malware-laden apps want you to open the app immediately after it is installed. And if you do, you will see a notification that says, “Application is unavailable in your region. Tap OK to uninstall.”
While it is adware now, these apps could end up opening more malicious and dangerous websites
But the app really is not uninstalled as it sleeps for two hours; during this time the software sets itself up to launch once the phone is booted or unlocked. When the app is launched, it connects to the servers belonging to the attackers and collects URLs of ads that it will show in the mobile browser or as full-screen WebView ads. And while showing ads to ring up revenue is what these apps currently do, researchers warn that the bad actors could switch the adware URLs and have these apps open more malicious and dangerous websites.
After installing the app you might see this notification while in reality, the app is setting itself up to run ads on your phone
Bitdefender writes, “Upon analysis, the campaign is designed to aggressively push adware to Android devices with the purpose of driving revenue. However, the threat actors involved can easily switch tactics to redirect users to other types of malware, such as banking Trojans to steal credentials and financial information or ransomware.” And while we want to warn you not to sideload apps from third-party app stores or websites, the truth is that some malware continues to live in the Google Play Store.
Without an icon, these apps show up in your installed apps list like the last entry found in this screenshot
Despite stories like this, your best bet is to stick to the Google Play Store and stay away from third-party app storefronts. And if you want to improve the odds of keeping your device malware-free, you might want to stick to installing apps from developers that you are familiar with even if that means limiting yourself to titles offered by big-name tech firms.
The North Korean APT group Kimsuky has been running a social engineering operation that targets experts in North Korean affairs from the non-government sector, according to SentinelLabs.
For spear-phishing attempts to gather intelligence from think tanks, research centers, academic institutions, and various media organizations, the North Korean hacking group Kimsuky (also known as APT43) has been posing as a journalist and academic.
“The campaign focuses on the theft of email credentials, delivery of reconnaissance malware, and theft of NK News subscription credentials,” SentinelLabs.
Activities Of the North Korean Hacker Group Kimsuky
Kimsuky’s most recent social engineering attempt was directed at NK News subscribers, an American subscription-based website that offers news and commentary about North Korea.
Kimsuky’s activities seem to be in line with those of the North Korean government.
The gang has been in operation since at least 2012, and it frequently uses targeted phishing and social engineering techniques to acquire sensitive data and gather intelligence.
Kimsuky, also known as Thallium and Velvet Chollima, has conducted extensive espionage efforts to support national intelligence objectives.
The ReconShark malware, which is capable of leaking information, including what detection systems are in use on a device and information about the device itself, was further offered in some cases by the Kimsuky hackers in weaponized Microsoft Office documents.
In a different attack that SentinelLabs observed, Kimsuky sent out emails asking recipients to sign on to a fake NK News subscription service.
The North Korean hackers would benefit from having access to users’ NK News login information because they would gain “valuable insights into how the international community assesses and interprets developments related to North Korea, contributing to their broader strategic intelligence-gathering initiatives,” SentinelLabs.
Additionally, Kimsuky was seen delivering malware-free Word documents and legitimate Google Docs links to their targets in an attempt to establish a connection with them before beginning their harmful actions.
Posing As Journalists and Writers
Hackers from Kimsuky carefully organize and carry out their spear-phishing assaults by employing email accounts that closely resemble those of actual people and by creating convincing, realistic content for the target’s communication.
The hackers frequently pose as journalists and writers to enquire about the latest political developments on the Korean peninsula, the North Korean weapons program, US talks, China’s position, and other topics.
Themes that have been seen include queries, interview requests, a running survey, and demands for reports or document reviews.
As the early emails’ goal is to win the target’s trust rather than quickly corrupt them, they frequently contain no malware and no attachments.
Hackers posing as Journalists and Writers (Source: U.S. Government)
If the target does not reply to these emails, Kimsuky follows up after a few days with another message.
The phishing message can use a distinctive North Korean dialect if the target is South Korean.
Additionally, the email addresses used to send phishing scams are spoofs of real people or companies, but they are always slightly misspelled.
Thus, it is crucial to maintain attention and put strong security measures in place to reduce this persistent threat actor’s threats.
The malware-infected apps include a variety of industries, including gaming, anti-virus, VPN, tutorials, gaming, social media and many more.
Bitdefender, a leading cybersecurity company, has recently revealed the existence of a massive and sophisticated mobile malware campaign that has been operating undetected on Android devices across the globe for more than six months.
The campaign, which poses a significant threat on a global scale, primarily aims to aggressively distribute adware to Android devices with the intention of generating revenue for the malicious actors involved.
However, the researchers warn that these threat actors have the capability to switch tactics, potentially redirecting users to more dangerous forms of malware such as banking Trojans or ransomware. So far, Bitdefender has identified over 60,000 unique apps carrying the adware, suggesting that there may be many more variants still lurking in the wild.
Here are the countries most impacted by the new malware campaign:
United States 55.27%
South Korea 9.8%
Brazil 5.96%
Germany 2.93%
United Kingdom 2.71%
France 2.56%
Kazakhstan 2.5%
Romania 2.41%
Italy 1.93%
Other 12.19%
One of the remarkable aspects of this malware campaign is its longevity, as it has remained active since at least October 2022. The absence of behaviour-based detection capabilities on Android has enabled the malware to evade detection for such an extended period. Moreover, the sheer number of unique samples discovered strongly indicates that the operation is largely automated.
What sets this malware campaign apart is its distribution strategy. The malicious apps are not present in official app stores, requiring the perpetrators to convince users to download and install third-party applications. To accomplish this, the threat actors have disguised their malicious software as highly sought-after apps that are typically not found in official stores or have mimicked legitimate applications available on the Play Store.
The apps imitate various popular categories, including game cracks, unlocked game features, free VPNs, fake videos, Netflix, fake tutorials, ad-free versions of YouTube/TikTok, cracked utility programs, and fake security programs. Here is the full list shared by the researchers:
Netflix
Free VPN
Fake videos
Fake tutorials
Game cracks
Fake security programs
YouTube/TikTok without ads
Games with unlocked features
Cracked utility programs: weather, pdf viewers, etc
The distribution of this malware occurs organically when users search for these specific types of apps, cracks, or mods. Websites dedicated to offering modded apps have become popular platforms for such distribution. When a user visits a website through a Google search for a “modded” app, they may be redirected to a deceptive page hosting the malware disguised as a legitimate download for the desired mod.
Bitdefender’s researchers have discovered the malware’s sophisticated techniques to remain hidden and ensure its persistence on infected devices. By not registering any launchers during installation, the malware avoids displaying an app icon on the device’s launcher.
The malware also employs a special packer that utilizes the SQLCipher package to encrypt its malicious content. Bitdefender’s technical blog post includes further details about the infection process.
To protect Android devices from this widespread malware campaign and similar threats, it is crucial to employ a robust security solution capable of detecting and preventing such attacks.
Users are strongly advised against downloading apps from third-party app stores or websites, as these platforms pose a higher risk of malware infection. It is always safest to stick to official app stores for app downloads.
The Google Assistant is a really useful tool on your smartphone, tablet, Chromebook, or any other device that has Google support. It can answer your questions, adjust the heat on your thermostat, and even send text messages for you. Among many other things.
So in this guide, we are aiming to help you make the most of the Google Assistant. And use it to make your life easier. Which is something we can all appreciate.
What is the Google Assistant?
The Google Assistant was announced at Google I/O 2016, and it was basically an evolution of Google Now. Which was a screen on your home screen that would provide you with data that Google thought you’d want. Like your flight information, what’s coming up on your calendar and more. It morphed into the Google Assistant once the competition (namely Alexa and Siri) started to take off.
It is a virtual assistant that is available in most of Google’s own products, including the Nest Mini, Android smartphones and much more. It’s easy to get the Google Assistant’s attention, just say “Hey Google” and tell it what you want it to do. The things that the Google Assistant can do, are pretty much endless.
Google is continuing to bring the Assistant to even more devices, so you won’t see any shortage of devices with it included.
How to set it up?
Setting up the Google Assistant is pretty easy. On most Android smartphones, it’ll be part of the initial smartphone setup process. And it does work on Android 5+, so that covers basically any Android smartphone currently in use.
Here’s how you can set up the Google Assistant:
Launch the Google app.
Tap the More option in the bottom-right corner.
Head to Settings
Then tap on Google Assistant.
Move to the Assistant tab.
Tap the Phone option at the bottom.
Enable the Google Assistant option.
Enable the Hey Google option.
And that’s it. Now the Google Assistant is enabled on smartphones.
On other devices, like smart speakers, you’ll need to open up the Google Home app and set up the speaker or Chromecast (or whatever other product you might have).
What devices support the Google Assistant?
The devices that support the Google Assistant are pretty endless, with more coming out almost daily.
On the Android side, anything that has Google services, and runs Android 5 or later supports the Google Assistant. iOS devices including the iPhone and iPad also support the Google Assistant – just download the Google Assistant app from the App Store.
There are many smart speakers that support it as well. Google has its own line of smart speakers and displays. Like the Nest Mini, Nest Audio as well as the Nest Hub and Nest Hub Max. Sonos speakers support the Google Assistant and some have it built-in. The difference there is whether it’ll work as a Nest Audio, or if you can just say “OK Google, play Big Sean on the Sonos Move”.
On the smart home front, most smart home products work with the Google Assistant. Most do not have it built-in, but are compatible with the Google Assistant. That of course includes all Nest products. As well as Philips Hue, LIFX, and many others. The only real standout here for products that do not support the Assistant, is Ring and Blink products. That is because Amazon owns them, and want them to only work with Alexa – their own assistant.
That said, the Google Assistant is available on over one billion devices, and available on over 50,000 smart home devices.
Some of the best Google Assistant commands
Here are some great commands to get started with the Google Assistant. There are thousands of others that you can use as well. And since the Assistant does understand human speak, you don’t need to say these commands word for word. For example, instead of saying “OK Google, what time is it”, you can say “OK Google, time” if you’re feeling lazy. And it’ll still know what you meant.
General commands
“Good morning” — This command is a catch-all for your morning routine. Assistant can give you a weather report, details on your route to work, and recite the latest news bulletins.
“Wake me up at …” — Assistant can fill in as your personal alarm clock.
“Open …” — Open up any app on your phone just by saying its name.
“Set a reminder for …” — Add reminders to your calendar, complete with time and place, so you’ll never miss a date again.
“Set a timer for …” — Slow cooking a chicken or baking some muffins? The Assistant’s timer setting is incredibly useful for nailing those recipe timings.
“Turn on Bluetooth” — Toggle Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, your phone’s flashlight, and pretty much every other hardware option without reaching for a settings menu.
“Add … to my shopping list” — Google can store online shopping lists for you and when paired up with Assistant you can quickly add and remove items via voice.
Music
“Play classical music” — Instead of playing music by song, artist, or album, picking a genre can be a great way to discover new music.
“Play … radio” — You don’t have to stream from a service like Spotify. Assistant can also play online radio stations.
“Skip song” — As well as play, pause, and stop, you can skip along.
“What’s playing?” — Assistant can give you artist and song info for anything currently streaming.
“Turn it up” — Volume can be adjusted up and down at 10% increments, or set to a specific level.
Pictures and video
“Show my pictures of … “ — If you use Google Photos, Assistant can pick out pictures of people, places, and dates on request.
“Play … on TV” — Link up your streaming accounts on your smart TV or Chromecast and Assistant can play shows directly onto your TV.
“Stream … from Youtube” — Catch up with your favorite YouTube shows.
“Turn on subtitles” — Quickly toggle subtitles on or off and even pick your desired language without reaching for the remote. The same works for dubbing too.
Tips, tricks & fun
“Find my phone” — We’ve all misplaced our phone, but if you’ve connected your smart speaker to your Google account simply ask it to find your phone and, providing your handset has a data connection, it will ring.
Check movie times — Assistant is quite good at finding localized results, so asking “what time is [movie] showing” will display local cinema results. In fact, you can check the open times and details for many local businesses listed with Google.
Asking further questions — This is a little more hit and miss, but Assistant can often understand follow-up questions. Sticking with the previous example, you might ask “what’s playing at [cinema]” followed by “what time are they showing [movie]”, and Assistant will remember that you’re talking about the same cinema.
“Beatbox!” — Does what it says. Enjoy.
Tune an instrument — Ask for a specific note and Assistant can provide. Handy for tuning guitars and other instruments.
“Tell me a joke” — A library of groaners that are sure to lighten anyone’s mood.
“Recite a poem” — Assistant has a selection of classic poems ready to help you unwind.
“Do you like Star Trek, or Star Wars?” – Be prepared for a range of confusing crossover answers sure to delight and infuriate fans in equal measure.
More goodies
“Do a barrel roll”.
“What’s the loneliest number?”.
“Make me a sandwich”.
“When am I?”.
“Beam me up, Scotty”.
“How can entropy be reversed?”.
“Tell me a joke”.
“Up up down down left right left right B A start”.
“Who’s on first?”.
“I am your father”.
“Set phasers to kill”.
“Did you fart?”.
“It’s my birthday”.
“It’s not my birthday”.
“Who let the dogs out?”.
“Do you want to build a snowman?”.
“How many roads must a man walk down?”.
“Who is the real Slim Shady?”.
“Who ya gonna call?”.
“Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?”.
“Where’s Waldo?”.
“Party on, Wayne”.
What are Google Assistant Actions?
Google announced Actions for Assistant a couple of years ago, and it’s basically the ability to have a conversation with the Assistant. And it allows you to do things outside of what Google has enabled for it. So developers can create actions for the Assistant, and expand its functionality. For example, with Todoist, you could tell the Google Assistant to add a task to your to-do list. Which could be super useful for making a grocery list, or just a list of things you need to do at work.
Google has created an Actions app directory that is built into the Assistant’s app on Android and iOS. So you can easily discover third-party apps that work with Assistant Actions.
Here are a few examples of third-party actions that are available for the Google Assistant right now:
“Ask CNN for the latest news”
“Ask Train Track if the L train is delayed”
“Send a WhatsApp message”
“Show me easy recipes”
“Play Panda Show Radio”
If you’re a developer, Google does have some pretty useful tools for you to build actions for the Google Assistant, and expand its functionality for your app and/or game. Developers are able to build actions using either the Dialogflow or the Actions SDK. For those wondering, Dialogflow is a “conversational platform” that offers an easy-to-use IDE, machine learning and a few other tools that wrap the functionality of the Actions SDK.
Google Assistant Shortcuts
Google announced Assistant Shortcuts with Android 11 in late 2020, but at Google I/O in 2021 the company opened the floodgates. Allowing you to do all sorts of shortcuts with the Assistant. So if there are commands that you do very often with the Assistant, you can set those up as shortcuts now.
You can think of Shortcuts as being similar to Routines, which we talk about below.
What are routines?
Routines for the Google Assistant are exactly what they sound like. The ability to give the Assistant a single command and have it do a routine of tasks. For example, if you get up in the morning and ask the Assistant to turn on the lights, tell you the weather, tell you about your commute and about the news, you could just say “OK Google, Good Morning” and have it do all of that at once. Instead of giving it four different commands.
Here are a few things you can add into a routine:
Turn off silent mode.
Adjust lights, plugs, the thermostat, and other smart devices (if you have any).
Tell you about the weather.
Tell you about your commute.
Tell you about your today’s calendar events.
Tell you today’s reminders.
Adjust media volume.
Play music, news, radio, a podcast, or an audiobook.
You can set up your routine(s) within the Google Assistant app. You can set one up for the morning, one for going to bed, maybe one for leaving the office and so forth. It can be a very useful feature, if you set it up properly for yourself.
The smart home with Google Assistant
The Google Assistant is compatible with over 10,000 different smart home products. These include:
Lighting, plugs, outlets, and other electrical gear.
Washers, dryers, refrigerators, vacuums, air conditioners, and other home appliances.
Cameras, locks, and security systems.
Speakers, internet radios, and other audio equipment.
It’s generally pretty easy to connect the Google Assistant to smart home products. Typically within the products’ app, you will have an option to add it to the Google Assistant, or link your accounts. If not, you can link it within the Google Home app. And that allows you to use a single app to control everything.
Here are some commands you can use for controlling smart home products:
“Turn on [light name]” or “Turn off [light name]” — Turn a light on or off.
“Dim the [light name]” or “Brighten the [light name]” — Dim or brighten a light.
“Set [light name] to 50%” — Set a light brightness to a certain percentage.
“Dim/brighten [light name] by 50%” — Dim or brighten lights by a certain percentage.
“Turn [light name] green]” — Change the color of a light.
“Turn on lights in [room name]” or “Turn off lights in [room name]” — Turn on or off all lights in a room.
“Turn on all of the lights” or “Turn off all of the lights” — Turn on or off all lights.
“Make it warmer/cooler”, “Raise/lower the temperature”, “Raise/lower the temperature two degrees”, or “Set the temperature to 72 degrees” — Adjust the temperature.
“Turn on heat/cooling”, “Set the thermostat to cooling/heating”, or “Turn the thermostat to heat-cool mode” — Switch to heating or cooling modes.
“Set the heat to 68”, “Set the air conditioning to 70”, or “Set [room name] thermostat to 72” — Set the mode and temperature.
“Turn off thermostat” — Turn the thermostat off. “Turn on cooling/heating”, “Turn on heat/cool”, “Set the heat to 68”, “Set the air conditioning to 70”, etc. — Turn the thermostat back on.
“What’s the temperature inside?” — Check the ambient temperature on the thermostat.
“Hey Google, what’s the thermostat set at?” — Check what the thermostat is set at.
Versus the competition
When you compare the Google Assistant to the competition – namely Amazon Alexa – the biggest difference is that Google Assistant has Google’s search engine behind it. It is also better at deciphering what someone said. Since Google has been working on voice to text and voice search for over a decade, compared to Amazon only doing it for about half that time.
Google Assistant has a few other advantages, seeing as it is built into every Android smartphone on the planet – as long as it has Google services. The other main advantage is that Google Assistant works with more smart home products than Amazon does, and it’s built into many things that are already in your home.
Those are the two main digital assistants that Android users can use – Cortana is kind of a non-starter, as is Siri which isn’t even on Android. And Google is of course the better option, since it also owns and develops for Android.
Every time a streaming service raises prices, we always hear “I’m going back to cable”. Well, cable is now costing Americans on average, $1,764 per year. That’s about $147 per month.
This comes from Mntn Research, which conducted a report showing that in addition to that cost, about 92% of channels in these packages are never watched by subscribers. Now, that is not unique to cable packages. A good majority of the channels in streaming TV packages from YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV and Fubo also go unwatched.
Mntn Research also noted that “over half of all customers polled – 62% – think that they are wasting money on their monthly TV bill. While 45% say they’d cancel their subscription altogether if their cable wasn’t attached to their internet provider.”
Cable companies like to bundle cable and internet together for a cheaper price. Making subscribers keep cable, because everyone needs internet. This is the case for Comcast, who charges about $5 more per month to add 100 channels of cable, versus just having internet.
Streaming TV is still cheaper
While we are all unhappy with streaming Live TV services jumping in price, it is still cheaper than cable. Not to mention, a lot more flexible. You can share your YouTube TV service with family and friends that don’t live in your home. You can’t do that with cable. Cable also charges you for the cable box each month, as well as other taxes and fees. Streaming Live TV does not do that.
So while services like YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV are now over $70 per month, they are still a better alternative versus cable. Though that gap is starting to get pretty small.
We’re still seeing record numbers of people ditching cable, and switching to either streaming live TV or just streaming like Netflix and Hulu. So one has to wonder, how long before cable companies are done with cable? Maybe another 10 years?
The newest version of Google Photos (v6.39) for Android rolling out right now has a completely new and more streamlined Settings menu. The menu options have been reduced from a long list to a shortened version with their corresponding sub-menus.
As reported by 9to5Google, the new settings page is still undergoing its rollout and is only showing up for a few that are on the latest version of Google Photos. Initially, this change was spotted by Telegram user Catalin and was then confirmed by Android expert Mishaal Rahman.
The updated look is very obviously aimed at enhancing the user experience, with just six options in the main Settings page that can be tapped on to open more related options. Each of these main sections is self-explanatory and includes an icon to represent its function. The new design emphasizes simplicity and organization, making it easier for users to navigate and customize their app settings.
Old Google Photos Settings – Credit (Catalin/Telegram)
This cleaner, more streamlined, look declutters the previous layout and present options in a more organized manner. By implementing a simplified design, users will find it easier to locate and adjust various settings according to their preferences.
Besides the reorganization of the Settings menu, nothing else has changed with the Google Photos app, as far as we can tell. The main options to access your Photos, Search, Sharing, and Library are still in the same place, and the list of Utilities available also remains the same. This also includes Library options such as Favorites, Archive, and Trash.
However, the updated Settings menu does look more consistent with the rest of the app, adopting the same design language, font, and similar icons. With more intuitive options, users will have no trouble finding and adjusting Settings related to photo backup, sharing, storage, and other key functionalities offered by the app.
Recently, cybersecurity researchers uncovered that over 60,000 Android applications had been stealthily disguised as genuine software for the past six months.
It has been identified that these malicious apps have been secretly implanting adware onto unsuspecting mobile devices without detection.
Utilizing an anomaly detection feature integrated into its Bitdefender Mobile Security software just a month ago, Bitdefender effectively identified the malicious apps.
Distribution
The distribution of this campaign, suspected to have begun in October 2022, takes various forms, including:-
Fake security software
Fake game cracks
Fake cheats
Fake VPN software
Fake Netflix
Fake utility apps on third-party sites
Fake tutorials
YouTube/TikTok without ads
Fake videos
The malware strategically emerges when users search for apps, mods, cracks, and related materials, facilitating an organic distribution pattern.
Notably, a growing and profitable market for modded apps leads to specialized websites entirely devoted to offering these enticing collections.
This malware campaign has targeted users from the following countries:-
The United States
South Korea
Brazil
Germany
The United Kingdom
France
The primary essence of modded apps lies in their ability to modify original applications, granting full access to their functionality or introducing programmed changes.
Installed and Evade Detection Stealthily
Google Play remains free from the clutches of malicious apps, as they prefer to reside on third-party websites discovered via Google Search, enticing users with APKs.
While browsing these sites, expect to be redirected to websites that showcase the advertisements or encounter prompts luring you to download the requested application.
According to the Bitdefender report, These download platforms are purposefully designed to function as distribution hubs for Android apps embedded with malicious code, capable of infecting Android devices with adware upon installation.
To avoid additional privileges, the app, after the installation, does not self-configure itself to initiate automatic execution.
Instead, it entirely depends on the regular installation procedure of the Android app, prompting users to manually ‘Open’ the app after installation.
Moreover, these apps deliberately avoid an icon and cleverly incorporate a UTF-8 character within the app’s label, intensifying their hiding and rendering them more challenging to identify.
This circumstance carries a dual nature, as it represents that if a user ignores to initiate the app post-installation, the probability of it being launched later declines.
After being launched, the app will promptly generate an error message, delivering the user with the following notification:-
“Application is not accessible in your region. Tap OK to uninstall.”
Despite appearances, the app does not uninstall itself; instead, it enters an inactive phase for two hours, during which it registers two ‘intents’ that trigger its launch upon device boot or unlocking.
Upon deployment, the application will establish a link to the servers that are under the control of the attacker. From these servers, it will start retrieving the advertisement URLs, which will be showcased within the:-
Mobile browser
Full-screen WebView ad
While the primary function of the malicious apps currently lies in exhibiting advertisements, the researchers caution that the threat actors can easily replace the adware URLs with websites of a more threatening nature.
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