Netflix wants to fuel your binge-watching behavior by showing you less ads on the ad-supported plan

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Netflix wants to fuel your binge-watching behavior by showing you less ads on the ad-supported plan
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Netflix is making its ad-supported plan even more attractive to subscribers by reducing the number of ads you’ll see if you binge-watch. Starting in Q1 2024, after you watch three episodes of a TV show in a row, the fourth episode will be ad-free.

Plans for the ad-supported plan

Netflix spokesperson, Nikki Merkouris, announced today that by the end of this week, the company will delivery on its promise to also allow subscribers to download content for offline viewing. This move will make Netflix the only streaming service with an ad-supported tier that allows content downloads.

Our goal isn’t just to offer the same products and tools the industry has come to expect — although we’ve made a lot of progress on that front over the last year. It’s to build something bigger and better than what exists today…We want to shape the future of advertising on Netflix and help marketers tap into the amazing fandom generated by our must-watch shows and movies.

Beginning in early 2024, advertisers will have the option to allow viewers on the ad-supported tier to watch less ads. This will materialize as a new ad format that skips ads after watching three consecutive episodes, making the fourth one less disruptive to watch. This is a great way to enjoy your favorite shows without having to sit through too many commercials.

The company states that it has now amassed 15 million global monthly active users, a number that was most certainly helped by the launch of the new plan. Now, with these recent changes and the ones to come in 2024, Netflix is giving viewers a great reason to jump in to the service if they haven’t already done so. With fewer ads, more relevant ads, and a less disruptive ad experience, the ad-supported plan is a great way to save money on your streaming subscription — if you don’t mind the ads, that is.

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Pixel Car Crash Detection is expanding to more regions

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Pixel Car Crash Detection is expanding to more regions
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Car crash detection is an extremely important feature for phones to have, and it’s a feature that comes on most Pixel devices. While that’s true, the feature has been pretty limited in its availability. Thankfully, according to a new report. car crash detection for Pixel is expanding to more markets.

What is car crash detection? It’s pretty self-explanatory. When you’re in your car, your Pixel phone will use its sensors like its accelerometer to know if you’ve been in a car accident. When that happens, it will notify emergency personnel in the location so that you can get assistance.

Car crash detection is expanding to more regions

This story is good news if you’re rocking one of the newer Pixel phones. This feature is making its way to more places around the world. The company is expanding the feature to five more countries. These countries are India, Austria, Switzerland, Portugal, and Belgium. This brings the total number of supported countries up to 20.

This is good news, but there are some languages missing. For example, as per the report, the feature made it to India, but it’s not available in Hindi. Hopefully, that language support will come out eventually. It could mean a lot for people who are in more accident-prone areas.

Also, if you’re using an older Pixel phone, you might not have access to this expanded functionality. The Google support page used to state that car crash detection is available on the Pixel 3 and later. However, the page has been updated to say that it’s only for the Pixel 4a or later.

One of the folks at 9To5Google still saw the feature on their Pixel 4 XL. So, the likely explanation is that phones before the Pixel 4a just aren’t getting this expanded availability. In any case, it’s still good to see that Google is expanding this feature to more places.


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Apple iPhone 16 might have an additional button

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Apple iPhone 16 might have an additional button
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While we’re still far away from the iPhone 16 launch, rumors about the phone are gradually popping up. The latest rumor suggests that Apple might add a button to the iPhone 16. The functionality of this new button is still a mystery.

The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max came with an additional Action Button, which is customizable for various tasks. A report from MacRumors (via Weibo’s Instant Digital) now states that Apple might take the same path for the iPhone 16 series and add a new button that’s set for inclusion.

While the Action Button was available to iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max variants, the source says there’s a “great chance” that all iPhone 16 variants launch with the new button. The future generation of Apple’s smartphones includes the iPhone 16, the iPhone 16 Plus, the iPhone 16 Pro, and the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Meanwhile, some other rumors suggest that iPhone 16 & 16 Plus may not get 120Hz displays.

The Apple iPhone 16 series supposedly will launch with even more buttons

To accommodate the change, Apple reportedly plans to relocate the mmWave antenna to the device’s left. The mmWave antenna is now located on the right side of the iPhones. Volume and Power keys remain in their place as they’re not solid-state yet.

The report also notes that the Action Button sits flush with the device in the next iPhones as Apple wants to switch to solid-state technology. As a side note, the solid-state design means the device doesn’t utilize moving parts and relies on haptic feedback instead.

The previous 16 leaks also pointed to a new button below the power button. The new button is allegedly a capacitive type, internally called the “Capture” button. Given the internal name, the button might be related to the iPhone 16 camera. Meanwhile, adding a new button to iPhones when the Action Button is customizable raises many questions about Apple’s next smartphones.

For now, we can take the news with a pinch of salt as the iPhone 15 series has just launched, and it’s too soon to talk about the following models. More details about the alleged iPhone 16 button will leak in the coming months.


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First clamshell foldable from Xiaomi expected next year

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First clamshell foldable from Xiaomi expected next year
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Xiaomi already launched three foldable smartphones, all of them are book-style foldables, though. Well, the very first clamshell foldable from Xiaomi could finally launch next year.

This information comes from Weibo, from a tipster. We’re not very familiar with this tipster, though, so take the information with a grain of salt.

The very first clamshell foldable smartphone from Xiaomi is allegedly coming next year

What exactly did he say? Well, he claims that Xiaomi is advancing with the MIX Flip development really well. In fact, he seems to believe that the device will launch before the Xiaomi MIX Fold 4.

The Xiaomi MIX Fold 3 launched in August this year, so its successor is expected around the same time next year. That would mean that the Xiaomi MIX Flip, or whatever other name Xiaomi opts for, could launch prior to that.

Xiaomi could always opt to launch them at the same time, regardless of the fact the Xiaomi MIX Flip advances are ahead of the MIX Fold. Another thing to note is that Xiaomi could opt for the MIX Flip 4 name, just to unify the names of the two phones. We’ll see.

It could utilize the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC

The last piece of information that the tipster shared is actually a question. He asked his followers whether they’d be interested in the Xiaomi MIX Flip if it ends up packing the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC.

We’re not sure if he heard something about this SoC being used, or is he only guessing. That processor is still immensely powerful, as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 launched very recently. Chances are that wouldn’t be an issue for many people, despite the fact it’s not the latest and greatest anymore. The price tag will also play a huge role, of course.

In any case, it’s about time Xiaomi launches a flip phone. They seem to be more popular than book-style foldables either way, so it would be nice to see Xiaomi join the pack.


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How To Sign Up For Ring Protect

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How To Sign Up For Ring Protect
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Like most smart home products, Ring does offer a paid subscription for its devices, which can be very useful, actually. Though, Ring doesn’t make it the most straightforward to sign up for it. In fact, you can’t even sign up in the Ring app, you have to sign up on Ring’s website. Which is odd that it makes it so difficult, but that’s what we are here for. We’re going to show you how you can sign up for Ring Protect.

What is Ring Protect?

Ring Protect is the company’s subscription service that adds additional features to your products. Like the ability to save video and share it for all of your Ring devices. You can also see photos of visitors in your notifications, download more videos at once, and much more.

There’s essentially three plans for Ring Protect. There’s Ring Basic, which is $3.99 per month, per device. Then there’s Ring Protect Plus which is $10 per month for unlimited devices. These plans are mostly the same, the only difference is really how many products they support. Finally, there’s Ring Protect Pro at $20 per month, and this includes professional monitoring for the Ring Alarm.

Is there a free trial?

Yes, there is a free trial. Though, the way Ring does it, is a bit odd. The first time you set up a Ring product on your account, Ring will automatically start your 30-day free trial of Ring Protect. There’s no way to delay it and sign up later. We’re guessing that this gets users used to these features so when the trial expires, they are more likely to sign up and pay.

However, you do get a new 30-day trial every time you buy and add another Ring product to your home. But this is not available if you are a Ring Protect customer already.

How to sign up for Ring Protect

First off, you’ll need to head to Ring.com from a web browser. Unfortunately, you cannot sign up from the Ring app.

Next, you’ll need to login if you are not already logged in.

Then tap on “Dashboard” in the top right-hand corner.

Screen Shot 2022 08 26 at 9 00 37 AM

Now, you will see an option at the top that says “Protect Plan”, click on that.

From here, you will see your devices that are included in the plan and those that are not. Just click on the blue “Subscribe” button at the top.

Screen Shot 2022 08 26 at 9 00 53 AM

This next page will tell you the three plans that Ring has available. And it will also tell you which one they believe is the best for you. You are able to enroll specific devices in Ring Protect (say only a doorbell), and it’ll cost $3.99 per month and per device, or you can add everything for $10 per month.

Screen Shot 2022 08 26 at 9 01 01 AM

Once you choose the plan you want, tap on “Subscribe” in the lower right-hand corner.

Screen Shot 2022 08 26 at 9 01 20 AM

Now, Ring will show you what products will be covered with the plan that you’ve chosen. Then tap on the blue “Subscribe” button at the bottom.

Screen Shot 2022 08 26 at 9 01 31 AM

Finally on this page, this is where you’ll pay. You can choose from the monthly or the yearly plan, and then add your credit card information. And click on “Purchase” and you’ll be all set. You’ll now have Ring Protect on your Ring device(s).

And that’s it.


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Russian Pair Charged with JFK Airport Taxi System Hack for Over 2 Years

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Russian Pair Charged with JFK Airport Taxi System Hack for Over 2 Years
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Two Russian hackers and two Americans have been accused of a two-year-long hacking scheme involving the taxi dispatch system at JFK Airport, where they earned over $100,000 by assisting taxi drivers in skipping the line.

Two Russian nationals, Aleksandr Derebenetc (aka Sasha Novgorod) and Kirill Shipulin (aka Kirill Russia), have been charged with hacking the taxi dispatch system at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK).

Talking about taxis and hacking; in September 2022, Anonymous hacktivists, in cooperation with the IT Army of Ukraine, hacked the app for the ride-hailing service Yandex Taxi in Moscow, Russia, causing a massive traffic jam.

The indictment was unsealed by Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and the Inspector General of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Gay.

Two American nationals, Daniel Abayev, 47, and Peter Leyman, 49, both hailing from Queens, NY, have been accused of collaborating with the Russians to move certain taxis to the front of the line in exchange for payment. The scheme started in September 2019 and continued until September 2021. 

According to the indictment, the four individuals used several tactics, including malware, social engineering, and stolen passwords, to access the JFK taxi dispatch system, and conspired to let their desired taxi drivers bypass the long wait times and cut in line.

Abayev and Leyman helped Derebenetc, 30, of Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia, and Shipulin,30, of Moscow, Russia, by recruiting taxi drivers and collecting payments. In addition, they acted as the operation’s frontmen and stayed in touch with the drivers to decide which ones would skip the queue.

Prosecutors allege that the conspirators developed a plan to hack the dispatch systems in 2019 and tried several strategies, such as bribing people to insert a malware-infected flash drive into the computers connected with the taxi system, gaining unauthorized access to the dispatch system through a WiFi connection, and stealing computer tablets that were connected to that system.

Once they infiltrated the dispatch system, the conspirators used messaging apps to communicate with the drivers, give them instructions, and select the drivers who would skip the line and at what time.

When they had access to the system, they would message the drivers “Shop Open,” and when the connection wasn’t successful, they would message them “Shop Closed.” The perpetrators also issued warnings to the drivers to prevent them from going to certain areas around the airport and raising suspicion. 

According to the court filing, the conspirators gained and lost access to the taxi system repeatedly. When they had access, they offered the drivers to move to the front of the dispatch queue for a $10 fee and waived it for those who convinced other drivers to participate in this scheme. 

Many drivers benefitted from this service, noted the US Department of Justice. The gang booked 2,463 queue cuts in a single week during December 2019. Through this scheme, the conspirators enabled at least 1,000 trips daily, and it turned out to be a profitable venture for them as they made over $100,000.

Derbentec and Shipulin are charged with two counts of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion, which carry a maximum sentence of ten years in prison. Abayev and Leyman, have pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion and face a maximum sentence of five years.

“As alleged in the indictment, these four defendants conspired to hack into the taxi dispatch system at JFK airport. Cyber hacking can pose grave threats to infrastructure systems that we rely on every day, and our Office is dedicated to pursuing criminal hackers, whether they be in Russia or here in New York.”

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams
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Atlassian Releases Urgent Confluence Patches Amid State-Backed Threats

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Atlassian Releases Urgent Confluence Patches Amid State-Backed Threats
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Atlassian has issued patches for all supported versions of Confluence Data Center and Server before 7.19.16, 8.3.4, 8.4.4, 8.5.3, and 8.6.1 and strongly advised customers to apply patches immediately.

Australia’s leading software firm Atlassian has issued an emergency patch for a critical security flaw that can allow unauthenticated actors to cause “significant data loss” if exploited. The company has released an advisory this week to warn customers after state-backed hackers tried to target its products recently. The vulnerability is rated 9.1 out of 10 on the vulnerability severity scoring system and is tracked as CVE-2023-22518.

The vulnerability is an improper authorization flaw that can allow an attacker to access sensitive data like user accounts, passwords, and confidential information. According to the company’s advisory, the flaw affects Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server’s on-premise versions.

For your information, Atlassian Confluence is a popular collaborative wiki system enterprises use to organize/share work. A few weeks back, it was targeted by Chinese state-sponsored hackers. They exploited the bug with another 10.0 maximum-rated flaw to compromise Atlassian customers.

Atlassian has issued patches for all supported versions of Confluence Data Center and Server before 7.19.16, 8.3.4, 8.4.4, 8.5.3, and 8.6.1 and strongly advised customers to apply patches immediately. The company hasn’t shared more details on the flaw.

 “Versions outside of the support window (i.e. versions that have reached End of Life) may also be affected, so Atlassian recommends you upgrade to a fixed LTS version or later. Atlassian Cloud sites are not affected by this vulnerability. If your Confluence site is accessed via an atlassian.net domain, it is hosted by Atlassian and is not vulnerable to this issue.” Atlassian stated.

The company claims that as of October 31st, there were no reports of the vulnerability being actively exploited. Moreover, Atlassian noted that data confidentiality will not be impacted because an attacker cannot exfiltrate “any instance data.”

However, it has requested all users of publicly accessible on-premise Confluence products to be upgraded. Admins unable to patch immediately are advised to create a backup and remove the product from the internet temporarily to restrict access from external networks until patched.

Also included in the advisory was a message from Atlassian’s CISO, Bala Sathaimurthy, who stated that customers should take “immediate action.” Apart from installing security patches, they must use strong passwords for all Confluence accounts and keep Confluence products updated. They must regularly monitor Confluence activity to detect suspicious actions timely and only allow authorized individuals to access Confluence.

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Netflix’s ad-supported tier will let you download content

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Netflix’s ad-supported tier will let you download content
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When you opt for an ad-supported payment tier for a streaming service, you give up the ability to download your favorite content. Netflix is out to change that, and it gave us some really good news. According to a new report, Netflix’s ad-supported tier will let you download your content.

Ad-supported plans stay away from downloads for two primary reasons. For starters, this is just a perk that will entice people to buy a more expensive plan. Also, ads are a source of revenue for streaming services. So, what’s stopping customers from just downloading all of their content and watching it all offline to avoid the ads? Nothing, that’s the answer.

So, it makes sense that you’re not allowed to download videos with ad-supported plans. However, Netflix is looking to change that.

Netflix’s ad-supported tier will let you download your content

So, Netflix has enjoyed an influx of new subscribers after its password crackdown a few months ago. The company is looking to make things easier for those new services people were forced to buy.

This deal sounds too good to be true, to be honest. This functionality will come to all 12 regions where the ad-supported plan is available. The downloaded videos will be viewable without ads, also. So, you’ll be getting the same downloaded content experience as with the other plans. Again, too good to be true.

Right now, we don’t know the specifics of the plan, so there could be some crucial details that we’re still missing. There could be a limit on how many videos you can download or maybe you’ll watch an ad before downloading the video.

We’re not sure what sort of fine print we’re looking at, but you won’t need to wait for long to find out. This change is coming to the app by the end of the week, according to the Netflix blog post.


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DoorDash is warning customers that orders without tip may take longer to deliver

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DoorDash is warning customers that orders without tip may take longer to deliver
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Tipping for service has, in recent years, evolved into a subject of heated debate since, rather than sparing some change for good service, people have to tip significant portions of their order’s value. This trend is particularly noticeable in food delivery services, where even platforms such as DoorDash are now warning customers that orders with no tip might take long to deliver.

The message on the app reads, “Orders with no tip might take longer to get delivered — are you sure you want to continue? Dashers can pick and choose which orders they want to do. Orders that take longer to be accepted by Dashers tend to result in slower delivery.”

However, this message sparked some widespread debates on social media platforms, with people expressing disappointment and suggesting that the company should rather focus on increasing driver compensation. One user commented, “Like any service, capitalism works. If you want your food fast, be willing to pay a bit more. However, I prefer to tip after evaluating the service.”

While many expressed their dissatisfaction with the message, some also came out in support. This is because, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people have relied on food delivery as a source of income, and tipping significantly contributes to it.

DoorDash’s response

In response to the widespread debate, Jenn Rosenberg, a DoorDash spokesperson, clarified that this feature is presently in a testing phase, and the company aims to enhance the experience for both consumers and delivery partners. Additionally, he also argued that as DoorDash drivers have the liberty to accept or decline orders based on their value, orders without tips may be less desirable and consequently take longer to deliver.

“This reminder screen is something that we’re currently testing to help create the best possible experience for all members of our community. As with anything we pilot, we look forward to closely analyzing the results and feedback,” said the spokesperson.

Tipping as a culture

Tipping, as a cultural norm, is relatively new in the gig economy, whereas previously, people primarily tipped in certain service settings, such as restaurants or valets. However, with platforms like DoorDash modifying their payment structures, which now allow drivers to retain 100% of the tip amount in addition to a base pay of $2-$10 depending on distance, drivers tend to disregard non-tipped orders. This disregard has been evident in various reports, which highlighted instances of delivery partners intentionally delaying non-tipped orders and even verbally harassing consumers.


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Car crash detection on Pixel phones is now available in even more countries

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Car crash detection on Pixel phones is now available in even more countries
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Car Crash Detection has been a feature on Google Pixel phone as part of the Personal Safety app since the Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL. This life-saving feature has been so popular, it has been adopted by other smartphone manufacturers, as now, it is expanding to even more countries.
When Car Crash Detection first launched in 2019, it was only available in the United States and only on Google’s newest smartphone at the time, which happened to be the Pixel 4 series. However, a short while later, it began to expand to more countries around the world as well as other Android and iOS devices.
Now, as reported by Mishaal Rahman and 9to5Google, the feature is expanding even further by adding five additional countries, bringing the list of supported countries up to twenty. This was spotted on a recent update to Google’s support page on using emergency services.

More countries added

As per the information found on Google’s support site, Car crash detection works by using your device’s location, motion sensors, and nearby sound to detect when a possible severe crash has occurred, when it then attempts to contact emergency services for you. This is possible on the Pixel 4a and later phones, including the Pixel Fold.
Crash Detection settings on the Google Pixel Fold - Car crash detection on Pixel phones is now available in even more countries

Crash Detection settings on the Google Pixel Fold

The following fives new countries were quietly added to the list of locations supported by this feature: Austria, Belgium, India, Portugal, and Switzerland. These now join the existing fifteen other countries that already had crash detection enabled, such as:

  • US
  • UK
  • Australia
  • Canada
  • Denmark
  • France
  • Ireland
  • Italy
  • Japan
  • Norway
  • the Netherlands
  • Singapore
  • Spain
  • Sweden
  • Taiwan
One thing that was noticed by Pixel users is the lack of language support in certain areas, such as India where the most popular language is Hindi, a language not supported by the feature. For iOS users, this can also be an issue as even the Emergency SOS via satellite feature has regional restrictions outside the U.S. and Canada. However, this is hopefully something that will be added in the future as crash detection becomes more mainstream on smartphones and saves many lives across the globe.

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