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Twitter bug exposed private tweets of some Android users for five years
A bug that has plagued Twitter since 2014 exposed the tweets of some Android users that were intended to be private. Twitter first disclosed the issue on its Help Center today after apparently fixing the issue on January 14th. The bug didn't affect people using Twitter on iOS or desktop.
'Fallout 76' bug disabled nukes on New Year's Day
New Years came and went quietly in the apocalyptic world of Fallout 76, but it wasn't on purpose. A bug in the multiplayer survival game caused nuclear codes to be unusable. While the sudden inability to launch weapons was originally thought to be related to the holidays, Fallout 76 developer Bethesda confirmed the issue and said it is working on a fix.
Pixel 3 bug disables the phone's camera
Pixel 3 owners are dealing with another software glitch, and this one could prove to be a showstopper for some. Owners on Google's forums, Reddit and elsewhere (including an Engadget staff family member) report a flaw that prevents them from using the Pixel 3's official camera app. Some get a "fatal error" message when they use the camera app, while others will get a "can't connect to camera" message in a third-party app and lose access from then onward. Rebooting only temporarily fixes the issue, and it can occur even if you've factory-reset the phone or are using Safe Mode.
Apple and Microsoft are fixing a serious iCloud bug in Windows 10
The return of Windows 10's October update wasn't welcome news for everyone. Microsoft says it's "working with Apple" to solve an iCloud for Windows bug that creates problems updating or syncing shared photo albums when using the latest Windows release. Suffice it to say that's a serious problem if you're interested in seamless access to your photos across your devices.
Google is working on a fix for Pixel 3's disappearing texts bug
The Pixel 3's early teething troubles aren't over yet. Users are reporting that some of their text messages are disappearing, It's not clear whether it's an Android-level bug or specific to the Messages app, but some owners believe the issue might have begun after installing the November 5th security update. Needless to say, that's more than a little worrying if you haven't backed up your texts and you'd really like to remember a conversation with a loved one.
Microsoft resumes Windows 10 update after fixing data loss bug
At last, Microsoft has resumed delivering its Windows 10 October update after pulling it over a data loss bug. The company is confident it has fixed the flaw and has seen "no further evidence" of data loss. With that said, it's being particularly cautious this time around. It's "slowing" the deployment to watch device data and will only give you the device update when it thinks there won't be a problem, such as an incompatible app.
‘Fallout 76’ install bug ‘won’t be the last bump in the road’
PC gamers hoping to have a crack at Fallout 76 in beta this week were left disappointed when a mysterious bug stopped the 50GB installation from unlocking. Now, Bethesda's vice president Pete Hines has apologized for the issue, making the rather large understatement that "we've hit some problems that we quite honestly didn't expect."
Bizarre 'Fallout 76' bug deletes beta instead of letting players in
Tonight the Fallout 76 beta was supposed to unlock for a few hours so players on Xbox One, PS4 and PC could test it out. Unfortunately for players on PC, for some reason many people saw the 50GB beta installation suddenly begin to redownload instead of unlocking -- a serious problem since it was only scheduled for access between 7 PM and 11 PM ET. Bethesda's support accounts haven't mentioned anything about extending the test period, so hopefully none of you were impacted -- otherwise you'll have to wait until November 1st between 2 and 7 PM ET for another shot. Still, it could be worse -- this could have made it into a wide release, or just broken the game's AI for years until someone noticed. Update: Bethesda just announced that as a result of this bug, it's extending the November 1st test session to run until 11 PM ET.
Google Pixel 3 XL bug adds an annoying second notch
Several Google Pixel 3 XL owners have encountered what must be the most annoying of bugs. As if one notch wasn't bad enough, a second "software notch" is popping up on various parts of some screens, more or less making the display look like an expensive puzzle piece. Some users whose devices sprouted a second notch posted about the plague on Twitter and Reddit over the last few days.
Facebook will never be completely secure
Yesterday, Facebook announced that it found -- and fixed -- a stunning security breach that put 50 million people's accounts at risk. In the words of Facebook executives, the attack was "sophisticated" and its reach was "broad." And, more chillingly, we don't know who was behind it or what they intended to do with that account data.
Twitter bug sent some DMs to developers for over a year
A bug in one of Twitter's APIs may have caused unauthorized developers to receive some users' direct messages and protected tweets. Twitter says it hasn't yet discovered evidence that a developer actually received such data, nor does it believe that such information was misused, but can't say for sure that it didn't happen.
Facebook will reward those who report bugs in third-party apps
Facebook is expanding its bug bounty program and will begin offering rewards to those that report vulnerabilities in third-party apps that connect to its platform. Specifically, the company is concerned with the misuse of access tokens, which allow Facebook users to log into other apps and websites with their Facebook account. "If exposed, a token can potentially be misused, based on the permissions set by the user," Dan Gurfinkel, Facebook's security engineering manager, said in a blog post. "We want researchers to have a clear channel to report these important issues, and we want to do our part to protect people's information, even if the source of a bug is not in our direct control."
Gboard bug breaks glide typing for some Android users
The glide typing feature of Google's Gboard isn't working for some Android users, with many reporting the issue on Reddit and Twitter over the last 24 hours. As 9to5Google reports, though users can still swipe the keyboard, the word results don't match up with the letters they glide typed. Google acknowledge the issue, telling 9to5Google, "We're aware of a bug that affects glide typing accuracy in Gboard. We're working on a fix." The company recommended that any user affected by the bug try force-quitting Gboard or rebooting their phone, which could fix the problem temporarily.
Twitter says unwanted tweets on your timeline are a bug, not a feature
A few users on Twitter have noticed something odd with its algorithmically-inserted tweets: it's inserting tweets and claiming people they follow Liked them, even though a scan of their profile page and its list of Liked tweets shows that they didn't. As it popped up on the timeline for @TappyPaws, she noticed a trend towards political tweets by the president, so there was some speculation that this is part of a test by Twitter to break people out of so-called "bubbles" and increase interaction with other viewpoints. More investigation showed that some of the inserted tweets had been quoted in posts that those friends did actually click like on, or were tweets that the actually-Liked tweets replied to, suggesting that the service's process has a bug. While a Twitter spokesperson was not specific about the reason, they backed that interpretation up and told Engadget "This is not a test. This is a bug involving Likes that we're working to fix. The issue is affecting numerous accounts." Whatever the issue is, if you'd like some control back -- in lieu of Twitter offering a strictly chronological timeline -- user Andy Baio has posted a search filter that "strips out all retweets, replies, media, links, and people you don't follow." You can easily access it at any time by just going to www.realtwitter.com.
Apple's iOS 12 beta is driving everyone crazy
Apple promised a lot of bells and whistles with its iOS 12 update -- better performance, grouped notifications and the coveted Pixar-like Memojis, for example -- but its pre-launch spiel never mentioned the surprise feature everyone on the public beta is talking about today. Thanks to, presumably, a bug, iPhones are showing update notifications every time you unlock your phone, without an option to actually install the update.
‘Fortnite’ update adds Rifts-To-Go item
After some short downtime for server maintenance, Fortnite is back online and its v5.30 patch is live, bringing with it some cool new features and a bunch of bug fixes that'll make gameplay smoother and (possibly) less rage inducing. First up is Rifts-To-Go. Rifts were introduced last month as quick sky-bound escape routes from enemy squads -- now you can use them yourself as and when you need them, without having to find one.
Older Fire TV devices get improved protection against Android malware
It came to light earlier this year that a virus was attacking Fire TV devices because of an Android-based vulnerability relating to ADB (Android Debug Bridge) connections. But part of the newest software update, 5.2.6.6, should make things a lot more secure, no matter how you've been playing around with your device's developer options.
Facebook bug caused 800,000 accounts to unblock some users
Facebook announced today that over 800,000 users were affected by a bug that unblocked some people that they had blocked on the site. Though it didn't reinstate any friend connections that were severed once a block was put into place, it did open up the ability for an unblocked person to message the user who had blocked them. Facebook said the bug was active between May 29th and June 5th and that around 83 percent of affected users had just one blocked person become unblocked as a result.
Facebook quiz app maker exposed data on over 120 million users
While Facebook tries to close the book on its Cambridge Analytica scandal, it's still dealing with many more. The FTC is conducting a non-public probe into the company's behavior around privacy data, the EU's stricter laws are making it hard for the company and they keep finding more apps that may have misused your data. Case in point: security researcher Inti De Ceukelaire has found that a quiz app from NameTests.com has been exposing user data for more than a year.
Frontier Communications' password bug lets anyone into your account
While you might feel more at ease knowing your personal information is protected by two-factor authentication, a bug in Frontier's password reset system is demonstrating that vulnerabilities can open your info up to exposure even when that extra level of protection is available. The internet giant's password system sends users a two-factor code when they initiate a reset, but ZDNet reports that the system lets you enter as many codes as you want, opening up users' accounts to a breach. Spotted by security researcher Ryan Stevenson, the bug means a determined attacker with some time on their hands could get into an account with just a username or an email address.
