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The internet war on sex is here
During the Great Internet Sex War, that began in the United States during its Facebook Era, people were forced to stockpile their porn. Lube was bought by the drum and hidden in bunkers, alongside vibrators and air-gapped computers holding valuable troves of accurate, non judgemental sex information. Gimp suits were stored upright, oiled, and ready for doomsday's call. Explicit gifs became a black market commodity, and there were rumors of a Thunderdome ruled by cam girls. Every sexual identity, except the singular one deemed safe by the corporations, went into hiding. Fear prevented even the mere mention of sexual pleasure on the networks and in communications.
Oath to pay $5 million settlement over children's online privacy
Oath (Engadget's parent brand) is paying a record-breaking settlement for its approach to children's privacy. The Verizon-owned media company has agreed to pay $4.95 million, the largest ever settlement in a case like this, after New York state found that it violated the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act by running targeted ads on sites meant primarily for kids under 13 years old, such as Roblox.com. Up until November 2017, Oath's systems (and AOL's before that) reportedly ignored information warning that sites were subject to COPPA rules and sent ads that collected potentially sensitive data through the use of cookies and location info.
Verizon media chief Tim Armstrong is leaving the company
Verizon (Engadget's parent company) folded AOL and Yahoo into the Oath brand as part of its plans to become a media powerhouse, but that's not quite how it panned out -- and it's leading to some changes in leadership. Oath chief Tim Armstrong is leaving the company by the end of 2018, with COO and President K. Guru Gowrappan effectively taking the reins on October 1st.
With new updates, Yahoo bets big on Mail’s mobile future
Few things are a uniquely annoying as having to use your email service's mobile interfaces — they're basic, they're kind of ugly, and they rarely provide the niceties you'd normally be used to. Yahoo wants to change that. The brand (which, like Engadget, is own by Verizon's Oath) today announced a new mobile web interface that looks and feels more like Yahoo's full-blown Mail app.
How Engadget's parent company is making sites like ours easier to use
Today, May 17th, is Global Accessibility Awareness Day, but in fact, this entire month has been an eventful one for people with disabilities. Two weeks ago, Google and Microsoft pledged to commit $20 and $25 million to the cause, respectively, to accessibility tech. Today, Microsoft revealed the Xbox Adaptive Controller while Apple unveiled a coding curriculum that can also be used by students who are deaf and/or blind. Meanwhile, Oath, Engadget's parent company, which also owns Yahoo, rang in the day by holding an open house at its accessibility lab, where, among other things, it works to make sites like ours easier for everyone to use. And that includes sites and services outside Oath too: The accessibility-tech community is a small one, with researchers at Oath, Apple, Microsoft, Google and other tech companies regularly collaborating with one another. (Microsoft Chief Accessibility Officer Jennie-Lay Flurrie made the same point in an interview with Engadget two weeks ago.) What Oath is working on might show up in another company's products, and vice versa.
Pro photo storage site SmugMug buys Flickr
Long before Minecraft exploded from a development tool to a game purchased by Microsoft for billions of dollars, there was Flickr. The photo-sharing started in 2004 based on tools built for a never-released MMO before being purchased by Yahoo (now a part of Oath, the parent company of Engadget) in 2005 for more than $20 million. Now the service and its 75 million~ accounts have been purchased by SmugMug, a smaller competitor focused on professionals. SmugMug is a similar site that started in 2002, but from the beginning it has focused on serving people willing to pay for its privacy and storage, as opposed to Flickr, where most people are using free accounts. Over the years competition from social networks and newer photo apps like Instagram chewed away at Flickr's active users, and its influence has stagnated. SmugMug claims that together, the two services represent "the world's most influential photographer-centric community" where "perspective is shared, not forced."
Russian trolls used Tumblr to influence American voters
If you thought that Tumblr was just fan fiction and monochrome erotica GIFs, then you probably haven't been paying attention. The blogging platform has also, in recent years, become a hotbed of Russian activists seeking to disrupt American politics. That's the charge leveled at the platform by Buzzfeed and Professor Jonathan Albright, an authority on so-called fake news.
Mozilla and Yahoo sue each other over default search engine deal
Deals between web browser suppliers and search engine providers are big business. For Mozilla, agreements with search engines have brought in as much as US$300 million a year, which accounts for 90 percent of its income. So the stakes are high amid the latest tech company quarrel, which sees Mozilla end its partnership with Yahoo due to claims it hadn't been paid. Neither party is happy with the situation, so they're suing each other.
Alto Mail is shutting down now that AOL is part of Oath
AOL (Engadget's former parent company) launched Alto Mail years ago in a bid to make sense of increasingly cluttered email with a slicker look and organizing features like the Dashboard. However, it's clear that this approach isn't alluring enough now that AOL has been absorbed into Verizon's Oath brand. The Alto team is telling customers that it's shutting down Alto Mail as it transitions to working on "something new and exciting" under Oath's umbrella. The mobile apps will no longer be available as of November 9th, and Alto is ending support for all apps on December 10th.
AOL Instant Messenger is shutting down on December 15th
It's the end of an era. AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) is officially shutting down on December 15th, Oath announced this morning. AIM started out as the built-in chat application in America Online's desktop client, but it really took off after it was broken out as a separate application in 1997. The app, and its iconic messaging sound, were staples for anyone who spent too much time on the web in the '90s and early '00s. Really though, the writing was on the wall for AIM since AOL laid off most of the division in 2012. AIM also started cutting off third-party access earlier this year, which was a big sign the service was on its way out.
Yahoo's 2013 hack impacted all 3 billion accounts
Last year Yahoo (now part of Oath along with AOL after its acquisition by Verizon) announced that back in 2013, hackers had stolen info covering over one billion of its accounts. Today, the combined company announced that further investigation reveals the 2013 hack affected all of its accounts that existed at the time -- about three billion. The information taken "may have included names, email addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, hashed passwords (using MD5) and, in some cases, encrypted or unencrypted security questions and answers."
Ya Doggie solves the pet food problem you didn't know you had
The adage that "dogs grow to resemble their owners" is not much of a compliment anymore in America -- namely because it portends that our pets will become as portly as their people. In fact, as CBS News reported earlier this year, a third of American dogs are considerably heavier than they should be and it's shortening their lifespans. However, a smart pet food scoop from Santa Cruz, CA-based Ya Doggie promises to not only help establish better feeding habits but also save you from kibble runs.
US judge says Yahoo data breach victims have the right to sue
Verizon will now have to deal with any lawsuit filed by victims of the massive breaches Yahoo suffered between 2013 and 2016. US District Judge Lucy Koh has tossed out Yahoo's argument that the people affected by the cyberattacks don't have the standing to sue. While many plaintiffs' cases were dismissed, Koh has ruled that they can change their complaints and pursue some kind of breach of contract or unfair competition claims. According to Reuters, the judge wrote in the 93-page ruling that she came to that decision because all plaintiffs "have alleged a risk of future identity theft."
Verizon's latest rewards program shares gobs of your data (updated)
Verizon has just fired up a new rewards program, but you might want to hold off if you're concerned about your privacy. Brandon Robbins and other customers have noticed that enlisting in Up requires enrolling in a Verizon Selects personalized advertising program that tracks an extensive range of voluntary and automatic data: it'll supply your app use, browsing habits, device location and personal demographics, among other details. Moreover, it shares that data with a wide circle of companies. Your info go to the newly formed AOL/Yahoo hybrid Oath (Engadget's parent brand) as well as Verizon's "vendors and partners."
Yahoo eSports shuttered after just a year
As of tomorrow, Yahoo eSports will be no more. The site, which covers professional competitive video gaming, is a casualty of the Yahoo merger with AOL.
Verizon now officially owns Yahoo (minus Marissa Mayer)
Last July, Verizon announced that it planned to buy the bulk of Yahoo's internet business. Today, Verizon announced that the $4.48 billion acquisition of Yahoo is now complete. As a part of the completed deal, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer will step down.
Yahoo and AOL are part of Verizon's new 'Oath' brand (updated)
Somewhere along the way, Verizon's planned purchase of Yahoo got real complicated. Thanks to security breachs of gargantuan proportions, Yahoo has lost a ton of value -- and the company was struggling even when Verizon announced its intentions to buy the former internet juggernaut. Part of the value lost is in the Yahoo brand, which Verizon apparently considers toxic at this point. To that end, Verizon is changing the name of the combined Yahoo and AOL company. Business Insider first reported that "Oath" will be the new name of the company (which would be the parent company of Engadget). Minutes after we published this story, AOL CEO Tim Armstrong confirmed the change in a tweet.
Guild Wars 2 players pledge oath to game in video
Stop pinching yourself in a futile effort to wake up from what you think is an absurd dream. The Guild Wars 2 marketing promotion to ask players to pledge their allegiance to the game actually happened. We know this because we now have video proof of the fact. ArenaNet released a complilation video of players filling in the blanks of their own oaths to play the game (in exchange for a shot at a free copy of it, it must be said). From the adorkable to the bizarre and the cows to the cheap flame effects, this video has it all. And best of all, you can watch it in the privacy of your home with no one to judge you after the break.
