MacRumors

Apple offers a bug bounty program that's designed to pay security researchers for discovering and reporting critical bugs in Apple operating systems, but researchers are not happy with how it operates or Apple's payouts in comparison to other major tech companies, reports The Washington Post.

In interviews with more than two dozen security researchers, The Washington Post collected a number of complaints. Apple is slow to fix bugs, and doesn't always pay out what's owed.

Apple in 2020 paid out $3.7 million, about half of the $6.7 million that Google paid to researchers, and far less than the $13.6 million Microsoft paid. While other companies like Facebook, Microsoft, and Google highlight security researchers that find major bugs and hold conferences and provide resources to encourage a wide range of participants, Apple does not do so.

Security researchers said that Apple limits feedback on which bugs will receive a bounty, and former and current Apple employees said there's a "massive backlog" of bugs that have yet to be addressed.

Apple's reluctance to be more open with security researchers has discouraged some researchers from providing flaws to Apple, with those researchers instead selling them to customers like government agencies or companies that offer up hacking services.

Apple's Head of Security Engineering and Architecture, Ivan Krstić, told The Washington Post that Apple feels the program has been a success, and that Apple has doubled the amount that it paid in bug bounties in 2020 compared to 2019. Apple is, however, still working to scale the program, and will offer new rewards in the future.

"We are also planning to introduce new rewards for researchers to keep expanding participation in the program, and we are continuing to investigate paths to offer new and even better research tools that meet our rigorous, industry-leading platform security model."

Luta Security founder Katie Moussouris told The Washington Post that Apple's poor reputation with the security community could in the future lead to "less secure products" and "more cost."

Apple's bug bounty program promises rewards ranging from $100,000 to $1,000,000, and Apple also provides some researchers with special iPhones dedicated to security research. These iPhones are less locked down than consumer devices and are designed to make it easier for security vulnerabilities and weaknesses to be unearthed.

Sam Curry, a security researcher that worked with Apple in 2020, said that he offered feedback to Apple and that he feels like the company is aware of how it's seen and "trying to move forward." According to The Washington Post, Apple this year hired a new leader for the bug bounty program, so it could soon see some improvements.

VMware Fusion is now available as a private tech preview for M1 Macs, with users able to request access through an online form. A public tech preview will follow in around two weeks, according to a tweet from VMware Fusion manager Michael Roy.

VMware Fusion for M1 Macs will be quite limited in scope, with a focus on virtualizing Arm-based Linux distributions. VMware Fusion will not officially support Windows 10 on M1 Macs at launch, as Microsoft has yet to offer licensing for the Arm version of Windows 10. In a tweet, Roy said Windows 10 should still run when selecting the "other" operating system type, but VMware will not be shipping drivers or VMware Tools.

VMware Fusion will also not be able to virtualize Intel-based Windows or Linux distributions, while support for virtualizing macOS is not ready yet. In a blog post last April, Roy said "there isn't exactly much business value relative to the engineering effort that is required" to support Intel-based operating systems on M1 Macs, adding that VMware is "laser focused on making Arm Linux VMs on Apple silicon a delight to use."

Microsoft does not yet offer a retail version of Arm-based Windows, but a preview version is available to Windows Insider program members. Earlier this year, VMware competitor Parallels boasted about the ability to run the Arm-based Windows preview on an M1 Mac with Parallels Desktop 16.5, but fine print notes that customers are responsible for making sure they are compliant with an operating system's licensing agreement.

No timeframe has been provided for the public release of VMware Fusion for M1 Macs, and pricing and upgrade options remain to be seen.

The iPhone 13 lineup will offer new Pink, Black, and Bronze colors and storage options will remain the same as the ‌iPhone‌ 12, other than there being no 256GB storage option for the 5.4-inch and 6.1-inch standard models, according to the Ukrainian e-commerce website "KTC," spotted by 91mobiles, that purports to have revealed the upcoming devices' configuration options.

The iPhone 13 mini and iPhone 13 will apparently continue to be available in six color options: Black, Blue, Purple, Pink, White, and PRODUCT(RED). This means that Pink would replace Green from the ‌iPhone‌ 12 lineup.

On the other hand, the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max will purportedly continue to be available in four color options: Black, Silver, Gold, and Bronze. This means that Black would replace Graphite from the ‌iPhone‌ 12 Pro lineup, while Bronze would replace Pacific Blue.

Matte black and bronze ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro color options were rumored earlier this year, and there were also very sketchy reports of a pink ‌iPhone‌ 13 model, so it is possible that this is the origin of these listed color options.

Apple also reportedly intends to offer the following storage options for each model size in the ‌iPhone‌ 13 lineup:

• iPhone 13 mini: 64GB and 128GB
• iPhone 13: 64GB and 128GB
• iPhone 13 Pro: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB
• iPhone 13 Pro Max: 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB

This would mean that the ‌iPhone‌ 13 lineup storage configurations would be largely the same as the ‌iPhone‌ 12 lineup, but with no 256GB option for the 5.4-inch "mini" model and the standard 6.1-inch model, which seems like a very peculiar move that would reduce the variety of options and top amount of storage for customers of both entry-level ‌iPhone‌ 13 models.

Other Ukrainian e-commerce sites appear to be listing slightly different storage options for each model, with some showing no 64GB option for the ‌iPhone‌ 13 mini but a new 512GB option instead, and others showing options all the way up to 1TB. As a result, KTC's information should be taken with a pinch of salt. It is also worth noting that KTC shows no sign of the rumored 1TB storage option for the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro models.

Apple is developing its electric vehicle independently without the assistance of another automaker and is currently selecting final parts suppliers, according to sources said to be familiar with Apple's plans speaking to Korea's Maeil Economic Daily.

In line with a previous report from Reuters, the report explains that the company has had its own automobile hardware research and development unit since 2014, but due to development challenges, it contacted BMW, Hyundai, Nissan, and Toyota to explore joint development and contract production agreements.

During this period, its own department for vehicle hardware research and development is believed to have virtually stopped operating around 2016. Separately, software research on self-driving continued.

The talks with automakers apparently fell apart due to repeated delays and the wider industry transformation toward electric vehicles slowing down the progress of any joint development and production agreement. There was also reluctance from some large automakers about becoming a manufacturing subcontractor for Apple. Apple is believed to have decided that it could not delay the launch of its car any further.

With these talks stalling, Apple has entirely turned once again to its own development and restored the full operation of its vehicle research unit. Although Doug Field, Apple's vice president of special projects, recently left the project to join Ford, the company is still believed to have hundreds of engineers working on the vehicle.

Apple has now gone through the process of sending a Request for Information (RFI), Request for Proposal (RFP), and Request for Quotation (RFQ) to global automobile part manufacturers, which is understood to be a signal that the final parts suppliers for Apple's car are now being selected for outsourced production.

Mirroring the analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the report places the launch of the vehicle around 2025 to 2027.

Three has become the latest UK mobile network to reintroduce EU roaming fees, in another post-Brexit setback for customers traveling abroad.

A flat £2 daily charge when roaming within an EU country will apply to customers who are new or upgrading from October 1. The changes will not come into effect until May 23 2022.

The operator joins EE and Vodafone who have recently announced the return of roaming charges. O2 will continue to offer free roaming across the EU and in the United States, but only on some "Plus Plans" as an extra add-on.

Before the U.K. formally exited the European Union, mobile customers generally didn't have to worry about roaming charges when using their phone in the EU, with most phone tariffs counting calls, texts, and data used in EU countries as equivalent to domestic use since 2017.

However, when the EU trade deal was signed in December 2020, mobile operators were once again able to charge customers when traveling in Europe with "transparent and reasonable rates."

Originally, EE, O2, Three, and Vodafone, representing the largest mobile operators in the U.K., stated they had no plans to reintroduce roaming charges after Brexit, but all have since announced changes, some under a "fair use" clause.

WarnerMedia's HBO Max is coming to Europe next month, the streaming service has announced. Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Spain, and Andorra will be the first to get access from October 26.

Next year, another wave of territories will be added to that list: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Slovenia.

Additional territory launches are also planned for next year, but there are currently no plans to launch HBO Max in France, Italy, Germany, and the U.K. This is said to be partly due to WarnerMedia having deals in place with other partners in these countries, where HBO programming is available on services such as Sky Atlantic and Now TV.

HBO Max was officially launched in the U.S. in May 2020, and has since expanded to 39 territories in Latin America and the Caribbean. Like those regions, the above European countries will gain access to content from HBO, Warner Bros., DC, and Cartoon Network.

"This is a historic moment as HBO Max lands in Europe," said Johannes Larcher, Head of HBO Max International. "WarnerMedia movies and series like Harry Potter, Game of Thrones and The Big Bang Theory are passionately consumed by fans all across Europe, and HBO Max has been created to provide them with the most intuitive and convenient viewing experience to watch these and a diverse range of other amazing titles."

HBO has yet to say what the cost of the streaming service will be in Europe, but it will make that announcement in a virtual launch scheduled for October.

We're still a week away from the launch of the iPhone 13, but rumors about the next-generation ‌iPhone‌ 14 models are already circulating and have picked up this week.

We've been hearing about a no-notch hole-punch display design since March, which was reiterated this morning by leaker Jon Prosser. Apple is expected to ditch the notch in favor of a hole-punch camera, and to facilitate that design, display analyst Ross Young says that Apple is also working on an under-display Face ID feature.

Young first shared his predictions for under-display ‌Face ID‌ in June, but highlighted them again today following the earlier ‌iPhone‌ 14 leaks. According to Young, Apple is working on under-display ‌Face ID‌ for the ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro and Pro Max models.

Given that the ‌iPhone‌ 14 models are still under development, under display ‌Face ID‌ has not been finalized and could still be scrapped, and in that situation, Apple would likely be forced to revert to a notch-style design. If we don't see under-display ‌Face ID‌ in 2022, it could instead come in 2023.

Young has also been unclear on whether Apple will implement under-display Touch ID or under-display ‌Face ID‌ and while both could be possibilities and have been rumored, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said in late August that Apple is more invested in ‌Face ID‌ and wants to implement under-display ‌Face ID‌ capabilities rather than returning to ‌Touch ID‌.

Young believes that the notchless design will be limited to the Pro models, which is also something that we've heard from Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The other ‌iPhone‌ models may continue to feature a notch design.

In addition to a notchless front design, Prosser claims the ‌iPhone‌ 14 models are going to feature a thicker rear chassis that eliminates the camera bump, making the camera flush with the ‌iPhone‌'s body for the first time in years, which is the first that we've heard of concerning a rear camera design.

Round buttons, a titanium frame, and redesigned speaker and microphone grilles are also possibilities.

Prior ‌iPhone‌ 14 rumors have suggested that Apple is doing away with the smallest 5.4-inch ‌iPhone‌ as the iPhone 12 mini has proven to be surprisingly unpopular with users. Instead, rumors suggest that we're going to get two 6.1-inch iPhones and two 6.7-inch iPhones, which would amount to an ‌iPhone‌ 14, an ‌iPhone‌ 14 Max, an ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro, and an ‌iPhone‌ 14 Pro Max.

Twitter today announced the launch of a new "Communities" feature that's meant to take on Facebook's popular Groups by providing a space where people can share discussions on a specific topic.

An invite-only feature at the current time, Communities are created by Twitter users and are self-moderated. Community creators who are invited by Twitter to participate can invite an unlimited number of users to their group.

Members of a Community will see a new option to choose an audience in the tweet composer, allowing them to tweet to all of their followers or just to those followers who participate in the Community.

Tweets shared to a Community will show up in the Community and in the timelines of other members of the group. Communities are not private and can be viewed by others on Twitter, but only members can participate.

On iOS devices, Communities can be accessed through the navigation bar, and on the web, there's a Communities option on the sidebar.

Starting today, there are a handful of Communities available such as #DogTwitter and #SkinCareTwitter, but Twitter is planning for more to be created each week and those interested in starting a Community can apply on the Twitter website.

While we're likely just six days away from Apple unveiling the iPhone 13 lineup at its confirmed September 14 event, leaker Jon Prosser has shared alleged details about next year's iPhone 14 on his Front Page Tech website.

Prosser's information comes specifically from the "iPhone 14 Pro Max" model, and key features based on renders created by Ian Zelbo include:

• No notch, with a hole-punch front camera instead, in line with information shared by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo
• A thicker chassis allowing for no rear camera bump, with the lenses, LED flash, and LiDAR Scanner sitting flush with the rear glass
• A titanium frame
• Round volume buttons that look similar to those on older iPhone 4 and iPhone 5 models
• Redesigned speaker and microphone grilles with elongated mesh cutouts instead of individual holes on the bottom of the device
• Lightning connector remains on at least some iPhone 14 models

Prosser provided a closer look at the iPhone 14 renders on his YouTube channel:

Prosser said that while some aspects of the iPhone 14's design and dimensions could change between now and the device's likely release in September 2022, he is confident that the overall design will remain largely the same when mass production begins.

Prosser was recently accurate about Apple launching a colorful new iMac, and he revealed the design of the AirTag prior to its release, but he has been wrong about the launch timing and pricing of some other Apple products.

As a result of legal and regulatory pressures, Apple recently announced some upcoming changes to its App Store policies, such as letting developers email customers about payment options available outside of their iOS app and allowing "reader" apps like Spotify and Netflix to include an in-app link to their website for account signup.

Apple said the changes "will help make the App Store an even better business opportunity for developers," but Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty believes there will be "minimal financial impact" to Apple. In a research note, she said the changes would result in just a 1-2% hit to Apple's earnings per share in the 2022 fiscal year in a worst case scenario.

For example, while "reader" apps will be able to provide a single link to their website to help users set up and manage their account, which could result in more customers subscribing to an app directly instead of through Apple's in-app purchase system, Huberty notes that Spotify and Netflix already disabled the ability for new users to subscribe to their services through Apple's in-app purchase system since 2016 and 2018 respectively, meaning Apple hasn't collected a commission on new subscriptions to either app for at least three years.

Huberty added that App Store revenue from the top 10 "reader" apps accounts for less than 8% of overall App Store revenue, suggesting the financial risk to Apple from these developers circumventing the in-app purchase system is "fairly small."

"We view the top 10 or so apps as those that are most likely to have the scale, brand, marketing budget, and customer loyalty to absorb the friction of circumventing the App Store payments platform," she wrote. "Assuming a worst case scenario in which Apple stopped collecting economics from all of the top 20 reader apps translates to downside risk of 4% of Services revenue, 1% of total company revenue, and about 2% of FY22 EPS forecast."

"In other words, we believe the recent App Store headlines are more attention grabbing than the ultimate financial impact to Apple's revenue or profitability," she concluded.

Huberty believes Apple has no intention to bring these changes to gaming apps either, despite having faced a lawsuit from Fortnite maker Epic Games, which accused Apple of having a monopoly over the sale of apps and in-app purchases through the App Store. A decision in that lawsuit is expected to be announced soon.

The leaker Max Weinbach has today shared a series of rumors about Apple's upcoming iPhone 13 models, Apple Watch Series 7, and third-generation AirPods via his Twitter account @PineLeaks.

Weinbach's most notable ‌iPhone‌ 13 rumors from his latest tweets are listed below:

• No price rises for the ‌iPhone‌ 13 lineup.
• The ‌iPhone‌ 13 mini will offer approximately one additional hour of battery life.
• The ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro Max will feature an 18 to 20 percent larger battery compared to the iPhone 12 Pro Max.
• Both the ‌iPhone‌ 13 and ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro will continue to use the same battery components as last year, but offer batteries that are 10 percent larger.
• The battery life of the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro may be worse than the ‌iPhone‌ 13 due to the power consumption of the 120Hz-capable ProMotion display.
• The ProMotion displays of the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro and ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro Max will throttle to 60Hz when Low Power Mode is enabled.
• The ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro Max will continue to offer exclusive features that the ‌iPhone‌ 13 Pro will not have.
• The camera sensors across all models will be able to receive at least 15 percent more light, with the biggest increase on the Ultra Wide camera's sensor, with up to 40 percent more light.
• "Cinematic" portrait video mode will use an electronic image stabilization (EIS) known as "Warp." This mode will attempt to keep the subject in the center of the frame, use optical image stabilization in a more "smooth" operating mode, and offer additional effects.
• Night Mode will recognize when stars are in the frame and adjust settings accordingly. A new algorithm analyses structures, resharpens, and adjusts shadows. The color science of ‌Night Mode‌ will also be "visibly" improved.

According to Weinbach, Apple's third-generation AirPods will feature a charging case with a 20 percent larger battery compared to the second-generation AirPods, but will offer wireless charging as standard. The batteries inside each individual AirPod will also be around the same size as previous models. The sound quality is said to be largely the same as the second-generation AirPods, but with slightly improved bass and low-end.

Weinbach added that the Apple Watch Series 7 is set to see the Apple Watch's biggest improvement in battery life yet.

It is worth noting that Weinbach has a mixed to poor track record. Previous reports from Weinbach are littered with large numbers of claims that never panned out, such as the insistence that the iPhone 12 would feature a 120Hz display, bigger batteries, improved Face ID, and improved optical zoom. There have also been incorrect rumors about a native iPad Calculator app in iOS 13, iPhone displays that work under water, Dark Mode being delayed, and a HomePod launch in Austria and Italy within 2019, to name a few.

Last year, directly ahead of the ‌iPhone‌ 12 event, Weinbach issued a wave of detailed "leaks" about the iPhone 12 lineup that were similar to this thread. Virtually none of the rumors from the equivalent tweet thread last year came true. Despite these ultimately incorrect rumors, Weinbach correctly predicted that the ‌iPhone‌ 12 would feature a new blue color option last year.

Weinbach has been vocal about what can be expected from the ‌iPhone‌ 13 lineup, contributing to three detailed reports from over the last year. Indeed, many of the more popular rumors around the upcoming devices have come from Weinbach, such as astrophotography features, an always-on display, stronger MagSafe magnets, a matte black color option and a potential bronze color option, an anti-fingerprint coating, and reverse wireless charging. It is yet to be seen if his rumors will come to fruition this year at Apple's "California Streaming" special event on Tuesday, September 14.

Dutch bank de Volksbank has said it is bringing Apple Pay support to all its customers soon, including those of its subsidiary banks, reports iCulture.

De Volksbank is the parent company of SNS, ASN Bank, and RegioBank, all of which operate in the Netherlands. "‌Apple Pay‌ will be made possible for the customers of SNS, ASN Bank and RegioBank," a De Volksbank spokesperson told iCulture, adding "We can't share anything about timing at the moment."

Over a year and a half ago, SNS Bank indicated that it was in talks with Apple about offering support for ‌Apple Pay‌, but then the bank went silent on the matter. Today's development suggests those talks are finally coming to fruition.

‌Apple Pay‌ officially went live in The Netherlands in 2019, with ING leading the charge to bring Apple's digital payment system to debit and credit card users in the country.

Since then, other banks including Bunq, Monese, N26, Revolut, ABN AMRO, and Rabobank have all brought Apple Pay support to customers in The Netherlands, which suggested de Volksbank and its parent banks were being left behind.

According to Apple's regional ‌‌Apple Pay‌‌ web page, ‌‌Apple Pay‌‌ can be used in The Netherlands with several online and high street retailers including Adidas, ALDI, Amac, ARKET, BCC, Burger King, Capi, cool blue, COS, Decathlon, Douglas, H&M, Jumbo, Lidl, McDonalds, Starbucks, and others.

Ahead of next week's Apple event, which is expected to include the launch of the iPhone 13 lineup, a Chinese AI firm is asking a court to stop the production and sale of the ‌iPhone‌ in China, alleging that Siri infringes upon its patent, South China Morning Post reports.

Apple last year was hit with a $1.4 billion lawsuit from the Chinese AI firm Xiao-i Robot, which claims Apple violated its patent for a virtual assistant similar to ‌Siri‌. At the time, the firm had asked Apple to cease "manufacturing, using, promising to sell, selling, and importing" all products that "infringe" upon its patent, which would include all devices with ‌Siri‌.

In the latest escalation of its lawsuit, Xiao-i-Robot has asked a court in Shanghai to force Apple to end the production and sale of the ‌iPhone‌. The AI firm announced it had applied for the preliminary injunction on its WeChat account just hours before Apple announced its "California Streaming" event for Tuesday, September 14.

Shanghai Zhizhen Intelligent Network Technology, also known as Xiao-i Robot, last Friday applied to the Shanghai Higher People's Court for a preliminary injunction to ban the manufacture, sale and export of iPhones containing Siri that infringe on its patent, according to the Chinese company's statement that was posted on its official WeChat account on Tuesday.

Xiao-i Robot chief executive Yuan Hui said in the statement that Apple did not respect its intellectual property. "Apple should immediately stop the infringement, take down and stop selling the related products," Yuan said.

If the court grants Xiao-i-Robot's injunction, it could significantly impact Apple's supply chain. While a ruling is unlikely to directly affect the ‌iPhone‌ 13 launch this month, it may impact future ‌iPhone‌ launches.

Apple, in a statement to South China Morning Post reiterated that ‌Siri‌ does not "contain features included in their patent, which relates to games and instant messaging" and further noted that local certified Chinese appraisers have "concluded that Apple does not infringe Xiao-i-Robot's technology."

Ahead of next week's Apple event, Apple has begun teasing iPhone users about upcoming iOS 15 features using a notification from the Tips app.

"See what's coming in iOS 15," reads the notification. "Learn about new features that will help you stay connected and find focus."

Tapping the notification takes users on a brief tour of upcoming features, including Voice Isolation, the new Shared With You section in apps, Safari Tab Groups, Live Text in Photos, systemwide translation, Focus mode, notification summaries, and augmented reality walking directions in Maps.

After viewing, the iOS 15 preview is showcased in the Collections section of the Tips app, above a similar preview Apple pushed out prior to the release of iOS 14.

Apple is expected to launch iOS 15 to the public this month, and new ‌iPhone‌ 13 units will likely ship with a pre-installed version of the operating system.

Historically, Apple has released new iOS versions about a week after its September event, but iOS 14 was released one day after Apple's September 15 "Time Flies" event in 2020.

This year's "California Streaming" fall event is on September 14, which means if iOS 14 is any indicator of the company's new release schedule, iOS 15 could come out as early as Wednesday, September 15. For all the details on what to expect in iOS 15, check out our dedicated roundup.

Twitter is testing "edge-to-edge" tweets that span the width of the timeline in its official iOS app, a move that would make viewing photos and videos a more full-screen experience.

As Twitter's demonstration shows, the change brings an Instagram-style look to tweeted media, making use of the dead space on either side of pictures, videos, and GIFs.

Twitter told The Verge that it's testing the change because it "wants to better support conversations that are both visual and text-based."

The test is being rolled out today with a limited number of users in order to test feedback, and Twitter has given no indication of when it would go live for all users if reaction to it turned out to be sufficiently positive.