Android smartphones still tracking user location even if location services are off

An investigation by online news service Quartz reveals that Android smartphones continue to collect and send data to Google even if these settings are voluntarily turned off by users. Quartz says Google is collecting the addresses of nearby mobile phone masts and sending them back to Google. The details were collected even when location services were turned off on the phones, no apps had been installed and there was no SIM card in the phone

A Google spokesperson told Quartz that the cell tower addresses were included in information sent to the system Google uses to manage push notifications and messages on Android phones since early 2017. While it is understandable that Google and its apps require location data for improved accuracy, it is alarming that user settings are so blatantly disregarded by the core OS. Granted, there's no imminent danger of getting hacked or exploited simply by sharing location data, the lack of transparency and the cavalier attitude Google has taken with user location data raises a red flag for other types of user data the company might be collecting. In response, Google is saying that it isn't storing this data and it will turn off the collection feature so it works as originally advertised.

Source: Quartz

Gboard adds support for 40 more languages and sticker packs

Google’s keyboard app Gboard gets one useful update for those who wanted access to more languages on it. For one it adds support for 40 more languages, including those that don’t have a writing system based on Latin script. In the changelog, Japanese had been specifically singled out, meaning there must be a big demand for it. But the app won’t for users of Google’s Japanese keyboard to switch. Instead, it’s just one of the many options that need to be manually added and configured to use.

As for the other new feature, it’s actually been around for users of Allo. But now the four sticker packs are readily available for all Gboard users, regardless if you have Allo or not. The update is rolling out now so you may see it soon on your device.

Source: 9to5Google

Learn more about Laura Dern’s top secret character in ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’

Laura Dern is one of the new characters we’re going to be introduced to in The Last Jedi. Not much was known about her except for her purple hair and that she goes by Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo. A new cover feature from Entertainment Weekly sheds a bit of light on who Holdo is. She’s part of a cover feature opposite Resistance fighter Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and comes with the headline “Can Poe get along with his new boss?” The story delves a bit deeper into how Holdo is part of the Resistance instead of being part of the First Order, which was what early rumours suggested. But it looks like she isn’t getting along with some members of the Resistance.

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Apple Maps lane guidance feature comes to Canada

If you use Apple Maps to navigate, you’re getting one more useful feature to use. The app now supports lane guidance here in Canada as well as in Australia, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Now, if you use your iPhone or CarPlay to navigate, you’ll see a set of directional arrows that at the top of the screen showing which lane you should take to complete a turn or get off a freeway. However, speed limits are still only being shown in the US and UK. The feature first came to the US and China starting with iOS 11.

Source: MacRumors