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Android

Kindle Fire update brings parent control, finally

Daily digest, Safe Surfing Guide

Kindle Fire update brings parent control, finallyLast week, Amazon issued a software update  6.3.1 for its Kindle Fire tablet. One of the notable updates is adding password protection and other parental controls.

Now Kindle owners can enable password-protect purchases, disable access to specific content libraries, and block access to the Silk web browser. Parents now can control what their kids can use by blocking adult contents, some apps or movies. Of course, they can also block any purchases by kids, the major concern of many parents.

These actually are the major missing feature as a content consuming tablet when Fire debuted in last November.  Similar to previous updates, this is also an over-the-air update. Of course, you can download the update and transfer it to your Fire.

With more and more tablets in the market, especially those with the Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich), the sales of the Fire has plummeted since January.

The … Read the rest

Carrier IQ, another spyware purposely loaded by greedy carriers

Daily digest, Safe Surfing Guide

Carrier IQ, another spyware purposely loaded by greedy carriersAccording to TechCrunch, Carrier IQ is a “mobile intelligence” firm that provides logging software for carriers and devices OEMs for use in their devices. Carrier IQ claims that they deliver information “on the performance of mobile devices and networks to help the Operators provide optimal service efficiency,” but Android security researcher Trevor Eckhart discovered that CarrierIQ was capable of tracking data that’s more fine-grained than what would be expected for simple diagnostic feedback.

The Carrier IQ website claims that the program has been installed on more than 140 million devices. If you are using Sprint+Samsung or Sprint+HTC, you should check your phone today.

Are you one of the victims?… Read the rest