PSA Newsletter 26: Privacy, Security, Automation!
Microsoft Recall Launched, Apple Updates, An iOS QR Code Shortcut, and more...
Head's Up
This newsletter now has an audio-only version! If you prefer to listen, please find it at the link below. There are links for Apple Podcasts (Follow a Show by URL), Spotify, or your podcast player of choice via RSS feed. [1]
Privacy
Microsoft has rolled out its controversial Recall feature for Windows 11 to the general public. When enabled, this feature automatically takes snapshots of your activities every few seconds and saves them to a secure storage location on your computer. At the moment, this feature is in Preview, it opt-in by default, and is only available on CoPilot + PCs. However, Microsoft has a history of eventually migrating features from opt-in to opt-out by default, so don't expect this to remain the case indefinitely.
Although Recall seems to have been rewritten with more privacy and security in mind, I still recommend waiting until the feature is out of Preview. If you would like to remove Recall from your system, instructions to do so can be found at link [3] below. [2] [3]
Security
Apple has released several updates for all its operating systems, including macOS, iPadOS, and iOS. Updating is encouraged, as there have been several public attacks on vulnerabilities patched in these updates. [4]
Automation
QR codes can be used to share web pages without Airdrop, SMS, or iMessage. If you want to share a webpage with someone, you can use a handy Shortcut to automatically generate a QR code for your current viewed website. They can then scan that QR code with their camera, no data connection needed. This works cross-platform too! The recipe for this shortcut is in the sources below. [5]
