Tech Roundup: Apple March 21 Event, Stagefright Exploit & More

It all started off with XcodeGhost last September, a malware-ridden modified version of Apple's app development environment that was made available by attackers on China's cloud storage service Baidu Yun, taking advantage of the slow download speeds from Apple servers. App developers compiling their apps using this malicious version of Xcode thus unwittingly integrated malware into their own apps without their knowledge, which when installed (from the App Store) and opened from an iPhone or a Mac, resulted in the malware capable of accessing device information and executing remote commands. While the exact list of affected apps remains a mystery even after all these months, Apple officially acknowledged 25 of them (including WeChat) by removing them from the App Store, alerting users who installed the compromised apps, and outlining steps for developers to ensure that they are using a legitimate version of Xcode.

Since then in the last few weeks alone, we have witnessed two separate instances of AceDeceiver and KeRanger malware/ransomware (a type of malware that encrypts a computer's hard drive and demands payment from the user in order to decrypt and access the data) purportedly affecting iPhones and Macs. Apple's track record when it comes to security has been pretty much spotless, and the company has been seen vociferously using this argument to further its case against the U.S. Government's request to unlock San Bernardino shooter's iPhone 5c, but have these minor cracks in its defense mechanisms, that require extensive digital sleight of hand, proven otherwise? I will cap this off with a simple sane advice from Wired's Andy Greenberg: "If you don't want rogue apps plaguing your pristine device, don't go looking for them."
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Alphabet/Google:

• Previews next version of its mobile operating system, Android N, with split screen multitasking, dark mode (Android's Night Shift), improved notifications, among other features.
• Officially makes bottom navigation bar part of Android Material Design specification.
• A month later after Alphabet's self driving car hit a bus, a pair of Google researchers are awarded a patent for autonomous-car bus detection.
• DeepMind's AlphaGo computer program beats champion Go player Lee Se-Dol 4-1, in what's hailed as a milestone in artificial intelligence research.
• Puts its robotics arm Boston Dynamics for sale, reports Bloomberg.
• Makes its Project Fi cellular service initiative invite-free.
• New Stagefright media-player library "Metaphor" exploit uncovered by NorthBit makes 275 million Android handsets susceptible to attacks, once again highlighting the pains of Android fragmentation.

Apple:

• Sets a 'Let us loop you in' event on March 21 to unveil 4-inch iPhone 5se and 9.7-inch iPad Pro alongside iOS 9.3, a day before its court hearing against the FBI, which issued a court order to unlock San Bernardino shooter's iPhone 5c, paving the way for a public encryption debate between user privacy and national security.
• To pay $450 million to settle infamous ebook antitrust case after its appeal is rejected by US Supreme Court; $400 million will go towards paying the customers.
• To roll out sponsored stories in Apple News, as it opens its news platform for all publishers (But I wish they would stop allowing articles that are blurbs; any publisher who tells you to open an article on the web defeats the very purpose of the app).
• Starts "storing portions of its iCloud and services data with Google's cloud platform," reports Re/code; but is reportedly working on its own in-house cloud storage system dubbed 'McQueen' to break its reliance on Amazon, Microsoft and Google.

Others:

• First case of microcephaly linked to Zika virus is reported in Panama.
• Ride-hailing startup Uber tends to service white neighbourhoods better, according to a new research at University of Maryland analysing data on wait times and surge pricing via the Uber API for 276 locations in Washington D. C. every three minutes for four weeks from Feb. 3 to March 2.
• February 2016 is declared the warmest month in recorded history; average temperatures found to be 1.35 degree Celsius above 1951-1980 average.
• Eye lens and corneas are grown from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) in a landmark study hailed as "amazing, almost like science fiction."
• Ride hailing service Uber begins food delivery through UberEATS in major cities across the US after trialling in Toronto last year.
• Sony's virtual reality offering, previewed earlier as Project Morpheus, morphs into a PlayStation VR headset; pre-orders open on March 22, ships this October.
• Nokia gives it back to Microsoft; ditches Here Maps for Windows phone to focus on Android and iOS.
• Microsoft Edge browser extensions are now available for Windows 10 testers.
• Facebook acquires popular Android/iOS face swap app MSQRD (read Masquerade).
• Music streaming service SoundCloud signs a licensing deal with Sony (following similar deals with Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and indie label Merlin) as it prepares to launch a paid subscription service to compete with the likes of Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play Music and Tidal.