Hasta La Gadget!

Need more evidence that Google is preparing a Game Center-like platform dubbed Play Games? Look no further than the “What’s New” section of your favorite Android game. At least one title, Eufloria HD, received an update today that explicitly states it has support for Google Play Games Achievements. According to the changelog, the title will now allow you to sync those achievements with your Google+ profile and share them with your circles. Guess the cat is pretty officially out of the bag at this point. Now we’ll just have to sit tight for a little while longer and wait for the folks at Mountain View to explain all the fun little details to us.

[Thanks, Peter]

Filed under: Gaming, Internet, Software, Google

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Source: Eufloria HD (Google Play)

Software engineer Moxie Marlinspike over at Thought Crime says he’s no stranger to unsolicited emails from individuals seeking help with surveillance efforts, due to some of the software he has created. While the programmer says he ignores most of them, one he received earlier this month caught his eye, and a short while later he discovered that Saudi Arabia telecom Mobily is working on a project to intercept mobile traffic.

The email, says Marlinspike, appeared in his inbox one day with the alluring subject line: Solution for monitoring encrypted data on telecom. Though he wasn’t interested in helping, he did respond to the agent’s email, initiating a correspondence that the programmer says lasted for a week. The end result was revelation of telecommunication company Mobily’s current project for intercepting data from mobile applications, with particular emphasis on Line, Viber, Twitter, and WhatsApp.

Reportedly, Mobily’s Executive Manager of Network & Information Security Yasser D. Alruhaily is at the helm of the project, which was initiated by someone referred to as “the initiator.” Marlinspike believes “the initiator” to be the Saudi government, but it doesn’t sound like that information was ever explicitly provided.

In one of the emails from Mobily that were published, it is revealed the telecom company is looking for information on how to go about intercepting traffic from mobile apps, whether a workaround exists for accomplishing that task, and if there are any other places it could approach in regards to the project. Marlinspike goes on to specify that one document they provided indicates using SSL certificates for interception, as well as SSL exploits and vulnerabilities.

Word has it a WhatsApp interception prototype is up and working.

So, what is compelling such an action? Terrorism, according to a message Marlinspike posted from Mobily. The telecom company, after being informed that he wouldn’t help them, said that Saudi Arabia has a “big terrorist problem” with those responsible using the aforementioned mobile apps – and others – to transmit information. The telecom company then goes on to say that because of this its actions are not only necessary, but Marlinspike’s refusal to help is indirectly aiding terrorist activities.

SOURCE: Thought Crime

Saudi telecom Mobily working on project to intercept mobile data is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

In mid-March Facebook announced that it would be updating its Timeline design with a focus on users’ interests and app activities. Now the the new “Sections” are finished rolling out and you should be able to find them in the left-side of your profile. Now users can rate books, shows and movies in addition to curate personal content from other apps. As a bonus to developers that are integrating their services (such as Goodreads, Spotify and Endomodo), Facebook is offering a new App Insights tool to track user engagement through the Sections section of people’s profiles. So head on over to your profile right now to get a tweaking — you probably don’t want people to see how much you love that Bruno Mars album.

Filed under: Internet, Facebook

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Source: Facebook

Just as it revealed in an interview this weekend after months of rumors, the Disney / ABC Television Group has launched Watch ABC as an “open access preview” for New York and Philadelphia residents. Available on the web and as an iOS or Kindle Fire app in place of the old ABC Player, it still offers video on-demand playback of the network’s shows, but is the first to add live network TV streaming in those two areas. It will require customers to log in with their cable / satellite TV account details (Comcast, Cablevision, Cox, Charter, Midcontinent and AT&T U-verse are all signed up already) for access starting July 1st, but for now there’s no such restriction. ABC is promising a launch in all ABC-owned station markets by the start of the fall broadcast season, though most areas will need to wait for agreements with their local affiliates.

Currently scheduled for launch after July 1st are Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Houston, Raleigh-Durham and Fresno, while Hearst Television has already signed on to launch streaming in its 13 markets as well. The app itself should resemble the WatchESPN and Watch Disney services we’ve seen roll out previously, and AirPlay streaming is disabled. The press release mentions Kindle Fire support, though we didn’t see it in the Appstore yet, and it’s coming to Samsung Galaxy devices “soon.” There aren’t any other Android devices mentioned, but hopefully more platforms will follow quickly. Hit the source links below for the app or to watch on the web, and there’s a press release after the break with more details.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet, HD, Mobile

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Source: iTunes, WatchABC.go.com

When we last checked in with Sandvine’s stat trackers, Netflix reigned supreme in online video traffic at home, especially downstream. It’s still sitting pretty several months later, Sandvine tells AllThingsD. Quite possibly helped by the House of Cards debut, Netflix kept a healthy lead at 32.3 percent of downstream use on wired networks this past March. That’s no mean feat when some of its competition took big strides forward — YouTube jumped up to 17.1 percent, and Hulu likely rode sweeps season to get 2.4 percent.

In mobile, it’s a different story. Netflix use on cellular almost doubled to 4 percent, but YouTube kept an uncontested lead at 27.3 percent of downstream use. It’s not hard to see why after looking at other video formats people prefer on the road: raw HTTP video (19.2 percent) and Facebook (8.6 percent) were the next-closest, which suggests that many still grab snack-sized videos on their phones instead of full movies or TV shows. We don’t expect the status quo to budge much in the near future, whether it’s on mobile or a fixed-line. Without major initiatives from veterans or the arrival of a new upstart, it isn’t clear just what would rock the boat.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet, HD, Google, Facebook

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Via: AllThingsD

Source: Sandvine