New Jersey now requires search warrants for cellphone location data

New Jersey now requires search warrants for cellphone tracking data

For all the worries about sweeping US surveillance programs, Americans are claiming at least a few victories in the fight for privacy. Just look to New Jersey’s Supreme Court for an example — it has ruled that police need search warrants to obtain tracking information from cellular carriers. Citing a ruling that requires warrants for GPS tracking devices, the court has decided that attempts to obtain cellphone location data represent searches and fall under constitutional oversight. Cellphone users can expect a reasonable level of privacy when they sign up for service, according to the Supreme Court. While there’s no law on the books to restrict tracking, like there is in Montana, the ruling sets a precedent for police monitoring that could extend beyond New Jersey’s borders.

[Image credit: Jeff Schuler, Flickr]

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Via: New York Times

Source: New Jersey Supreme Court (PDF)

Apple acquires location-based data startup Locationary

Apple’s gone shopping again, this time picking up Locationary, a small Canada-based company that deals in local business data and locations. The deal’s been confirmed by Cupertino, although as is often the case, it told AllThingsD that it doesn’t discuss the purpose or plans behind its buys. You’d imagine, however, that the small startup will most likely be involving itself in Apple’s very own mapping software, which continues to make up for its messy launch on iOS. Locationary uses a large data exchange platform and crowdsourcing to constantly gather, merge and verify data and geographic points for local businesses — hopefully meaning the next time you pop out to your nearest Best Buy, it’ll still be there.

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Source: AllThingsD

And yet another one bites the dust: Google has announced that its local recommendation service Alfre

And yet another one bites the dust: Google has announced that its local recommendation service Alfred, purchased from Clever Sense back in 2011, is shuttering on July 19th.

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Glympse scores saving to Evernote on Android, iOS support coming soon

Glympse scores saving to Evernote on Android, iOS support coming soon

Sharing your location through Glympse has been a time-sensitive affair, with friends and family receiving links to maps that would plot your position for a few hours at most. Now, however, Glympse has partnered with Evernote to save records of your travels. Simply share your current location broadcast to Evernote and the complete trek will be saved to a “My Glympse Trails” folder. Android users are getting the first crack at the new feature starting today, but folks running the iOS app are set to receive the integration shortly. Check your handset for the update or click the bordering source link to grab ahold of the app.

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Source: Glympse (GooglePlay)

Foursquare for Android and iOS now lets you check friends in, with permission

Foursquare for Android and iOS now lets you check friends in, thankfully with permission

If you regularly hang out with Foursquare aficionados, you’ve likely seen conversations grind to a halt as everyone dutifully checks in at the same restaurant. A fresh update to Foursquare’s Android and iOS apps could get those friends talking again by letting one of them check in the rest. Whoever arrives first just has to tag their contacts, who’ll be counted as if they’d gone through the check-in themselves. Thankfully, Foursquare tries to eliminate the privacy disasters that could stem from its new feature — the app won’t check anyone in without permission, and users can delete unwanted check-ins on the spot. Those comfortable with Foursquare’s safeguards can grab the new app through the source links.

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Via: Foursquare Blog

Source: App Store, Google Play

Foursquare Time Machine retraces your check-ins in a stream of light

Foursquare Time Machine retraces your checkins in a field of light

Habitual Foursquare users don’t have much context for their check-ins — it’s easy for them to track their favorite haunts, but not their long-term trends. The just-launched Foursquare Time Machine could help draw those missing connections, however. Sign in and it creates a map-based timeline of each and every check-in, color-coded by its nature. While the superficial result is a very pretty light cluster, it’s surprisingly functional underneath: members can see their exact check-in times, their favorite days of the week and their most active periods. Naturally, there’s also an option to share the stats with others. Time Machine is already popular enough that it’s struggling to cope with the early demand, but the functioning site should be worth visiting for the (eventual) trip down memory lane.

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Via: Foursquare Blog

Source: Foursquare Time Machine

Foursquare on Android and iOS gets search filters for the extra picky

Foursquare on Android and iOS gets search filters for the extrapicky

Foursquare knows that there’s a lot more to a night on the town than a good search keyword. Accordingly, it just updated its Android and iOS apps with location search filters that narrow the results based on familiarity and price. At times, the terms can get very specific: if you want to try an expensive Korean barbecue that only your friends have visited so far, you can. While there isn’t much more to the update than that, those prone to cravings (or just curiosity) should get their fill at the source links.

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Via: Foursquare

Source: App Store, Google Play

Google’s Field Trip app granting free admission to 13 museums

Google's Field Trip app granting free admission to 13 museums

While Google’s Field Trip app may find attractions off the beaten path, it’s been up to users to foot the bill for their excursions. Now, however, the Niantic Labs-made application is handing out freebies for an unspecified limited time, allowing those who wield it to waltz into 13 museums for free. Folks near the establishments will receive Free Entry cards in the “nearby” tab, which will let them pass turnstiles without forking over a dime. Although Field Trip has been beefed up with points of interest in over 80 countries, the participating institutions — which range from The Field Museum to the Walt Disney Family Museum — are all located in six US cities. Head past the break for the full list.

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Source: Field Trip (Google+)

Google outs new Maps and Location APIs: geofencing and low-power location services

Google outs new Maps and Location APIs: geofencing and low-power location services

Maps is one of the most useful features in Android, and today at Google I/O 2013, Mountain View announced a trio of new location services APIs to help devs to better leverage that strength. Fused Location Provider is the first, and it brings faster, more accurate location signals and delivers a low-power location mode that sips less than 1 percent of your battery while in use. Next is Geofencing, which will allow devs to set up to 100 location-based triggers for app events. The third API is called Activity Recognition, which uses accelerometer data and machine learning to figure out when you’re walking, cycling or driving.

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Glympse posts its free location sharing SDK in Android, iOS and web flavors

Glympse in a Mini

Glympse has been gradually spreading the reach of its location sharing platform, but mostly through special deals like those with BMW and Ford. It’s time to fling the doors open: the company has posted a public version of its Lite software development kit. Android, IOS and web app creators can now weave the core of Glympse’s real-time position broadcasting features into their work at any time, whether it’s to track a car’s journey or find a friend around the corner. Developers don’t have to pay a dime if they count fewer than 300,000 active Glympse users every month, which could give curious programmers a strong incentive to try the SDK first and ask questions later.

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Source: Glympse