Facebook let 61 companies keep accessing user data, Cambridge Analytica-style, after officially banning the practice in 2014. Super Mario Run, a mobile app that Nintendo had the audacity to sell for $14 Canadian, has made the company $60 million. And your Samsung device might be sending contacts your photos without you knowing.
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Trending on Reddit: Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has admitted ahead of a U.S. congressional hearing that his company gave 61 businesses access to user data six months after officially banning the practice in 2014. According to congressional filings, the firms granted extended access included AOL, Oracle, Nissan, Panasonic, and Snap. In revealing the news, Zuckerberg also issued an apology, telling congress, “We didn’t take a broad enough view of our responsibility, and that was a big mistake. It was my mistake, and I’m sorry.” Zuckerberg also told U.S. congress members that his own personal information was among the data gathered.
Next, on Google Trends: According to app insights firm Sensor Tower, Nintendo’s first mobile outing, Super Mario Run, has made the company more than $60 million USD worldwide. We thought the milestone worth noting because unlike the majority of video game apps on the market, Super Mario Run offers players only the first three levels for free and charges them $14 for the rest. According to Sensor Tower, 77 percent of the game’s revenue has come from the App Store, where the game was released six months before it made its debut on Google Play. As someone who bought the game on principle, I hope this news encourages other app makers to follow in Mario’s footsteps.
Finally, on Twitter: According to reports in Gizmodo and the Verge, a bug in Samsung’s default texting app is sending random photos from users’ camera rolls to their contacts. Worse, the bug doesn’t leave any evidence that it’s doing so, so users don’t know that it’s happening unless the recipient tells them. Complaints have been posted on Reddit and Samsung’s official forums, and a Samsung spokesperson told Gizmodo and the Verge that the company is “aware of the reports” and currently investigating them. The forums indicate that Galaxy S9 and S9+ devices are affected, but others might be as well. Samsung is encouraging users who experience the bug to call it directly at 1-800-SAMSUNG. In the meantime, the Verge notes, worried users might want to revoke Samsung Message’s storage access permission.
That’s what’s trending today. Hashtag Trending is a part of the ITWC Podcast network. Look for more of our content on iTunes, Google Play, or wherever else you get your podcasts from. You can also add them to your Alexa Flash Briefing or Google Assistant Daily Briefing. I’m Eric Emin Wood – thanks for listening.
