iOS

Users of iPhone Must Activate Apple’s Anti-Theft Protection Feature

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Another interesting new feature in iOS 17.3 is something called stolen device protection. Once again, the passcode can be used if Face ID fails — thieves can also register their own face in Face ID if they have the device passcode. Apple gives you an hour to remotely wipe your deviceAs a protection mechanism, Apple has introduced stolen device protection in iOS 17.3. When it’s turned on, some actions will require Face ID or Touch ID biometric authentication, such as accessing stored passwords and credit cards. In addition to requiring Face ID or Touch ID authentication, changing your Apple ID password, changing your passcode and turning off stolen device protection also require a security delay.

EU Settlement: Apple’s Pledges to Resolve Antitrust Probe into Apple Pay

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The EU suspects Apple of unfairly favoring its own mobile payment tech, Apple Pay, and squeezing out the ability of rivals to develop competing contactless payment offerings on its mobile platform. It has also committed to applying “fair, objective, transparent, and non-discriminatory” eligibility criteria to grant NFC access to third parties — which will have to conclude an ADP license agreement to gain access. The Apple Pay competition saga dates back several years at this point. The Apple Pay case pre-dates ex ante competition legislation the bloc has since enacted and which Apple is subject to; having been designated, in September, as a so-called “gatekeeper” under the Digital Markets Act (DMA). And although Apple’s payment tech, Apple Pay, has not been designated a “core platform service” the iOS App Store has.

Next Week: Apple Unleashes iOS 17.3

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Apple confirmed today that iOS 17.3 will be released to the public next week, giving iPhone users new features like Stolen Device Protection and collaborative Apple Music playlists. There will also be a new Unity Bloom wallpaper for the iPhone and iPad, available next week when iOS 17.3 comes out. Additionally, there will be a security delay if you change sensitive settings, including creating a new Apple ID password, turning off Find My and updating select Apple ID security settings like removing a trusted device or phone number. Apple previously noted in its ‌iOS 17‌ features list that it was delayed to 2024, and later on, it reportedly appeared in the iOS 17.3 beta. Spotify, one of Apple Music’s largest competitors, launched a real-time collaborative playlist feature, “Jam,” in September.

Top Picks: TechCrunch’s Must-Have Apps for 2023

Best Apps 2023
As 2023 draws to a close, we reflect on some of our favorite apps that made everyday life a little easier this year. While flashy new AI apps and rival social networks were grabbing headlines, sometimes the most useful innovations fly under the radar. The apps on our best-of list may not have arrived in 2023, but they became daily staples that streamlined our work or brought small moments of joy. PSPlay makes it easy — it’s Remote Play on the go, as advertised. Beyond that, it delivers features that Sony’s official Remote Play app doesn’t, like support for third-party controllers, picture-in-picture mode and screen capture — making it well worth the $5.99 price.

Explore the Open Beta for Spill: Now Available on iOS and Android

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Spill, a platform founded by ex-Twitter employees, is closing out its first year on the market by opening up its beta to all users, whether they’re on iOS or Android. Spill is like the polar opposite of X, a platform that continues to alienate users with platform policies that make the app actively less inclusive. Around his one-year anniversary of being laid off from Twitter, Spill CEO Alphonzo Terrell told TechCrunch that the app has amassed around 200,000 users. Spill may not be growing as quickly as other Twitter competitors like Bluesky, Mastodon or Threads, but Terrell isn’t worried. “People are looking for something new,” Terrell told TechCrunch last month.