Tag: Shut down

Google To Shut Down Google+ After Data Breach

Alphabet, the company that owns Google is shutting down its social networking website. Google+ has reportedly exposed user data of 500,000 customers to external developers. This comes after an announcement of a bug breach that was reportedly in their system for more than two years.

This bug could access Profile fields that were shared with the user. This includes Profile fields that are not public.

The data is limited to static, optional Google+ Profile fields including name, email address, occupation, gender and age. It does not include any other data the user may have posted or connected to the website or any other service, like Google+ posts, messages, Google account data, phone numbers or G Suite content.

They reportedly discovered and immediately patched this bug in March 2018. Google also said that they believe it occurred after launch as a result of the API’s interaction with a subsequent Google+ code change. The company also acknowledged in their blog that one of the reasons for shutting down the Google+ is that it “has not achieved broad consumer or developer adoption.

To provide for a smooth transition for the existing users, they will wind- down over a 10 month period.

[blockquote right=”pull-right”]Google will wind- down over

a 10 month period, closing

its curtains in August 2018[/blockquote]
This means the Google+ site will close curtains next August. According to Google they have no evidence that any developer was aware of this bug. They have also assured that no one has abused the API. In Google’s finding there is no evidence that any Profile data misuse occurred.

The company has offered reassurance that whenever there is a user data breach, they go beyond their legal requirements and apply several criteria focused on their users in determining whether to provide notice. When it comes to Gmail, they are updating its User Data Policy for the consumer version. This will protect the user by limiting apps from accessing user data. There has been a lack of interest and the gradual decline of social media overall in the recent times. It is also noteworthy that just 10 days ago, Facebook reported a data breach of 50 Million users.

It seems that this was a good decision on the company’s part. Let us know what you think in the comments below!

October 9, 2018
Yahoo Messenger Is Being Killed Off On July 17th 2018

Anyone who grew up in the early 2000’s knows two things about the internet – the dial-up tone and Yahoo Messenger. Long before Snapcha and Facebook Messenger, there was the ultimate social media platform, Yahoo Messenger. The instant messaging app, which is now run by Verizon-owned Oath will shut down on July 17th.

Oath will be redirecting its users (if any) to its new group messaging app, Squirrel. The company is encouraging users to sign up for Squirrel which the company has been beta testing since May. Squirrel is currently invite-only, but the app should be open to the public by the time Yahoo Messenger shuts down.

We know we have many loyal fans who have used Yahoo Messenger since its beginning as one of the first chat apps of its kind. As the communications landscape continues to change over, we’re focusing on building and introducing new, exciting communications tools that better fit consumer needs.

Must Read: Apple’s Memoji Feature Will Let Users Create Personalised Animojis

The death of the Messenger has been imminent. In 2016, Yahoo was acquired by Verizon for US$ 4.6 billion. Verizon renamed the business as Oath and started selling off parts of Yahoo. The company recently sold Flickr, a popular photo-sharing app to SmugMug. As was with the case of Flickr, Yahoo Messenger could not cope with the rise of social media apps like Facebook and then instant messaging services like WhatsApp.

Yahoo Messenger made its debut in 1998 as Yahoo Pager. For many years, it became the sole IM service that teens and adults used across the globe. From anonymous chat rooms to set a status message, Yahoo Messenger did it first. While it is fair to romanticise a fallen legend, the reality is that the Messenger faded away. While Squirrel is what Oath is working on, it isn’t a like-for-like replacement of Yahoo Messenger.

There currently isn’t a replacement product available for Yahoo Messenger. We’re constantly experimenting with new services and apps, one of which is an invite-only group messaging app called Yahoo Squirrel (currently in beta).

Must Read: Baba Ramdev’s Kimbho Messaging App Disappears From Google Play Store Within 24 Hours Of Its Launch

Its users will have up to 6 months after July 17th to download their Messenger chat history. Their Yahoo email ID will continue to work and users will be able to access Yahoo Mail or log in to any other services using their email ID. The writing was on the wall for the end of the Yahoo! era and the killing off of Yahoo Messenger is just another brick in that wall.

June 9, 2018
Google to Shut Down Picasa This March

It’s time to say good-bye to one of the most popular photo editors of all times. Google has announced in an official blog post that Picasa would no longer work come this March. Following which, users would no longer be able to edit Picasa web albums post May. Google plans to shift its focus to Google Photos by shutting down the application.

“After much thought and consideration, we’ve decided to retire Picasa over the coming months in order to focus entirely on a single photo service in Google Photos.”

Users with a Picasa account can access their pictures using the Google Photos app. People who are not using this app can still access their albums and delete or edit them. The company will withdraw support for the Picasa desktop app on 15th March, 2016. For those who have the application on their systems already -it will continue to run just as it does right now, but there will be no further updates or developments.

Google ended the blog-post by way of an apology, “We apologize for any inconvenience this transition causes, but we want to assure you that we are doing this with the aim of providing the best photos experience possible.” Time to bid adieu indeed.

Source

February 13, 2016