Facebook will let you opt-out of some political and social issue ads
Amazon confirms 4 employees sacked for spying on Ring customers recorded footage
First look at how the EU’s “search engine choice” on Android phones will work
Pioneer’s new 10” wireless CarPlay head unit looks great
Cheap 7th-gen iPad, Fallout 4 (XB1, PC, PS4), Edifer P17 speakers, Grim Fandango (Switch), Sennheiser HD 4.30 headphones, refurb Pixel 2 XL & 20% off iTunes cards
Late last year, Facebook confirmed it won't follow other social networks like Twitter and TikTok in banning political ads on its platform. It also said it won't fact-check posts from politicians or political parties, despite having fact-checking infrastructure in place for news outlets or limit the scope of targeting on political ads like Google has implemented. Today, in an attempt to be seen to be giving some sort of a shit, Facebook said it will allow users to opt-in to seeing "fewer political and social issue ads" - I guess that's nice if you want to put your head in the sand, but doesn't really do much to stem lies and bullshit spreading like a rash across society, does it?
You know how the tinfoil hat privacy brigade have told us that storing data in the cloud leaves it open to abuse by the employees, but most of us just nod and smile politely, thinking it's such a remote possibly it’s not worth worrying about? Well Amazon has confirmed in a letter to US Senators that it sacked 4 employees for snooping around customer data. It doesn't say much more than that (i.e: what data they accessed or what was their relationship is to the person who's privacy was invaded) but it happens often enough that 4 people were fired over it. Apparently things have changed now so that only 3 employees at Amazon can access customer videos.
As part of Google's punishment from the European Union for anti-competitive behaviour with Android, it has to let users choose a search engine when they set up their phones. The EU has regulated how this screen should work and The Verge explains the process well, "each provider tells Google how much it's willing to pay the company every time a user selects their product as the default. The three highest bidders are then shown to users, with the chosen provider paying Google the amount offered by the fourth-highest bid. This process is repeated every four months". This takes effect March 1st and the first 3 search engines are Yahoo, DuckDuckGo and Bing.
The DMH-WT8600NEX is Pioneer’s latest flagship CarPlay unit that has a large 10.1" floating display and wireless CarPlay built in. It achieves such a big screen by fitting the guts into a traditional single DIN slot and having the display protrude out. Look at the pics and you'll see what I mean. Could be a problem if your car has vents or buttons above where there head unit goes. It's a bit expensive at US$1200, but if you like your car as is and want some wireless CarPlay love (I wish I had wireless CarPlay) with a large screen - US$1200 is way cheaper than a brand new car.
7th-gen iPad wi-fi 32GB/128GB - $457/$587 at Officeworks
Fallout 4 (XB1, PC, PS4) - $9 at EB Games
Edifier P17 passive (aka you need an amp) bookshelf speakers - $98 delivered from Edifer
20% off iTunes cards at Coles next week. Been a while since they’ve hit 20%, time to stock up.
Nintendo eShop has Grim Fandango Remastered on the Switch for just $5.24
Sennheiser HD 4.30G/4.30i over ear headphones - $59 at JB (normally $179)
Refurbished Google Pixel 2 XL 64GB - $219.95 from Catch
🎶 Tattooed Love Boys - The Pretenders
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The Sizzle is created on Wathaurong land and acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia, recognising their continuing connection to land, water and community. I pay my respect to them and their cultures and to elders both past and present.