19 January 2020

TechCrunch’s Top 10 investigative reports from 2019


Facebook spying on teens, Twitter accounts hijacked by terrorists, and sexual abuse imagery found on Bing and Giphy were amongst the ugly truths revealed by TechCrunch’s investigating reporting in 2019. The tech industry needs more watchdogs than ever as its size enlargens the impact of safety failures and the abuse of power. Whether through malice, naivety, or greed, there was plenty of wrongdoing to sniff out.

Led by our security expert Zack Whittaker, TechCrunch undertook more long-form investigations this year to tackle these growing issues. Our coverage of fundraises, product launches, and glamorous exits only tell half the story. As perhaps the biggest and longest running news outlet dedicated to startups (and the giants they become), we’re responsible for keeping these companies honest and pushing for a more ethical and transparent approach to technology.

If you have a tip potentially worthy of an investigation, contact TechCrunch at tips@techcrunch.com or by using our anonymous tip line’s form.

Image: Bryce Durbin/TechCrunch

Here are our top 10 investigations from 2019, and their impact:

Facebook pays teens to spy on their data

Josh Constine’s landmark investigation discovered that Facebook was paying teens and adults $20 in gift cards per month to install a VPN that sent Facebook all their sensitive mobile data for market research purposes. The laundry list of problems with Facebook Research included not informing 187,000 users the data would go to Facebook until they signed up for “Project Atlas”, not receiving proper parental consent for over 4300 minors, and threatening legal action if a user spoke publicly about the program. The program also abused Apple’s enterprise certificate program designed only for distribution of employee-only apps within companies to avoid the App Store review process.

The fallout was enormous. Lawmakers wrote angry letters to Facebook. TechCrunch soon discovered a similar market research program from Google called Screenwise Meter that the company promptly shut down. Apple punished both Google and Facebook by shutting down all their employee-only apps for a day, causing office disruptions since Facebookers couldn’t access their shuttle schedule or lunch menu. Facebook tried to claim the program was above board, but finally succumbed to the backlash and shut down Facebook Research and all paid data collection programs for users under 18. Most importantly, the investigation led Facebook to shut down its Onavo app, which offered a VPN but in reality sucked in tons of mobile usage data to figure out which competitors to copy. Onavo helped Facebook realize it should acquire messaging rival WhatsApp for $19 billion, and it’s now at the center of anti-trust investigations into the company. TechCrunch’s reporting weakened Facebook’s exploitative market surveillance, pitted tech’s giants against each other, and raised the bar for transparency and ethics in data collection.

Protecting The WannaCry Kill Switch

Zack Whittaker’s profile of the heroes who helped save the internet from the fast-spreading WannaCry ransomware reveals the precarious nature of cybersecurity. The gripping tale documenting Marcus Hutchins’ benevolent work establishing the WannaCry kill switch may have contributed to a judge’s decision to sentence him to just one year of supervised release instead of 10 years in prison for an unrelated charge of creating malware as a teenager.

The dangers of Elon Musk’s tunnel

TechCrunch contributor Mark Harris’ investigation discovered inadequate emergency exits and more problems with Elon Musk’s plan for his Boring Company to build a Washington D.C.-to-Baltimore tunnel. Consulting fire safety and tunnel engineering experts, Harris build a strong case for why state and local governments should be suspicious of technology disrupters cutting corners in public infrastructure.

Bing image search is full of child abuse

Josh Constine’s investigation exposed how Bing’s image search results both showed child sexual abuse imagery, but also suggested search terms to innocent users that would surface this illegal material. A tip led Constine to commission a report by anti-abuse startup AntiToxin (now L1ght), forcing Microsoft to commit to UK regulators that it would make significant changes to stop this from happening. However, a follow-up investigation by the New York Times citing TechCrunch’s report revealed Bing had made little progress.

Expelled despite exculpatory data

Zack Whittaker’s investigation surfaced contradictory evidence in a case of alleged grade tampering by Tufts student Tiffany Filler who was questionably expelled. The article casts significant doubt on the accusations, and that could help the student get a fair shot at future academic or professional endeavors.

Burned by an educational laptop

Natasha Lomas’ chronicle of troubles at educational computer hardware startup pi-top, including a device malfunction that injured a U.S. student. An internal email revealed the student had suffered a “a very nasty finger burn” from a pi-top 3 laptop designed to be disassembled. Reliability issues swelled and layoffs ensued. The report highlights how startups operating in the physical world, especially around sensitive populations like students, must make safety a top priority.

Giphy fails to block child abuse imagery

Sarah Perez and Zack Whittaker teamed up with child protection startup L1ght to expose Giphy’s negligence in blocking sexual abuse imagery. The report revealed how criminals used the site to share illegal imagery, which was then accidentally indexed by search engines. TechCrunch’s investigation demonstrated that it’s not just public tech giants who need to be more vigilant about their content.

Airbnb’s weakness on anti-discrimination

Megan Rose Dickey explored a botched case of discrimination policy enforcement by Airbnb when a blind and deaf traveler’s reservation was cancelled because they have a guide dog. Airbnb tried to just “educate” the host who was accused of discrimination instead of levying any real punishment until Dickey’s reporting pushed it to suspend them for a month. The investigation reveals the lengths Airbnb goes to in order to protect its money-generating hosts, and how policy problems could mar its IPO.

Expired emails let terrorists tweet propaganda

Zack Whittaker discovered that Islamic State propaganda was being spread through hijacked Twitter accounts. His investigation revealed that if the email address associated with a Twitter account expired, attackers could re-register it to gain access and then receive password resets sent from Twitter. The article revealed the savvy but not necessarily sophisticated ways terrorist groups are exploiting big tech’s security shortcomings, and identified a dangerous loophole for all sites to close.

Porn & gambling apps slip past Apple

Josh Constine found dozens of pornography and real-money gambling apps had broken Apple’s rules but avoided App Store review by abusing its enterprise certificate program — many based in China. The report revealed the weak and easily defrauded requirements to receive an enterprise certificate. Seven months later, Apple revealed a spike in porn and gambling app takedown requests from China. The investigation could push Apple to tighten its enterprise certificate policies, and proved the company has plenty of its own problems to handle despite CEO Tim Cook’s frequent jabs at the policies of other tech giants.

Bonus: HQ Trivia employees fired for trying to remove CEO

This Game Of Thrones-worthy tale was too intriguing to leave out, even if the impact was more of a warning to all startup executives. Josh Constine’s look inside gaming startup HQ Trivia revealed a saga of employee revolt in response to its CEO’s ineptitude and inaction as the company nose-dived. Employees who organized a petition to the board to remove the CEO were fired, leading to further talent departures and stagnation. The investigation served to remind startup executives that they are responsible to their employees, who can exert power through collective action or their exodus.

If you have a tip for Josh Constine, you can reach him via encrypted Signal or text at (585)750-5674, joshc at TechCrunch dot com, or through Twitter DMs


Read Full Article

TechCrunch’s Top 10 investigative reports from 2019


Facebook spying on teens, Twitter accounts hijacked by terrorists, and sexual abuse imagery found on Bing and Giphy were amongst the ugly truths revealed by TechCrunch’s investigating reporting in 2019. The tech industry needs more watchdogs than ever as its size enlargens the impact of safety failures and the abuse of power. Whether through malice, naivety, or greed, there was plenty of wrongdoing to sniff out.

Led by our security expert Zack Whittaker, TechCrunch undertook more long-form investigations this year to tackle these growing issues. Our coverage of fundraises, product launches, and glamorous exits only tell half the story. As perhaps the biggest and longest running news outlet dedicated to startups (and the giants they become), we’re responsible for keeping these companies honest and pushing for a more ethical and transparent approach to technology.

If you have a tip potentially worthy of an investigation, contact TechCrunch at tips@techcrunch.com or by using our anonymous tip line’s form.

Image: Bryce Durbin/TechCrunch

Here are our top 10 investigations from 2019, and their impact:

Facebook pays teens to spy on their data

Josh Constine’s landmark investigation discovered that Facebook was paying teens and adults $20 in gift cards per month to install a VPN that sent Facebook all their sensitive mobile data for market research purposes. The laundry list of problems with Facebook Research included not informing 187,000 users the data would go to Facebook until they signed up for “Project Atlas”, not receiving proper parental consent for over 4300 minors, and threatening legal action if a user spoke publicly about the program. The program also abused Apple’s enterprise certificate program designed only for distribution of employee-only apps within companies to avoid the App Store review process.

The fallout was enormous. Lawmakers wrote angry letters to Facebook. TechCrunch soon discovered a similar market research program from Google called Screenwise Meter that the company promptly shut down. Apple punished both Google and Facebook by shutting down all their employee-only apps for a day, causing office disruptions since Facebookers couldn’t access their shuttle schedule or lunch menu. Facebook tried to claim the program was above board, but finally succumbed to the backlash and shut down Facebook Research and all paid data collection programs for users under 18. Most importantly, the investigation led Facebook to shut down its Onavo app, which offered a VPN but in reality sucked in tons of mobile usage data to figure out which competitors to copy. Onavo helped Facebook realize it should acquire messaging rival WhatsApp for $19 billion, and it’s now at the center of anti-trust investigations into the company. TechCrunch’s reporting weakened Facebook’s exploitative market surveillance, pitted tech’s giants against each other, and raised the bar for transparency and ethics in data collection.

Protecting The WannaCry Kill Switch

Zack Whittaker’s profile of the heroes who helped save the internet from the fast-spreading WannaCry ransomware reveals the precarious nature of cybersecurity. The gripping tale documenting Marcus Hutchins’ benevolent work establishing the WannaCry kill switch may have contributed to a judge’s decision to sentence him to just one year of supervised release instead of 10 years in prison for an unrelated charge of creating malware as a teenager.

The dangers of Elon Musk’s tunnel

TechCrunch contributor Mark Harris’ investigation discovered inadequate emergency exits and more problems with Elon Musk’s plan for his Boring Company to build a Washington D.C.-to-Baltimore tunnel. Consulting fire safety and tunnel engineering experts, Harris build a strong case for why state and local governments should be suspicious of technology disrupters cutting corners in public infrastructure.

Bing image search is full of child abuse

Josh Constine’s investigation exposed how Bing’s image search results both showed child sexual abuse imagery, but also suggested search terms to innocent users that would surface this illegal material. A tip led Constine to commission a report by anti-abuse startup AntiToxin (now L1ght), forcing Microsoft to commit to UK regulators that it would make significant changes to stop this from happening. However, a follow-up investigation by the New York Times citing TechCrunch’s report revealed Bing had made little progress.

Expelled despite exculpatory data

Zack Whittaker’s investigation surfaced contradictory evidence in a case of alleged grade tampering by Tufts student Tiffany Filler who was questionably expelled. The article casts significant doubt on the accusations, and that could help the student get a fair shot at future academic or professional endeavors.

Burned by an educational laptop

Natasha Lomas’ chronicle of troubles at educational computer hardware startup pi-top, including a device malfunction that injured a U.S. student. An internal email revealed the student had suffered a “a very nasty finger burn” from a pi-top 3 laptop designed to be disassembled. Reliability issues swelled and layoffs ensued. The report highlights how startups operating in the physical world, especially around sensitive populations like students, must make safety a top priority.

Giphy fails to block child abuse imagery

Sarah Perez and Zack Whittaker teamed up with child protection startup L1ght to expose Giphy’s negligence in blocking sexual abuse imagery. The report revealed how criminals used the site to share illegal imagery, which was then accidentally indexed by search engines. TechCrunch’s investigation demonstrated that it’s not just public tech giants who need to be more vigilant about their content.

Airbnb’s weakness on anti-discrimination

Megan Rose Dickey explored a botched case of discrimination policy enforcement by Airbnb when a blind and deaf traveler’s reservation was cancelled because they have a guide dog. Airbnb tried to just “educate” the host who was accused of discrimination instead of levying any real punishment until Dickey’s reporting pushed it to suspend them for a month. The investigation reveals the lengths Airbnb goes to in order to protect its money-generating hosts, and how policy problems could mar its IPO.

Expired emails let terrorists tweet propaganda

Zack Whittaker discovered that Islamic State propaganda was being spread through hijacked Twitter accounts. His investigation revealed that if the email address associated with a Twitter account expired, attackers could re-register it to gain access and then receive password resets sent from Twitter. The article revealed the savvy but not necessarily sophisticated ways terrorist groups are exploiting big tech’s security shortcomings, and identified a dangerous loophole for all sites to close.

Porn & gambling apps slip past Apple

Josh Constine found dozens of pornography and real-money gambling apps had broken Apple’s rules but avoided App Store review by abusing its enterprise certificate program — many based in China. The report revealed the weak and easily defrauded requirements to receive an enterprise certificate. Seven months later, Apple revealed a spike in porn and gambling app takedown requests from China. The investigation could push Apple to tighten its enterprise certificate policies, and proved the company has plenty of its own problems to handle despite CEO Tim Cook’s frequent jabs at the policies of other tech giants.

Bonus: HQ Trivia employees fired for trying to remove CEO

This Game Of Thrones-worthy tale was too intriguing to leave out, even if the impact was more of a warning to all startup executives. Josh Constine’s look inside gaming startup HQ Trivia revealed a saga of employee revolt in response to its CEO’s ineptitude and inaction as the company nose-dived. Employees who organized a petition to the board to remove the CEO were fired, leading to further talent departures and stagnation. The investigation served to remind startup executives that they are responsible to their employees, who can exert power through collective action or their exodus.

If you have a tip for Josh Constine, you can reach him via encrypted Signal or text at (585)750-5674, joshc at TechCrunch dot com, or through Twitter DMs


Read Full Article

The Scrivener Keyboard Shortcuts Cheat Sheet for Mac


Person typing on a MacBook

Scrivener is one of the best environments for long-form writing. You can rely on its solid organizational features to manage research papers, novels,  manuals, plays, scripts, and more. Whether you want to dig into a specific snippet of writing or get a bird’s-eye view of everything you’ve written, Scrivener has the right set of tools to make your job easier.

If you use Scrivener on your MacBook or plan to do so, we suggest adding keyboard shortcuts to your workflow. Given that Scrivener is quite complex, learning how to navigate it with shortcuts alone can transform how you use the app.

There’s a long list of Scrivener keyboard shortcuts to pick from and you can discover the best of them in our cheat sheet below. The cheat sheet contents are applicable to Scrivener 3, the latest version of the app.

FREE DOWNLOAD: This cheat sheet is available as a downloadable PDF from our distribution partner, TradePub. You will have to complete a short form to access it for the first time only. Download The Scrivener Keyboard Shortcuts Cheat Sheet for Mac.

The Scrivener Keyboard Shortcuts Cheat Sheet for Mac

Shortcut Action
General Shortcuts
Command + , Preferences
Command + H Hide Scrivener
Option + Command + H Hide Others
Command + Q Quit Scrivener
File
Shift + Command + N New Project
Command + O Open…
Shift + Command + W Close Project
Option + Shift + Command + W Close Project and Clear Interface Settings
Command + W Close Window
Command + S Save
Option + Command + S Save and Rebuild Search Indexes
Shift + Command + S Save As…
Shift + Command + I Import > Files…
Option + Command + W Import > Web Page…
Shift + Command + E Export > Files…
Shift + Command + P Page Setup…
Command + P Print Current Document…
Option + Command + E Compile Draft…
Edit
Command + Z Undo
Shift + Command + Z Redo
Command + X Cut
Command + C Copy
Option + Shift + Command + C Copy Special > Copy without Comments and Footnotes
Command + V Paste
Option + Shift + Command + V Paste and Match Style
Command + A Select All
Option + Command + A Select Current Text
Option + Esc Complete
Control + Esc Complete Document Title
Option + Command + Return Insert > Line Break
Shift + Command + B Insert > Bookmark Annotation
Option + Shift + Command + D Insert > Current Date & Time
Command + L Scrivener Link > New Link…
Command + F Find > Find…
Command + G Find > Find Next
Shift + Command + G Find > Find Previous
Command + E Find > Use Selection for Find
Command + J Find > Jump to Selection
Control + Option + F Find > Project Search
Control + Option + Command + F Find > Find by Formatting…
Option + Shift + Command + G Find > Find Next Formatting
Control + Option + Command + G Find > Find Previous Formatting
Command + Spelling and Grammar > Show Spelling and Grammar
Command + ; Spelling and Grammar > Check Document Now
Command + \ Spelling and Grammar > Check Spelling While Typing
Option + Command + T Special Characters
View
Command + 1 Document/Scrivenings
Command + 2 Corkboard
Command + 3 Outline
Shift + Command + > Zoom > Zoom In
Shift + Command + < Zoom > Zoom Out
Option + Command + ↑ Go To > Previous Document
Option + Command + ↓ Go To > Next Document
Control + Command + R Go To > Enclosing Group
Command + 4 Go To > Editor Selection
Option + Command + B Layout > Show/Hide Binder
Option + Command + I Layout > Show/Hide Inspector
Option + Command + = Layout > Split Horizontally
Command + ” Layout > Split Vertically
Shift + Command + ) Layout > Show Layouts
Option + Command + L Editor > Lock in Place
Command + ] Editor > Forward in Document History
Command + [ Editor > Backward in Document History
Option + Command + [ Editor > Other Editor > Backward in History
Control + Option + Command + ↑ Editor > Other Editor > Scroll Up
Control + Option + Command + ↓ Editor > Other Editor > Scroll Down
Command + Return Media > Play Media File
Option + Command + } Media > Fast Forward
Option + Command + { Media > Rewind
Option + Shift + Command + P Page View > Show/Hide Page View
Control + Command + P Corkboard > Show Pins
Control + Command + S Corkboard > Show Stamps
Control + Command + K Corkboard > Show Keyword Colors
Control + ⇥ Move Focus To > (Next Pane)
Control + Option + Command + B Move Focus To > Binder
Control + Option + Command + E Move Focus To > (Left/Bottom) Editor
Control + Option + Command + R Move Focus To > Right/Top/Supporting Editor
Control + Option + Command + I Inspect > Synopsis
Control + Option + Command + H Inspect > Notes
Control + Option + Command + N Inspect > References
Control + Option + Command + J Inspect > Keywords
Control + Option + Command + M Inspect > Custom Meta-Data
Control + Option + Command + M Inspect > Snapshots
Control + Option + Command + K Inspect > Comments and Footnotes
Command + 9 Outline > Expand All
Command + 0 Outline > Collapse All
Control + Option + ↑ Outline > Previous Container
Control + Option + ↓ Outline > Next Container
Option + Command + R Reveal in Binder
Control + Command + F Enter/Exit Full Screen
Option + Command + F Enter/Exit Composition Mode
Project
Command + N New Text
Option + Command + N New Folder
Option + Shift + Command + N New From Template > (First Template Document)
Shift + Command + T Show/Hide Project Targets
Control + Option + Command + S Text Statistics
Option + Shift + Command + S Project Statistics
Option + Command + P Project Notes
Option + Shift + Command + H Show/Hide Project Keywords
Option + Command + , Meta-Data Settings…
Documents
Option + Command + O Open > in (Left/Bottom) Editor
Shift + Command + O Open > in Right/Top/Other Editor
Option + Shift + Command + O Open > With All Subdocuments > On Editor Corkboard
Control + Command + O Open > in External Editor
Command + 5 Snapshots > Take Snapshot
Shift + Command + % Snapshots > Take Snapshot With Title
Control + Command + ] Snapshots > Show Changes > Next Change
Control + Command + [ Snapshots > Show Changes > Previous Change
Command + D Duplicate > with Subdocuments and Unique Title
Shift + Command + D Duplicate > without Subdocuments
Option + Shift + Command + T Set Selection as Title
Command + Delete Move to Trash
Command + K Split > at Selection
Option + Command + K Split > with Selection as Title
Shift + Command + M Merge
Option + Command + G Group
Option + Command + U Ungroup
Control + Command + ← Move > Left
Control + Command + → Move > Right
Control + Command + ↑ Move > Up
Control + Command + ↓ Move > Down
Format
Command + T Font > Show Fonts
Command + B Font > Bold
Command + I Font > Italic
Command + U Font > Underline > Single
Shift + Command + _ Font > Strikethrough
Command + + Font > Bigger
Command + - Font > Smaller
Shift + Command + C Font > Show Colors
Option + Command + C Font > Copy Font
Option + Command + V Font > Paste Font
Command + { Text > Align Left
Command + | Text > Center
Option + Command + | Text > Justify
Command + } Text > Align Right
Control + Command + C Text > Copy Ruler
Control + Command + V Text > Paste Ruler
Option + Command + → Lists > Next List Style
Option + Command + ← Lists > Previous List Style
Control + Option + Command + C Formatting > Copy Formatting
Control + Option + Command + P Formatting > Paste Formatting
Command + 8 Scriptwriting > Script Mode
Shift + Command + Y Scriptwriting > Show Script Elements Menu
Command + R Show/Hide Ruler
Shift + Command + R Show/Hide Format Bar
Shift + Command + H Highlight > Highlight
Shift + Command + * Comment
Control + Command + 8 Footnote
Shift + Command + A Inline Annotation
Shift + Command + F Inline Footnote
Control + Command + T Options > Typewriter Scrolling
Command + Y Bibliography/Citations…
Window
Command + M Minimize
Option + Command + M Minimize All
Control + Command + - Zoom
Control + Option + Command + - Zoom All
Control + Command + = Zoom to Fit Screen
Shift + Command + ) Layouts > Manage Layouts
Control + Command + Q Float QuickReference Panels
Miscellaneous
Shift + Command + ? Help
Shift + Command + Return Open/Close Scratch Pad
Inspector
Command + 6 Document/Project Notes
Command + 6 Document/Project References

Is Scrivener Available on Windows and Linux?

Scrivener is one of the best programs for creative writers not only on macOS, but also on Windows. However, if you use a Linux distro, Scrivener is not an option. But the good news is that you’ll find nice long-form writing apps for Linux too!

Read the full article: The Scrivener Keyboard Shortcuts Cheat Sheet for Mac


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