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A young British man will have to return 4.1 million pounds in cryptocurrencies after impersonating Elon Musk and Barack Obama on Twitter to steal them

Joseph O’Connor, a 26-year-old Brit, has made headlines again after being ordered to repay £4.1 million (approximately $5.4 million) in illegal cryptocurrency gains. O’Connor was extradited to the United States, where he is currently serving a five-year sentence for hacking more than 130 high-profile Twitter accounts, including those of celebrities like Elon Musk and Barack Obama, as well as major companies like Apple and Uber. A very creative hack The hack, which took place in July 2020, involved the use of social engineering techniques. O’Connor and other young people with the […]

Joseph O’Connor, a 26-year-old Briton, has made headlines again after being ordered to repay £4.1 million (approximately $5.4 million) in illegal cryptocurrency gains. O’Connor was extradited to the United States, where he is currently serving a five-year sentence for hacking more than 130 high-profile Twitter accounts, including those of celebrities like Elon Musk and Barack Obama, as well as major companies like Apple and Uber.

A very creative hack

The hack, which took place in July 2020, involved the use of social engineering techniques. O’Connor and other young people he connected with through the video game Call of Duty managed to convince Twitter employees to share their access credentials. With these credentials, the group was able to access the platform’s administrative tools and, from there, take control of the affected accounts.

Once they managed to access these accounts, O’Connor and his team promoted a classic “double your money” scheme, asking followers to send Bitcoin to digital wallets, promising that the money would be returned doubled. It is estimated that around 350 million Twitter users viewed these fraudulent posts and 426 transfers were made, which at the time totaled 12.86 Bitcoin, equivalent to about $110,000 in 2020. Currently, the value of that Bitcoin has increased to approximately $1.2 million.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) of the United Kingdom has managed to recover 42 Bitcoin and other assets from O’Connor, stating that some of these assets were also obtained through other hacks. Adrian Foster from the CPS emphasized that even if someone is not convicted in the UK, measures can be taken to ensure they do not benefit from their criminality.

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Uber launches quiet driver mode in Uber Black

Tired of chatty drivers? Ubers new options for Uber Black rides can keep your rides silent.

It’s happened to all of us: We hop in our Uber expecting a quiet ride, and then five minutes into it we are talking politics and debating the existence of God.

Friendly conversation is nice every now and then, but we don’t always want to strike up an in-depth conversation with a complete stranger.

Luckily, Uber seems to have gotten the picture as they just unrolled a new feature to request a quiet driver.

Unfortunately, the new feature will only be available if you choose the Uber Black or Uber Black SUV options when getting your ride.

To request an Uber Black ride, request a ride as you would normally in the app. Before choosing your riding experience, scroll to the bottom of your ride options to find the Uber Black option.

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Uber Black

Uber Black rides are done by professional drivers in high-end vehicles. These are typically much more expensive than the normal UberX option. For example, we checked the price of a 40-minute drive to the heart of downtown Chicago. It cost $23 with UberX and $61 with Uber Black. Most users typically use Uber Black for business or for special occasions like date nights.

That said, the choice to only have the quiet mode option only with Uber Black seems odd. Sure, if you’re out with a loved one or with a client on business, it would be nice to not feel compelled to talk with the driver. Then again, it would be nice to have that option with EVERY ride option.

How to stay safe on ride-sharing apps

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A quiet driver mode can really come in handy. For those rides home from the airport, we can decompress a little bit. For that trip to work, we can send a few emails or maybe squeeze in a power nap.

Enhanced driving experiences

The quiet mode comes as a part of enhanced experiences announced by Uber. Other features include the following:

Help with luggage
Temperature control
Extended pickup period
Premium support: access premium phone support with live agents if you need something to be made right.
Professionalism: ride with confidence knowing that your professional, commercially-licensed driver is at the top of his or her game.
Consistent vehicle quality: expect the same kinds of rides, every time, with consistent vehicle model, makes, interiors, and exteriors.

Wrapping up

This appears to be an attempt to make users more likely to use Uber Black or Uber Black SUV more often. All in all, the option sounds great, we just wish it was available on other ride options.

Until then, we might just opt with wearing our headphones on the train.

How to stay safe on ride-sharing apps

Find out how to arrive safely to your destination with these helpful tips.

When it comes to ride-sharing service, safety is no laughing matter.

Recently, a college student was murdered when she got into a vehicle she thought was her Uber. Ride-sharing apps do offer protection for both driver and passenger, but there are still some things you can do to make sure you arrive safe and sound.

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If you don’t feel safe, cancel the ride

Sometimes when accepting a ride, or picking up a passenger the situation doesn’t feel right. It could be that the vehicle reeks of alcohol, or that the passenger does not look like their picture. If this happens, you can cancel the ride, and then report the problematic individual in the app.

Sometimes you will be charged a cancellation fee, but you can contest it when filing a report.

Share the ride with someone

For both drivers and passengers, you have the ability to share your location on the app with a friend or relative. This is meant to offer peace of mind so that somebody knows where you are, and can alert the authorities if need be.

Waze is a popular GPS service that updates constantly to show traffic, accidents, potholes, and even nearby police activity. One of the app’s features is the ability to share a ride with somebody so they can see where you are in relation to your destination.

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Check the license plate before getting inside

Apps like Uber and Lyft show you the model and color of the vehicle on its way to get you. The apps also tell you the license plate number of the vehicle picking you up, so you know for certain that you are getting in the right vehicle.

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For drivers and passengers, the app has your back

Ride-sharing apps take information from both the rider and passenger for each ride. If something were to happen on the ride, the apps know the parties involved, their information, and where they are on the map.

For drivers, every ride is insured and a fee will be charged to the passenger if they make a mess in your vehicle.

Drivers and passengers also have a 24/7 incident report system as well as a button for emergency assistance in the app.

Report problematic riders, drivers

Ride-sharing apps screen both drivers and their vehicles before hiring anybody. Unfortunately, some problematic individual can slip through the cracks.

If you are having an issue with a passenger or a driver, you can report the person. The app will take your report into consideration, and remove problematic people from the service. Click below to read about how Uber especially has been cracking down on drivers.

Uber is getting tough on users with low ratings

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Reporting problems helps to make the app safer for users on both ends of the spectrum.

Don’t ride/let people ride shotgun

At the end of the day, you are sharing a ride with a stranger. There is nothing wrong with having a conversation between rider and passenger. However, the two do not need to sit right next to each other.

Having the passenger sit in the back seat means that they can leave the vehicle quicker. It also means that they are further away from the steering wheel and gear-shift, ensuring that the driver is the only one in control.

By following these tips, we hope all your rides go smoothly. And remember, if you ever feel unsafe, trust your gut and find another way to your destination.

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Here are Uber’s plans for flying taxis

Ready for flying taxis? They could be here sooner than you think.

“Hey man, it’s Dave. Your Uber’s on the roof.”

Prepare yourself for flying Ubers in the near future. Texas-based company Bell has revealed their design for the Bell Nexus, a helicopter/drone hybrid that could be summoned via Uber. If you’ve ever played Fallout, they’re basically Vertibirds.

After spending decades developing military aircraft like the V22 Osprey, Bell rebranded itself as a more modern tech company last year. The V22 and Bell Nexus are both vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (VTOL). Moving forward, Bell is switching towards electric-powered vehicles, with the Bell Nexus as the first experiment.

The Bell Nexus itself is not completely electric. It’s a hybrid, as Bell wanted to give additional power to the aircraft, allowing it to carry more weight and have a wider flight range.

The Bell Nexus uses six ducted fans to take off and land. Each fan can tilt independently, giving the aircraft precise mobility. The Bell Nexus’s cabin and ducts are designed so that passengers will not be able to see the fans while looking out the window, helping to convince them they won’t be shredded by the rotors.

Thankfully, the Bell Nexus will have a pilot to reassure passengers that they won’t plummet to earth, but Uber has stated that they hope all of their air taxis will be autonomous in the future. The aircraft can hold 272kg (600lbs), and Bell Nexus is open to repurposing the aircraft as a military vehicle in case the whole flying car craze never gets off the ground.

Bell is far from the only company developing air taxis, though their partnership with Uber gives them a crucial advantage. They’ll face off against startups like Kitty Hawk (lead by Google founder Larry Page) as well as industry giants like Boeing. Though the competition is heated, some experts worry about the viability of the flying taxi industry ever taking off. Infrastructure and regulations surrounding flying cars simply do not exist, and they won’t exist without the flying car industry becoming viable in the first place, creating a self-defeating prophecy.

Personally, I would love to see flying taxis take off, mostly for UberEats. How amazing would it be to summon a Big Mac through your own personal helicopter?

6 must-have apps to take on vacation

Fill your phone with these 6 apps before your next vacation!

Vacation time is precious. Every minute spent stuck waiting for a cab is one less minute on the beach. Thankfully there are many apps that can save time by helping you navigate and find the hotels and restaurants that will make your vacation a 4-star affair. Here are the best apps for you to use while you’re traveling.

6 must-have apps to download before you travel

Waze Free Download ►

Waze is one of the greatest travel apps out there, as it uses other Waze users’ locations and information to determine nearby traffic alerts and even lurking police officers. The GPS accuracy is constantly updated, making it one of the most accurate apps out there.

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Similar to Waze, Google Maps is one of the most accurate GPS apps out there. While Waze has a large number of features, Google Maps forgoes this in order to create a simple and accurate system. If you want a simple and easy to follow GPS app, then Google Maps can be a good alternative to Waze.

Citymapper Free Download

If you plan on using public transportation during your travels then Citymapper is the perfect app to have on hand. It maps out transit routes throughout various cities in order to make it easy for you to navigate subways and other metro-transit routes.

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Sometimes, plans go south. Maybe you have a long layover. Maybe your hotel overbooked. Maybe you need a place to crash mid-road trip. HotelTonight hooks you up with a great place to stay for the night when you need it in a hurry.

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Yelp is a popular review app that’s perfect for anyone who’s traveling to a new place and looking for somewhere nice to eat. It is incredibly detailed with thousands of reviews for restaurants all over the world.

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A little different than the other apps on this list, but still probably the best of its kind thanks to its near worldwide accessibility, Uber is a great app for when you’re in a pinch. If you find yourself in any situation that requires you to take a cab, then Uber can be a good alternative to trying to call a cab company.

Most of these apps are particularly useful for when you’re going on some kind of vacation or doing some personal travel. However, if you’re going on a business trip, out Softonic Solutions community has a few more apps for you to check out. Be sure to share your favorites!

4 best ways to find free Wi-Fi

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A very creative hack

Uber Black

Enhanced driving experiences

Wrapping up

If you don’t feel safe, cancel the ride

Share the ride with someone

Check the license plate before getting inside

For drivers and passengers, the app has your back

Report problematic riders, drivers

Don’t ride/let people ride shotgun

6 must-have apps to download before you travel