YouTube launches new tool to blur any part in videos

YouTube launched  a new tool to make a blur effect in any part in videos :

YouTube launched the global activation of new tool lets users blur moving parts do not want to appear as they draw him and published on the site.

It was YouTube, Google Inc., has released a tool to blur faces in 2012 to assist users with the anonymity of persons who do not want to know their identity.

The site said that users with a new tool to blur any part of the video, such as car dashboard, or phone numbers, or clothes, or disturbing images, or the like.

Smudge tool allows new YouTube draw a box over the portion you want to vanish from the video, it can trace and track the object while it moves throughout the video. You can also choose when to start and when it ends, blur or change the size of the box blur with video.

 

 

This new tool is available from last Thursday to the desktop version of YouTube. And is expected to be raised for service applications on smart devices soon.

MWC 2016 : Oppo promises to fully charge your smartphone battery in 15 minutes!

MWC  2016 highlights Failing to find a solution to increase the autonomy of smartphones, Oppo has introduced a new fast charging standard called Super VOOC that will fill your mobile in just 15 minutes.

A pioneer in the field of fast charging system with VOOC, Oppo continues to innovate and has just introduced at Mobile World Congress, the second generation of its standard home. The Super VOOC would be able to charge a battery of 2500 mAh in just 15 minutes.
For more concerned, Oppo says the system works with low voltage pulses and there is no risk of overheating. The temperature of the battery does not also exceed 3.3 degrees. This new technology is based on a specific algorithm and a voltage of 5 volts which guarantees the security and stability of the system. Hard to imagine Oppo tells us otherwise ... we will not fail to check in future tests.
Only binding point, it is necessary to use a battery specifically designed for this new protocol for fast charging. There's hope that this technology may come in the next generations of smart phones.

Galaxy S7 review : features, price, release date,...

Galaxy S7 review

As expected, Samsung has used his traditional keynote MWC to present its new Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge. And as usual, the rumor was right, we are dealing with transition models with an identical design to the Galaxy S6. For the rest, it's inside that this is happening. Because the big news this year is actually a step backwards.

Samsung seems to have heard the complaints of its Galaxy S6 and S7 sign the return of sealing (IP68) introduced on the Galaxy S5 and revives a strand of its DNA with the memory card slot (up to 200GB) to expand the 32 GB internally. In addition to these highly anticipated returns, Samsung offers some technical refinements / update next photo, performance and autonomy.

Rates : The Samsung Galaxy Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge will be sold March 11th with the rates of 699 and 799 euros.
Pre-orders will be available on 22 February and as we reported, the virtual reality helmet Gear VR accompanied by 6 games will be offered if you order the terminal between that date and 10 March.

Main characteristics :

• Android 6.0 with Touchwiz overlay the new

• AMOLED 5.1 inches with a resolution 2560x1440 pixels (577 PPI) for the Galaxy S7, curved 5.5 inches with a resolution of 2560x1440 pixels (534 PPI) for the Galaxy S7 Edge identical resolution to the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge

• 32GB of storage

• MicroSD card slot for extra storage up to 200GB

• Identical design to the Galaxy S6, glass and aluminum case

• 12 megapixel sensor Dual Pixel (f / 1.7) on the back, 5 megapixel camera (f / 1.7) facade

• Water resistant (IP68, submersible to 1 meter for 30 minutes)

• 3000 mAh (2550 mAh against Galaxy S6), 3600 mAh for the Galaxy S7 Edge (2600 mAh against Galaxy S6 Edge), with fast loading and wireless

• "Always-on" continuously display the time, calendar or pictures from the lock screen

• Exynos 8890 (four cores clocked at 2.3 GHz and four cores at 1.6 GHz for low-intensive tasks) and 4GB of RAM (LPDDR 4)

• 4G + (Cat 9 - 450/50 Mbps theoretical)

• Colors: Black Onyx, Platinum Gold

• 152 g for the Galaxy S7 and 157g for the Galaxy S7 Edge 

Fewer pixels, but larger pixels :

The Galaxy S7 has a camera of 12 megapixels, 16 megapixels against last year. The number of megapixels is lower which will impact the dive. But by reducing the resolution while keeping the same size sensor, each pixel is larger and thus collect more light. So we should expect better pictures in low light situations. S7 also have a slightly wider aperture (f1.7 f1.9 vs the S6), the Galaxy S7 should be particularly bright to check in our next test.

 

Let you say about a new  side  in the camera as "instant" which seemed very fast autofocus during demonstrations. Just like the iPhone 6S, the Galaxy S7 screen will flash to simulate a flash when you capture a selfie. Samsung has also taken the concept of Live Photos of the iPhone 6S with Motion Picture to generate moving pictures in the form of short videos.

More autonomy, even with "always on"?

Logically it is found very effective fast loading on the Galaxy S6 and recharging without induction wire. But this year, Samsung seems to have made an extra effort on autonomy with larger battery capacity 3000 mAh for the Galaxy S7 5.1 inches (against 2550 mAh Galaxy S6 on the same diagonal) and 3600 mAh Galaxy S7 Edge 5.5 inches (against 2600 mAh Galaxy S6 Edge which had a smaller diagonal, 5.1 inches). We can probably expect a greater autonomy in the past year.

Regarding the "always on" (permanent display of the time, calendar or pictures when the smartphone is locked and the screen), Samsung says it uses only 1% of the battery of the phone to check. ..

The new features have a sense of deja vu?

 Once again the rumor was right on many points. For the record, we have listed them just below.NB: the rumors are arranged chronologically. The linking to our complete articles.This year, Samsung will announce a new Galaxy S. After the acclaimed S6 in 2015 we logically have the S7 this year, we do not see why the Korean company would stray from tradition. As the annual iPhone, the Samsung flagship crystallizes a lot of expectations and it is therefore no surprise that the subject of a flood of rumors several months before its release.Thus, as we did for the iPhone 6S, we offer a summary of noise corridor on the next Korean flagship. This will easily get an idea of ​​what he will propose before it is made official, probably around the MWC in late February. Remember that this is the moment of rumors and this article will be updated as and when they appear.

Double sensor

 The first rumor frankly not exceptional because it blooms every year on many of the expected devices: the presence of a dual camera sensor. Strangely recurring elsewhere, since only one major manufacturer is risky to it with mixed success: HTC, on the M8. The experiment was not repeated.

 Protected as a turtle
 September 15, 2015, Samsung Display filed a trademark with the strange name: Turtle Glass. It does not take longer for the rumor panics and sees an alternative "home" in Corning Gorilla Glass. And this house could drink more in line with the curved phones of the firm.2 x 2 = 4The range of Galaxy S7 begins to emerge. We're talking about a classic model and a model like last year. In addition, both versions could be declined in size phablet in the Edge of the line S6 +, four models in total.

 Arrival in January, as every year

 As every year, a rumor reported an early exit for the Galaxy S7, it would be presented in January 2016, as part of the CES. Like every year, we think it is wrong. We were right.

4 million pixels less
 With the Galaxy S7, Samsung would end the race on his megapixel photo sensor. The firm would opt for mpx 12 instead of 16 of S6. The aim would be to offer more fat cells and thus captures more light.

 Better and cheaper 

Almost aligned with the price of the iPhone 6, the Galaxy S6 could seem expensive. We must believe because a rumor refers to a price drop of about 10% for the S7. One way for Samsung to go in search volume. Rather logical at a time when market shares dwindle. 
20 mpx finally, and RAW photos
 Rumor has changed course, now here we'll talk a sensor 20 instead of the 12 mpx mpx mentioned above. In addition, the smartphone would be able to capture images in RAW format. Something to please the advanced photographer ... and alignment on some competitors. 
BRITECELL
 A bit of official information in this flood of rumors: Samsung announced its new photo sensor technology called BRITECELL. With a white subpixel, the firm provides to capture more light and thus improve low-light shots. The technology allows more to have thinner camera modules, which can possibly happen to prominence at the sensor.

 

Galaxy Wars Episode VII: The Return of the SD Card

 Samsung have heard criticism about the lack of MicroSD slot on the S6. It would therefore be back on the S7. We learn at the same time that we should not have two versions of the smartphone, classical and a 5.5-inch phablet curve screen.

Duo Pixel

 One landmark in the documents of the US Patent Office a new trademark of Samsung Duo Pixel. The principle is to have two photodiodes for each pixel in order to focus more rapid development. This technology requires larger pixels, and therefore fewer, it brings grist to the mill supporters 12 mpx.

Strength screen touch and a close design

 Sensitive screens to pressure big trend next year? Maybe. Here it is rumored that the Galaxy S7 Touch Force would be given a screen similar to the iPhone 6S and Huawei Mate S 128GB. In addition, a photo frame leakage on the canvas, shows a design with little change and USB Type-C.

5.1, 5.5 inches, and dual SIM 

The Indian carrier Zauba numbered list two phones GM930 and GM935, which correspond to the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, two diagonals are indicated: 5.1 and 5.5 inches. We also learn by intermediaries Taiwanese certification body a model with two SIM slots is expected, but it might only be proposed on the island. 
Announcement February 21 and March 11 release
 According to the famous leaker EvLeaks, the release date of the Galaxy S7 is set to 11 March. The phone therefore come out a month before the Galaxy S6 in his time since he arrived on 10 April. According to our information, the presentation conference will take place on February 21 in the MWC. 

Two rather than three 

Point + Edge Galaxy S7 finally. EvLeaks strikes again by publishing two logos, and two logos only, corresponding to the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge. Samsung would therefore ignore the Edge + 5.7 inch version would happen so later. This is consistent with listings of Zauba carrier appeared a few days earlier.

Check it On Amazon before any other can

How to Develop your first Windows 10 Phone application [setting the environment]

With this tutorial we will see together how to develop a mobile application for the Windows  10 Phone platform
This tutorial is divided into several parts, in each of them we will look at a particular spot
First we must prepare our work environment, we install Visual Studio 2015 :

Microsoft Visual Studio 2015 Professional

Thereafter we will activate Microsoft Hyper-V virtualization technology to be able to launch the windows phone emulator

Windows Phone system requirements

And we will also enable developer mode in Windows 10 and is the OS that I used to create this tutorial

In Windows Explorer you select Uninstall or change a program:

To the left is chosen to enable or disable Windows functionality:

 

 In the Hyper-V Windows box you should check window will require a system restart to install the new features

After the restart we launch the Hyper-V Manager newly installed:

  In this all the Windows Phone emulator created window will be displayed You can click settings for more information on the emulator chooses:

Now we will enable developer mode on Windows 10

Under Windows 10 go to Settings and then update and security and enable the developer mode :

   We arrive at the end of the first stage .

During this part we will start to program your application
As a first test I created a form that contains 2 User name and password and a button to check if the data entered are correct or not displaying the dialog window Windows Phone.
Start by creating a new Windows 10 project :

The proof revealed: Apple refuses the request of FBI to establish backdoors on Iphone devices

Apple refuses the request of the Federal Security Service  FBI to establish FBI  back doors in iphone devices for the purpose of spying and tracking users.
This is the copy of the letter in which the FBI a request from Apple set up these gaps to penetrate users.

source:

The New York Times

YouTube Reveals 4K HDR and 360-Degree Video Support at CES

YouTube Chief Business Officer Robert Kyncl on Thursday laid out the direction the service plans to take this year, including new partnerships with GoPro to support 360-degree video content and 4K HDR, or high dynamic range, video.

So-called cord cutters are having an impact on streaming video services, including those of competitors such as Amazon and YouTube, he said during his keynote address at CES 2016.

The amount of time people spend watching digital video is about an hour and 15 minutes a day and is growing 25 percent year on year, Kyncl noted.

"Digital video is exploding," he said. "It has overtaken social media as the top online activity."

With that in mind, it isn't hard to see why YouTube is seeking to widen its appeal beyond fast-trending videos, and its newly announced partnerships and video support could be crucial to its growth. The service will be built into smart TVs alongside offerings from Amazon, Hulu and Netflix.

"YouTube is going to launch support for HDR playback this year," said Mariana De Felice, a YouTube spokesperson.

"At the show floor, partners such as Samsung, LG and Hisense were showcasing YouTube in 4K HDR," she told the E-Commerce Times.

YouTube's Full 360

Kyncl was joined at the keynote by GoPro CEO Nick Woodman to highlight the companies' partnership.

GoPro took the moment to announce that it will release a casual spherical camera as a way to help expand outside the extreme sports and adrenaline junkie market, which could result in greater adoption of 360-degree video creation.

"360 is what is used in virtual reality, and YouTube's popularity and sheer number of users really could make an impact on this technology, and this will help promote awareness and adoption of 360 video," said Greg Sterling, vice president of strategy and insight at the Local Search Association.

What YouTube is "doing for VR is the most important that can happen to the technology for it to be successful," added Colin Dixon, principal analyst at nScreenMedia.

"This partnership with GoPro does something that is pretty unique for video technology, as it was absent for 3-D and even HD before it," he told the E-Commerce Times.

It could allow for the creation of a complete ecosystem that offers most of the features needed to make the content, Dixon noted.

"You can get started with a GoPro that will cost just $500, and you could be making videos soon after," he said.

"The people that are likely to use this are those already using GoPro for extreme sports -- the stuff that is exciting to watch," he added. "This could result in a flow of exciting, compelling content that showcases the technology."

360 on Displays

However, YouTube and GoPro may still have some issues to resolve, at least in terms of ensuring the best way to present the content. VR is something best experienced via a special headset, and the content isn't so easily experienced -- at least not in all its glory -- on a traditional flat display.

"360 works well in headsets and it is awkward on a phone's screen, but less awkward on a PC desktop," the Local Search Association's Sterling told the E-Commerce Times. "It's still meant for headsets, so how it works could very well depend on the content."

That many not hamper early adopters, however.

"This is really a trifecta for the early adopters," said Dixon.

"It will be cheap to produce, provide a flow of good content, and cheap to try it out," he added. "As a result, it will be almost the most important thing to happen to VR, bar none -- $500 and you are in the VR business."

Technology Platform

As consumers adopt larger TVs with greater resolution, people watching in their living rooms will expect more than low-resolution videos.

To compete with Amazon's and Netflix's HDR video support, YouTube will need to remain at the forefront of video technology.

"YouTube's adoption of new technologies, which also includes VR, is important to the overall ecosystem," said Joel Espelien, senior analyst at The Diffusion Group.

"Device companies have to have YouTube app support on their platforms, so in this sense it's a big positive," he told the E-Commerce Times.

One issue is that YouTube's content is all over the map and is often fast trending but also fast to burn out, according to Espelien.

"From this point of view, content providers with more focus -- whether a sports league or someone like Netflix producing originals -- [are] better equipped to create a tight feedback loop between new technologies and the content creation process itself," he added.

The size of the audience could be the key when all is said and done, noted Sterling.

"YouTube can have a significant impact on the technologies, as it is one of two or three destinations that have massive online audience," he added. "Along with Netflix and Facebook, it is where people go to find video online."

Peter Suciu is a freelance writer who has covered consumer electronics, technology, electronic entertainment and fitness-related trends for more than a decade. His work has appeared in more than three dozen publications, and he is the co-author of Careers in the Computer Game Industry (Career in the New Economy series), a career guide aimed at high school students from Rosen Publishing. You can connect with Peter on Google+.

Uber Settles With New York AG After 'Playing God' With Data

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on Thursday announced a deal that would require Uber to encrypt geolocation information about its riders, as well as enhance its data security practices.

The AG opened an investigation into Uber in 2014, in response to allegations that the service had tracked riders and displayed their locations in an aerial format, known internally as the "God View."

The AG's office opened another investigation early last year, after Uber notified it that an unauthorized third-party had accessed the names and driver's license information of Uber drivers as early as May 2014, although the company did not discover it until the following September, according to legal documents obtained by the E-Commerce Times.

"We are committed to protecting the privacy of consumers and customers of any product in New York State, as well as that of any employee of any company operating here," Schneiderman said.

New Data Rules

The settlement requires that Uber encrypt rider geolocation information, adopt multifactor authentication before any Uber employee can access sensitive rider information, and engage in other protection practices, according to the AG's office.

The settlement also requires Uber to pay a US$20,000 penalty for failing to provide timely notice to drivers and to the AG's office regarding the September 2014 data breach.

"We are deeply committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of riders and drivers," Uber said in a statement provided to the E-Commerce Times by spokesperson Matt Wing. "We are pleased to have reached an agreement with the New York Attorney General that resolves these questions and makes it clear our commitment to best practices that put our community first."

We've Been Expecting You

Buzzfeed reporter Johana Bhuiyan in 2014 discovered that her Uber ride had been tracked as she traveled to the company's Long Island City headquarters while on assignment to interview its New York general manager.

She had not given prior consent to the tracking, and it was against company policy to do such a thing, according to a Buzzfeed exclusive report.

The AG's office mentioned the Buzzfeed article in its announcement of the settlement; however, Wing declined to comment on the incident.

Uber last year posted a privacy policy that mentioned the hiring of law firm Hogan Lovells to review the company's privacy practices.

Uber conducts annual privacy and security training, has an employee designated to supervise it, and takes other steps that already comply with the AG agreement, it said.

Companies often fail to protect sensitive customer data, according to Charles Duan, staff attorney at Public Knowledge, who pointed to the AT&T breach in which call center employees had access to customer data, including 280,000 Social Security numbers.

"I expect that many consumers will now start to think twice before hitting that Uber request button," he told the E-Commerce Times. "Uber's ride service is largely based on the idea that it's better than taxis, and now they've shown that taxis are actually superior in at least one respect -- namely, privacy and anonymity."

David Jones is a freelance writer based in Essex County, New Jersey. He has written for Reuters, Bloomberg, Crain's New York Business and The New York Times.

Uber Settles With New York AG After 'Playing God' With Data

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on Thursday announced a deal that would require Uber to encrypt geolocation information about its riders, as well as enhance its data security practices.

The AG opened an investigation into Uber in 2014, in response to allegations that the service had tracked riders and displayed their locations in an aerial format, known internally as the "God View."

The AG's office opened another investigation early last year, after Uber notified it that an unauthorized third-party had accessed the names and driver's license information of Uber drivers as early as May 2014, although the company did not discover it until the following September, according to legal documents obtained by the E-Commerce Times.

"We are committed to protecting the privacy of consumers and customers of any product in New York State, as well as that of any employee of any company operating here," Schneiderman said.

New Data Rules

The settlement requires that Uber encrypt rider geolocation information, adopt multifactor authentication before any Uber employee can access sensitive rider information, and engage in other protection practices, according to the AG's office.

The settlement also requires Uber to pay a US$20,000 penalty for failing to provide timely notice to drivers and to the AG's office regarding the September 2014 data breach.

"We are deeply committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of riders and drivers," Uber said in a statement provided to the E-Commerce Times by spokesperson Matt Wing. "We are pleased to have reached an agreement with the New York Attorney General that resolves these questions and makes it clear our commitment to best practices that put our community first."

We've Been Expecting You

Buzzfeed reporter Johana Bhuiyan in 2014 discovered that her Uber ride had been tracked as she traveled to the company's Long Island City headquarters while on assignment to interview its New York general manager.

She had not given prior consent to the tracking, and it was against company policy to do such a thing, according to a Buzzfeed exclusive report.

The AG's office mentioned the Buzzfeed article in its announcement of the settlement; however, Wing declined to comment on the incident.

Uber last year posted a privacy policy that mentioned the hiring of law firm Hogan Lovells to review the company's privacy practices.

Uber conducts annual privacy and security training, has an employee designated to supervise it, and takes other steps that already comply with the AG agreement, it said.

Companies often fail to protect sensitive customer data, according to Charles Duan, staff attorney at Public Knowledge, who pointed to the AT&T breach in which call center employees had access to customer data, including 280,000 Social Security numbers.

"I expect that many consumers will now start to think twice before hitting that Uber request button," he told the E-Commerce Times. "Uber's ride service is largely based on the idea that it's better than taxis, and now they've shown that taxis are actually superior in at least one respect -- namely, privacy and anonymity."

David Jones is a freelance writer based in Essex County, New Jersey. He has written for Reuters, Bloomberg, Crain's New York Business and The New York Times.

Uber Settles With New York AG After 'Playing God' With Data

Uber Settles With New York AG After 'Playing God' With Data

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on Thursday announced a deal that would require Uber to encrypt geolocation information about its riders, as well as enhance its data security practices.

The AG opened an investigation into Uber in 2014, in response to allegations that the service had tracked riders and displayed their locations in an aerial format, known internally as the "God View."

The AG's office opened another investigation early last year, after Uber notified it that an unauthorized third-party had accessed the names and driver's license information of Uber drivers as early as May 2014, although the company did not discover it until the following September, according to legal documents obtained by the E-Commerce Times.

"We are committed to protecting the privacy of consumers and customers of any product in New York State, as well as that of any employee of any company operating here," Schneiderman said.

New Data Rules

The settlement requires that Uber encrypt rider geolocation information, adopt multifactor authentication before any Uber employee can access sensitive rider information, and engage in other protection practices, according to the AG's office.

The settlement also requires Uber to pay a US$20,000 penalty for failing to provide timely notice to drivers and to the AG's office regarding the September 2014 data breach.

"We are deeply committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of riders and drivers," Uber said in a statement provided to the E-Commerce Times by spokesperson Matt Wing. "We are pleased to have reached an agreement with the New York Attorney General that resolves these questions and makes it clear our commitment to best practices that put our community first."

We've Been Expecting You

Buzzfeed reporter Johana Bhuiyan in 2014 discovered that her Uber ride had been tracked as she traveled to the company's Long Island City headquarters while on assignment to interview its New York general manager.

She had not given prior consent to the tracking, and it was against company policy to do such a thing, according to a Buzzfeed exclusive report.

The AG's office mentioned the Buzzfeed article in its announcement of the settlement; however, Wing declined to comment on the incident.

Uber last year posted a privacy policy that mentioned the hiring of law firm Hogan Lovells to review the company's privacy practices.

Uber conducts annual privacy and security training, has an employee designated to supervise it, and takes other steps that already comply with the AG agreement, it said.

Companies often fail to protect sensitive customer data, according to Charles Duan, staff attorney at Public Knowledge, who pointed to the AT&T breach in which call center employees had access to customer data, including 280,000 Social Security numbers.

"I expect that many consumers will now start to think twice before hitting that Uber request button," he told the E-Commerce Times. "Uber's ride service is largely based on the idea that it's better than taxis, and now they've shown that taxis are actually superior in at least one respect -- namely, privacy and anonymity."

David Jones is a freelance writer based in Essex County, New Jersey. He has written for Reuters, Bloomberg, Crain's New York Business and The New York Times.

Apple Execs' Salaries Go Up as Stock Goes Down

All but one of Apple's top team received a pay raise in 2015, according to a proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission this week.

While Angela Ahrendts, Apple's senior vice president for retail and online stores, didn't get a raise, she's still pulling down the highest executive compensation at the company at US$25.8 million.

Her compensation in 2014 was $73.4 million, but that's because Apple offered her a fat financial deal to jump ship from Burberry.

By comparison, CEO Tim Cook's compensation in 2015 was $10.3 million, up from $9.2 million in 2014.

Stock Holdings

However, Cook has large equity holdings in the company awarded him when he become CEO. They include unvested shares worth $353.3 million and equity incentives worth $192.7 million.

Ahrendt also has substantial stock holdings: unvested shares worth $42.5 million and equity incentives worth $18.4 million.

CFO Luca Maestri received compensation of $25.3 million, an increase from $14.0 million in 2014, the SEC filing showed.

His stock holdings include unvested shares worth $36.1 million and equity incentives worth $9.7 million.

Meanwhile, Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president for Internet software and services, had compensation of $25.1 million, a jump from $24.4 million in 2014.

Cue's stock holdings include $92.6 million in unvested shares and $18.4 million in incentives.

Skewed Compensation

Although Apple was a revenue and profit machine in 2015, its stock languished.

Full-year revenues for the company were $233 billion and profits were more than a billion dollars a week at $53.4 billion.

Yet its stock price dropped to 105.26 in December from 111.89 in January.

The stock closed Thursday at 96.45.

Apple's current executive team is responsible for destroying more than $480 billion in shareholder value, maintained Trip Chowdhry, managing director for equity research at Global Equities Research.

"Should they be rewarded for destroying $480 billion of potential shareholder value?" he told the E-Commerce Times. "Their compensation is totally skewed."

Bad P/E

Apple's price-to-earnings ratio of 11.5 is half the S&P 500 average of 20.5, Chowdhry added.

"The team should be compensated based on the P/E multiples. They shouldn't get bonuses until they match the market multiples," he said.

"It's a classic scenario of executives self-congratulating themselves for a dismal performance. These executives are rewarding themselves for underperforming on every metric," Chowdhry continued.

"If Steve Jobs was alive today, he would have gone bananas," he added.

Stratospheric Salaries

One of the problems in corporate America is executives continuing to make good money regardless of how the company is doing, observed Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group.

"There's been a decoupling of company performance and salaries at the top level of firms that's been problematic," he told the E-Commerce Times. "Often, even if a company drops into unprofitability, the salaries will remain stratospheric."

That's not the case at Apple, however, according to Enderle.

"Apple continues to be one of the most profitable companies in the technology segment," he said. "As long as that is the case, you'd expect the compensation to remain reasonably good."

Unreasonable Expectations

While Apple may not be doing as well as it did under Steve Jobs, Enderle continued, it's doing better than most companies do when an iconic leader leaves.

"The fact that Apple was designed around Jobs and they're doing as well they're doing is a testament to their capability," he said.

When Bill Gates left Microsoft to Steve Balmer, the company's value collapsed and still hasn't recovered, Enderle noted.

As for Apple's stock price, "tech companies have a history of being undervalued," he observed.

"The issue with Apple is they're expected to overperform, so they get pounded when they don't," Enderle continued.

"The expectations around Apple are often unreasonable," he added, "largely because Apple has shown they can perform at unreasonable levels."

John Mello is a freelance technology writer and contributor to Chief Security Officer magazine. You can connect with him on Google+.

Apple Execs' Salaries Go Up as Stock Goes Down

All but one of Apple's top team received a pay raise in 2015, according to a proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission this week.

While Angela Ahrendts, Apple's senior vice president for retail and online stores, didn't get a raise, she's still pulling down the highest executive compensation at the company at US$25.8 million.

Her compensation in 2014 was $73.4 million, but that's because Apple offered her a fat financial deal to jump ship from Burberry.

By comparison, CEO Tim Cook's compensation in 2015 was $10.3 million, up from $9.2 million in 2014.

Stock Holdings

However, Cook has large equity holdings in the company awarded him when he become CEO. They include unvested shares worth $353.3 million and equity incentives worth $192.7 million.

Ahrendt also has substantial stock holdings: unvested shares worth $42.5 million and equity incentives worth $18.4 million.

CFO Luca Maestri received compensation of $25.3 million, an increase from $14.0 million in 2014, the SEC filing showed.

His stock holdings include unvested shares worth $36.1 million and equity incentives worth $9.7 million.

Meanwhile, Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president for Internet software and services, had compensation of $25.1 million, a jump from $24.4 million in 2014.

Cue's stock holdings include $92.6 million in unvested shares and $18.4 million in incentives.

Skewed Compensation

Although Apple was a revenue and profit machine in 2015, its stock languished.

Full-year revenues for the company were $233 billion and profits were more than a billion dollars a week at $53.4 billion.

Yet its stock price dropped to 105.26 in December from 111.89 in January.

The stock closed Thursday at 96.45.

Apple's current executive team is responsible for destroying more than $480 billion in shareholder value, maintained Trip Chowdhry, managing director for equity research at Global Equities Research.

"Should they be rewarded for destroying $480 billion of potential shareholder value?" he told the E-Commerce Times. "Their compensation is totally skewed."

Bad P/E

Apple's price-to-earnings ratio of 11.5 is half the S&P 500 average of 20.5, Chowdhry added.

"The team should be compensated based on the P/E multiples. They shouldn't get bonuses until they match the market multiples," he said.

"It's a classic scenario of executives self-congratulating themselves for a dismal performance. These executives are rewarding themselves for underperforming on every metric," Chowdhry continued.

"If Steve Jobs was alive today, he would have gone bananas," he added.

Stratospheric Salaries

One of the problems in corporate America is executives continuing to make good money regardless of how the company is doing, observed Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group.

"There's been a decoupling of company performance and salaries at the top level of firms that's been problematic," he told the E-Commerce Times. "Often, even if a company drops into unprofitability, the salaries will remain stratospheric."

That's not the case at Apple, however, according to Enderle.

"Apple continues to be one of the most profitable companies in the technology segment," he said. "As long as that is the case, you'd expect the compensation to remain reasonably good."

Unreasonable Expectations

While Apple may not be doing as well as it did under Steve Jobs, Enderle continued, it's doing better than most companies do when an iconic leader leaves.

"The fact that Apple was designed around Jobs and they're doing as well they're doing is a testament to their capability," he said.

When Bill Gates left Microsoft to Steve Balmer, the company's value collapsed and still hasn't recovered, Enderle noted.

As for Apple's stock price, "tech companies have a history of being undervalued," he observed.

"The issue with Apple is they're expected to overperform, so they get pounded when they don't," Enderle continued.

"The expectations around Apple are often unreasonable," he added, "largely because Apple has shown they can perform at unreasonable levels."

John Mello is a freelance technology writer and contributor to Chief Security Officer magazine. You can connect with him on Google+.

Uber Settles With New York AG After 'Playing God' With Data

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on Thursday announced a deal that would require Uber to encrypt geolocation information about its riders, as well as enhance its data security practices.

The AG opened an investigation into Uber in 2014, in response to allegations that the service had tracked riders and displayed their locations in an aerial format, known internally as the "God View."

The AG's office opened another investigation early last year, after Uber notified it that an unauthorized third-party had accessed the names and driver's license information of Uber drivers as early as May 2014, although the company did not discover it until the following September, according to legal documents obtained by the E-Commerce Times.

"We are committed to protecting the privacy of consumers and customers of any product in New York State, as well as that of any employee of any company operating here," Schneiderman said.

New Data Rules

The settlement requires that Uber encrypt rider geolocation information, adopt multifactor authentication before any Uber employee can access sensitive rider information, and engage in other protection practices, according to the AG's office.

The settlement also requires Uber to pay a US$20,000 penalty for failing to provide timely notice to drivers and to the AG's office regarding the September 2014 data breach.

"We are deeply committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of riders and drivers," Uber said in a statement provided to the E-Commerce Times by spokesperson Matt Wing. "We are pleased to have reached an agreement with the New York Attorney General that resolves these questions and makes it clear our commitment to best practices that put our community first."

We've Been Expecting You

Buzzfeed reporter Johana Bhuiyan in 2014 discovered that her Uber ride had been tracked as she traveled to the company's Long Island City headquarters while on assignment to interview its New York general manager.

She had not given prior consent to the tracking, and it was against company policy to do such a thing, according to a Buzzfeed exclusive report.

The AG's office mentioned the Buzzfeed article in its announcement of the settlement; however, Wing declined to comment on the incident.

Uber last year posted a privacy policy that mentioned the hiring of law firm Hogan Lovells to review the company's privacy practices.

Uber conducts annual privacy and security training, has an employee designated to supervise it, and takes other steps that already comply with the AG agreement, it said.

Companies often fail to protect sensitive customer data, according to Charles Duan, staff attorney at Public Knowledge, who pointed to the AT&T breach in which call center employees had access to customer data, including 280,000 Social Security numbers.

"I expect that many consumers will now start to think twice before hitting that Uber request button," he told the E-Commerce Times. "Uber's ride service is largely based on the idea that it's better than taxis, and now they've shown that taxis are actually superior in at least one respect -- namely, privacy and anonymity."

David Jones is a freelance writer based in Essex County, New Jersey. He has written for Reuters, Bloomberg, Crain's New York Business and The New York Times.