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Facebook Messenger unveils Secret Conversations and self-destructing messages

Facebook is finally catching up to basically all of the other chat apps out there by adding end-to-end encryption to Messenger. Debuting today, the “Secret conversations” feature makes chats visible to only the sender and reader. It prevents anyone from reading these selected chats, including law enforcement and Facebook itself. Another feature of ‘secret conversations’ lets users set an expiration date for messages. None of this is turned on by default, instead you have to enable it each time you use it. That’s because it disables most of the chatbot and payment features available in Messenger. Right now this is only available to a select group of users, but it should be rolling out to the rest of Facebook soon.

Apple launched the public betas for both the newly renamed MacOS, and iOS 10 yesterday, and it’s a chance for you to get your hands on these new operating systems before everyone else. The question is, do you really want to? These are pre-release versions of the software which Apple puts out to a wide group of testers to find bugs and other issues. And yes, while it’s fun to see the next version of iOS running on your iPhone, there’s a chance that it could malfunction and cause some serious issues. That’s why Apple suggests you not install these on your primary devices. The cool thing about running the public beta is that you’re helping Apple’s developers refine the next generation of operating systems. If you’re interested in testing out Apple’s latest, head over to their sign up page and register for the beta.

For those who like to ride in style, Lyft is launching a new upscale service called Lyft Premiere. Uber’s premium experiences, Uber Black and Uber Select are more popular than ever. And much like Uber Black and Uber Select, Lyft Premier ferries its customers about in lavish machines like the BMW 5 Series, Audi A6, and Cadillac Escalade. The service is rolling out in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York City, and more cities will be added to the list as the rollout continues. Rides will generally cost twice as much as a typical Lyft journey.

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