Skip to main content

U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron believes privacy policies are a hindrance

David Cameron 5G
Image used with permission by copyright holder
In a comment that could be a sign of things to come, U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron implied the privacy policies of companies such as Google, Facebook, and Twitter are unsustainable, reports Politics.

Talking to Tory Minister of Parliament Henry Bellingham yesterday, Cameron said the U.K. is not a place that will not go into people’s emails and invade their privacy. By that same token, he believes security services should have access to online communications if the U.K. wants to ward off terrorism.

Recommended Videos

“We just want to ensure that terrorists do not have a safe space in which to communicate,” said Cameron. “That is the challenge, and it is a challenge that will come in front of the House.”

Please enable Javascript to view this content

That challenge looks to begin in the form of a revised version of the Draft Communications Data Bill, nicknamed the “Snoopers’ Charter.” In short, the bill would force Internet service providers, as well as mobile phone companies, to maintain records of a user’s Internet browsing activity. In addition, they would have to maintain records of someone’s email, phone call, gaming, and messaging activities. These companies would then store the information for 12 months, during which the government and security agencies can access the information.

Critics of the bill believe it would lead to the government gaining backdoor access to communication providers’ services in the name of preventing terrorism, a belief that has social enterprise In.die ready to leave the United Kingdom. “We’re not going to stay in a country where we might be forced to backdoor our products (and possibly not even be allowed to tell anyone about it),” wrote founder Aral Balkan.

If all of this sounds familiar, it’s because the FBI wanted to push, and likely still is pushing, some kind of measure that would give it backdoor access to companies such as Apple and Google. As of now, the FBI has failed in gaining that access, but because the Conservative Party now holds the majority in Parliament, the chances of the Draft Communications Data bill being passed this fall doesn’t look as bleak as before.

Williams Pelegrin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Williams is an avid New York Yankees fan, speaks Spanish, resides in Colorado, and has an affinity for Frosted Flakes. Send…
TikTok returns to Apple, Google app stores in U.S.
TikTok logo on an iPhone.

The TikTok saga continues. Apple reinstated the popular app to the App Store on Thursday evening, and a short while later Google followed suit and put it back on the Play Store. The move came after Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly sent a letter to the tech giants assuring them that they will not face any penalties in relation to a law that banned the app in the U.S. last month.

Both Apple and Google removed TikTok from their respective U.S. app stores on January 18, the day before the law banning the app went into effect. Then, on January 20, newly elected President Trump signed an executive order granting TikTok a 75-day reprieve from the ban to give his administration “an opportunity to determine the appropriate course forward.”

Read more
Android 16’s latest beta promises deeper mobile photography controls
The Android 16 logo on a smartphone, resting on a shelf.

Google has started rolling out the second beta update of Android 16 for supported Pixel devices. There are not many user-facing features arriving with this build, but Google is making a few framework changes that will enhance the camera experience for users in the near future.

The most notable change is a new hybrid auto exposure system arriving with the Camera2 API upgrade. So far, users have only had access to rudimentary controls in the auto-mode for capturing stills and videos. For deeper controls, there was no other option than digging into the cluttered Pro mode.

Read more
Why are really old iPhones suddenly so popular?
A photo of a Galaxy S25 Plus showing an Instagram page.

Depending on what you see in your social network feeds, you may have noticed a sudden rise in the use of old Apple iPhone models, along with equally ancient digital cameras, to take photos, and wondered what was going on. Why use an old iPhone, when new ones have better cameras? One possible reason is an emerging social trend in South Korea, where people are clamoring for old Apple iPhone models specifically for the cameras and the type of photos they can take.

It’s part of a trend referred to as “youngtro,” a portmanteau of young and retro, and is most popular among Millennials and Gen Z, according to a report published in English by The Korea Times, from a story in the Korean Hankook Ilbo newspaper. The interest goes beyond “vintage” smartphone cameras and even extends to dated, discontinued digital cameras, and is so popular, even well-known singers and celebrities are embracing the trend, sharing photos on social media where the old cameras and smartphones take an equally centerstage role in the image.

Read more