This reports that a clear App Store copycat is impersonating Meta’s Muse: an app called Muse AI replicates icons, subtitles, screenshot headers, and near-identical description headings and phrasing. Muse from Meta is the #1 iOS download in the U.S., while Muse AI is currently #20 in the Mac App Store despite only appearing three weeks ago and recently updating with release notes that explicitly introduce a “new Muse brand logo.” Muse AI offers expensive in‑app purchases (a noted $20 monthly subscription) and at least one reviewer says they subscribed after confusing it with Meta’s app, requesting a refund. The similarities and the update notes suggest an obvious attempt to mislead users, yet App Store review allowed it into the store.
Other Mac App Store listings exploit the absence of official Mac versions: an “App for Instagram º” mimics Instagram’s icon and appears high in search results despite no website and a privacy policy hosted on sites.google.com; user reviews describe a modal paywall that blocks quitting, logging out, or restarting the system until a subscription is purchased. A “Video Player for VLC” ranks top for VLC searches despite not being from VideoLAN and offering paid purchases for what is normally free, open-source software. These examples indicate repeated trademark-style impersonation, paywall abuse, and weak App Store vetting.
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Google has announced that Chromebook update support will end in 2034, breaking its previous promise of 10 years of updates for all devices. This change affects those who bought Chromebooks in recent years, raising concerns over corporate transparency and device longevity. (osnews.com)
Russian missile strikes have taken out several popular piracy websites. The attacks are linked to the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war. (tomshardware.com)
A U.S. immigration advocate sued the government after a border agent searched his phone without a warrant and copied data. He believes the government targeted him due to his activism and political work on immigration rights. (arstechnica.com)
Over 44,000 legal objections have been filed against Palantir's NHS data platform, demanding it be blocked from handling medical data. The campaign follows backlash over the company's involvement with the Israeli military and US immigration enforcement. (theguardian.com)
OpenAI claims that a Chinese AI model stole its intellectual property. The company alleges that it had previously appropriated IP from other sources. (theregister.com)
Android developers face new requirements to publish apps, including a $25 verification fee and identity verification, even for small-scale projects. These policies have caused frustration among developers who want to share their apps freely without extensive registration processes. (twitter.com)
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