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Facebook flaw allows fake ‘like’ networks to thrive: Study

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San Francisco, Sep 10 (IANS) A security flaw has allowed thousands of Facebook accounts — both real and fake — to generate millions of fake ‘likes’ and comments by entering into “collusion networks”, claims new research.

This thriving ecosystem of large-scale reputation manipulation services on Facebook leverage the principle of collusion, said the researchers from the University of Iowa in the US and Lahore University of Management Science in Pakistan.

The researchers found dozens of sites that operate the so-called collusion networks, which rapidly generate users’ ‘likes’ for free, CBS News reported this week.

While the researchers looked at top 50 networks, they believe that many more could exist.

In order to participate, users have to grant the networks wide-ranging access to their accounts, so that those accounts can be harnessed to ‘like’ others.

The networks exploit code known as OAuth, which allows third-party applications such as Spotify, iMovie and the Playstation Network to access users’ Facebook accounts from anywhere between a few hours to even months at a time.

But the exploit can be used for darker purposes than just gathering extra ‘likes’, the researchers warned.

“In addition to reputation manipulation, attackers can launch other serious attacks using leaked access tokens. For example, attackers can steal personal information of collusion network members as well as exploit their social graph to propagate malware,” the researchers said.

The researchers told CBS News that they tracked the collusion networks in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election, but could not say whether the networks were used to boost posts to benefit or hurt candidates.

“We do want to examine the Russia question,” study co-author Zubair Shafiq from University of Iowa was quoted as saying.

The collusion networks have now been blocked, according to Facebook.

“We have addressed the activity described in this research and we are no longer seeing it on our platform,” a Facebook spokesperson was quoted as saying.

–IANS
gb/vt

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Apple is giving a huge discount on its gadgets: Details inside

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If you want to buy an iPhone and were waiting for a nice offer, then we have a piece of good news for you! Amazon Summer Sale May 2022 has begun and they are offering major discounts on various smartphones, laptops, and smart TVs, among others.

The sale is live now on the e-commerce platform with no-cost EMI options and exchange discounts on various products. In addition to this, Amazon has also partnered with several banks including ICICI, Kotak Bank, and RBL so that customers get instant discounts of up to 10% using their cards and EMI transactions.

Customers can easily enjoy this summer sale and get massive discounts on iPhones. They can also compare prices on Flipkart Big Saving Days Sale 2022 before making a purchase.

 

Amazon Summer Sale May 2022: Discount offer on iPhone 13 

Apple’s coveted phone model iPhone 13 in the 128 GB storage model will be available during the Amazon Summer Sale May 2022 for Rs 64,900. The MRP of the phone is Rs 79,900. This means that the customers will be able to enjoy a discount of up to Rs 15,000 on the purchase of the iPhone 13.

If you have an old iPhone in working condition then you will also be eligible to receive another additional discount worth up to Rs 17,000 on the iPhone 13.

Buy at Rs. 64,900 (MRP – Rs. 79,900)

Features of Apple iPhone 13 

The iPhone is powered by an A15 Bionic processor with 6 core CPU. Apart from this, it has 16 core neural engines. With the iPhone 13, up to 512 GB of storage will be available. The iPhone 13 has a 6.1-inch Retina XDR display with 1000 nits brightness.

The iPhone 13 has a 12-megapixel dual rear camera setup. This time a new wide-angle camera has been given, whose aperture is f/1.6. With this, there is support for sensor optical stabilisation. Night mode has been made better than before. The second lens is also 12 megapixels ultra-wide and has an aperture of f/2.4.

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