MasterCard Won’t Let Companies Automatically Bill You After Free Trials | Engadget

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We’ve all made the mistake of starting a free trial and forgetting to cancel it before the billing period kicks in. Now, MasterCard will protect against this. The company announced a new policy that will require merchants to get authorization from you before hitting you with recurring charges for subscriptions. It will also require companies to provide you with monthly updates with pricing and clear instructions on how to cancel if you need it. Read full story here: MasterCard Won’t Let Companies Automatically Bill You After Free Trials | Engadget

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US Judge Rules That Feds Can’t Force Fingerprint Or Face Phone Unlocks | Engadget

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Authorities can’t force people to unlock devices with their faces, fingers or irises, a magistrate judge from California has ruled. Forbes has uncovered a nine-page order denying the search warrant for an investigation looking into a Facebook extortion crime. While the judge admits that investigators were able to establish probable cause for the warrant, she called their request to unlock any phone on the premises with biometrics “overbroad.” The request wasn’t limited to a particular person or device, and authorities would’ve been able to get everyone in the house to…

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Canada Adopts Strict Rules For Drone Flights | Engadget

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It’s Canada’s turn to implement rules for drone flights, and those in the pipeline could make the American approach seem lenient. Transport Canada has adopted new regulations that will require the registration of any drone weighing between 250g and 25kg (0.55lbs to 55lbs), and would-be pilots will have to be at least 14 years old and either a citizen or permanent resident. You’ll also have to obtain a pilot’s certificate, which entails an online exam for basic (general use) flights. Advanced drone operators, those who want to fly in controlled…

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Microsoft Will Stop Supporting Windows 7 One Year From Today | CNET

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Starting Jan. 14, 2020, exactly one year from Monday, Microsoft will no longer support Windows 7. That means no more updates or security fixes for the operating system. Microsoft will continue to provide security updates for Windows 7 to business customers that pay for support, according to ZDNet, but not individual users. Read full story here: Microsoft Will Stop Supporting Windows 7 One Year From Today | CNET

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Ford Announces Electric Versions Of All Vehicles In Europe | Electrek

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Ford released this week its new strategy in Europe and it came with bad news for employees as many jobs will be lost, but the American automaker also sneaked in some electric vehicle news and said that they will introduce electric versions of all passenger vehicles in Europe. Read full story here: Ford Announces Electric Versions Of All Vehicles In Europe | Electrek

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T-Mobile, Sprint, And AT&T Still Selling Your Location Data, Report Says | Ars Technica

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In June 2018, all four major US wireless carriers pledged to stop selling their mobile customers’ location information to third-party data brokers. The carriers were pressured into making the change after a security problem leaked the real-time location of US cell phone users. Read full story here: T-Mobile, Sprint, And AT&T Still Selling Your Location Data, Report Says | Ars Technica

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Bell Wants Permission To Gather And Track Customer Data | CBC News

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Canada’s largest telecommunications group is getting mixed reviews for its plan to follow the lead of companies like Google and Facebook in collecting massive amounts of information about the activities and preferences of its customers.Bell Canada began asking its customers in December for permission to track everything they do with their home and mobile phones, internet, television, apps or any other services they get through Bell or its affiliates. Read full story here: Bell Wants Permission To Gather And Track Customer Data | CBC News

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PSA: File Your US Tax Return Before Scammers Steal Your Refund | TechCrunch

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You might have heard this story before. A scammer starts by spoofing an email pretending to be the chief executive of a company, angrily demanding that someone in accounting or human resources immediately sends over their employees’ W-2 forms “or there will be trouble!” The person doesn’t think twice, not wanting to get told off, and emails back the forms, which spell out exactly how much the employees’ earned and how much the company withheld from your wages in tax for the year. Read full story here: PSA: File Your US…

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Loonie, One Of The Big Losers Of 2018, Remains ‘Expensive,’ Experts Say | CBC News

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It was a rough ride for the loonie in 2018. The Canadian dollar fell nearly eight per cent against its U.S. counterpart last year — with much of its slide worsening in the fourth quarter — plunging almost six per cent since October. In fact, the loonie was the second worst performing major currency in the world against the U.S. dollar in the last quarter, just behind another commodity currency, the Norwegian Krone, according to CIBC. Read full story here: Loonie, One Of The Big Losers Of 2018, Remains ‘Expensive,’ Experts Say | CBC News

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Gas Prices Next Year Could Be Highest Since 2014, Analyst Forecasts | CTV News

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Next year could see the highest gas prices in Canada since 2014 because of carbon taxes, according to an analyst. Current low prices, caused by a glut in supply in recent months are set to rebound sharply in 2019, Dan McTeague, senior petroleum analyst at Gasbuddy.com, told CTV News Channel. But we still have a week or two before things get really “strange”, McTeague said from Oakville, Ont. “You’re going to see 2019, because of carbon taxes, be much more expensive than even 2018, which puts us at the highest…

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