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Israel’s IDF Bans Android Phones—iPhones Now ‘Mandatory’

⁨591⁩ ⁨likes⁩

Submitted ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨fne8w2ah@lemmy.world⁩ to ⁨technology@lemmy.world⁩

https://www.forbes.com/sites/zakdoffman/2025/11/28/israels-idf-bans-android-to-stop-hackers-iphones-mandatory/

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  • TribblesBestFriend@startrek.website ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    The Israeli military has decided to ban Android phones for senior officers

    “Under the expected order, commanders from the rank of lieutenant colonel and above will be permitted to use only iPhones for official communications. The step is aimed at reducing the risk of intrusions on senior officers’ handsets, according to the report.”

    So it seems that Israel (one of the leading country in hackers spies for hire) thinks that there’s a lot « Hezbollah honey pot » that target android device

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    • SlurpingPus@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Israeli company Cellebrite sells a device to extract data from locked phones, both Android and iPhones afaik. So indeed I’m guessing their government knows some stuff about the security of both platforms.

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      • kbobabob@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        In 2021, Moxie Marlinspike, creator of the encrypted messaging app Signal, pointed to several vulnerabilities in Cellebrite’s UFED and Physical Analyzer software that allowed for arbitrary code execution on Windows computers running the software. One exploit he detailed involved the UFED scanning a specially formatted file, which could then be used to execute arbitrary code on the computer running the UFED. Marlinspike wrote that the code could then “[modify] not just the Cellebrite report being created in that scan, but also “all previous and future generated Cellebrite reports” from all previously scanned devices and all future scanned devices in any arbitrary way.”[27] Marlinspike also found that Cellebrite software was bundled with out-of-date FFmpeg DLL files from 2012, which lacked over 100 subsequent security updates. Windows Installer packages, extracted from the Windows installer for iTunes and signed by Apple, were also found, which he said raised legal concerns.[28] Cellebrite responded that the company “is committed to protecting the integrity of our customers’ data, and we continually audit and update our software in order to equip our customers with the best digital intelligence solutions available.”[29] The report by Signal followed an announcement by Cellebrite in 2020 that it had developed technology to crack encrypted messages in the Signal app, a claim the company later retracted and downplayed.[30][31] The announcement by Marlinspike raised questions about the integrity of data extracted by the software,[32][33] and prompted Cellebrite to patch some of the vulnerabilities found by Signal and to remove full support for analyzing iPhones.[34][35]

        Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellebrite

        Sounds like it is just malware to me.

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  • SlippiHUD@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Image

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    • NoForwardslashS@sopuli.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      The Genius Bar are much more violent these days.

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  • grehund@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    They don’t want people installing GrapheneOS on them.

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    • DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      But isn’t that stupid tho. Like they should want their military officers to be using the most secure OS.

      But then again, its funny to see them make stupid decisions.

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      • Cethin@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        That’s only true if they trust them. If the goal is to ensure they can keep track of dissidents then no.

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      • 418_im_a_teapot@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        I wouldn’t assume any news about technology being used by IDF to be true in the first place. It could just as easily be misinformation.

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      • HazardousBanjo@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        They want to be able to perpetually spy on their military officers to keep them in line. Boot out any dissidents or anyone refusing to carry out illegal and genocidal orders.

        Many fascist states like Stalin’s USSR, Nazi Germany, North Korea, etc all have mass spy programs on the most powerful who aren’t the leader.

        It shows perpetual paranoia, which is expected as popular support for Israel has fucking collapsed in most Western countries. They know their time is limited.

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  • Grandwolf319@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    I said it before and I’ll say it again, among all tech companies, Apple is the closest to the nazi mindset.

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    • muusemuuse@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Google has decided you cannot turn off Gemini in their newer versions of Android. You cannot install other roms that do sometimes, Google is killing those too. But yea, Apple is the bad guy. Ignore the Google rug pull.

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      • Khrux@ttrpg.network ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        As much as I don’t disagree, I think the “Apple is closest to Nazism” comment touches on something different. Other massive American companies have awful practices but they don’t care particularly how their way of making money looks. Apple wields a specific aesthetic power that generally dictates a hegemonic uniformity, that strays the line of being to their detriment at times. I don’t think any other big tech company would care in the same way if not for their desire to copy Apple.

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      • UnspecificGravity@infosec.pub ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        What rims does Apple let you install on iPhones?

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      • biggeoff@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Both are the bad guys, not either.

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      • Tja@programming.dev ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Apple never even tried to allow it, so yeah, Apple IS the bad guy. Google is becomeing it, Apple is the mayor of bad guy town.

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      • BreadstickNinja@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Wasn’t it also just reported a few weeks ago that Samsung installs Israeli spyware on android devices sold in MENA?

        androidauthority.com/samsung-appcloud-spyware-con…

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      • InternetCitizen2@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Doesn’t seem like anyone has ignored Google. They doing it is old news.

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      • rumba@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        I mean it’s not just that. Probably not even mostly that. Security is really not great on Android far beyond the AI. I’ve been running Android for years and probably won’t change until Linux with LUKS is a reasonable alternative, But from a hardware level on through to the software, there are so many holes in the OS and ways to access privileged information. Even the top end of the Samsung line is largely rootable at this point, not without concessions, mind you, but as far as an enemy getting a phone and gaining access, or the company itself getting your data even without AI, I’d probably be concerned enough for ANY military org not to allow them to be used.

        Apple has a hell of a lot of issues, might even be overly friendly with Israel, but from a security standpoint, it’s probably safer for secrets than android at the moment.

        I really just want an encrypted portable linux device with a cellular modem. I don’t even care if it can SMS or VOLTE, I just need it to run a secure chat client, support Bluetooth headphones and last all day on a charge.

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      • titanicx@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Bullshit. I have it turned off on my pixel 9pro and Samsung s24 plus 

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      • ILiveByTheRiver@lemmings.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        LINUX PHONE

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      • Mediocre_Bard@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        This is a completely different thought.

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      • phoenixz@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Funnily enough, my new ulefone allowed me to at least completely disable that crap. First one where that is possible. Even the shitty swipe right and you get Google’s forced news app, which you could “disable” so that it would show a shitty screen with “please enable Google News!”, can be completely disabled. First time in like 10 years on a non custom ROM that I could do this.

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    • Quill7513@slrpnk.net ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      oracle

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      • rob_t_firefly@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        SCO Group.

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  • bluemoon@piefed.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    says everything about iPhones ‘security’ & ‘privacy’

    repeats it

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    • Isthisreddit@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      This is it right here. I can’t believe the nonsense I’m reading in this thread. Just goes to show how absolutely uninformed most people are when it comes to security and privacy

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      • bluemoon@piefed.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        also illiterare on sarcasm too lmao i see my comment got 60 upvotes and your unsarcastic comment got downvoted

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  • D_C@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago
                      Apple

    The Official Phone Of Genocide

    Lets face it, the more you know about ol’ tyranty boy StevieJobs the more it makes sense.

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  • Quill7513@slrpnk.net ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    frankly this is because israel knows exactly how much spyware they’ve gotten their partner, Google, to put into android. the iphone is also chock full of spyware, and they do want to spy on their military force to make sure it’s as ideologically and racially pure as they need it to be to continue their genocide. further consider that budget iphones don’t exist and you realize that their systemic impoverishing of the indigenous Palestinian people means that all of the targets of their genocide are much more likely to be android users than iphone users. given this, israel is in real time creating a new signifier of jewish-israeli identity. soon having an android phone as civilian will be evidence of HAMAS.

    and again.

    i want to remind everyone that google is a major partner to israel. this is not a case of iphones bad guys, android phones good guys. this is a case of both being components in a system of torture. i can’t tell you yet to divest yourself of both to switch to linux phones like postmarketos because even i can’t do that without buying a new device, but please watch that space. and until you can, if you’re using a google pixel please consider installing grapheneos, and if you’re not please consider using a de-googled lineage based rom. israel greatly values the intel they get from their partner google.

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    • uncouple9831@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      So they switched because they have control and access over both OSs?

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      • Quill7513@slrpnk.net ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        they are enforcing the discontinuation of one because they got more spyware into it. they view this as a liability because it means there’s more backdoor holes in it and they don’t want that compromising their officer corps’ operational security. however, they also don’t want an entirely spyware free solution for their officers. their entire system of control is built from the ground up on surveillance and enforcing ideological purity. so they still want to spy on their officers. the iphone has the balance they’re looking for

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      • favoredponcho@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Shh, don’t use logic here. Just hate Apple and fanboy hard for ad-supported Android.

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      • UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        They switched because Google has more security leaks than a sieve, even accounting for their own hacks

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  • itisileclerk@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    IDF rules:

    OK things to do:

    • Kill children,
    • Rape women,
    • Kill prisoners,
    • Destroy peoples property,
    • Use iPhone.

    Not OK things to do:

    • Use Android OS
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  • handsoffmydata@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    I thought Apple doesn’t let the bad guys … oh wait, that’s just in Movies and TV shows.

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    • CatAssTrophy@safest.space ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      It’s also just not true, the villain/killer/etc has iPhones in many shows and movies already, including multiple AppleTV shows.

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  • Mrkawfee@feddit.uk ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Guess we now know what the “i” stands for.

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  • skeezix@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    not surprising . Android phones are insecure and basically Google snoop devices.

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    • PeachMan@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Really depends on the phone and how the controlling organization (whether it’s a private company or the IDF) uses MDM/MAM. It’s totally possible to poorly manage iPhones, and if you do they’ll be insecure as hell. If you were to restrict everyone to a specific Android phone model with hardened software, then you could theoretically do better than deploying all iPhones. Hell, you could even put GrapheneOS on them, but that would be quite an undertaking, and I’m not aware of any company doing it at scale.

      Because of the homogeneity of iPhones and how strictly Apple controls them, it’s generally simpler for organizations to manage them and ensure all of their employees are using updated software on a relatively secure phone. So that (in my opinion) is why we’re seeing a lot of organizations just say “screw it, only iPhones allowed”.

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    • Reddfugee42@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      It’s secure if you’re not stupid and you don’t turn off the safety protocols it literally warns you not to turn off. Stupid people need apple’s domineering control to protect them from themselves

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  • pineapplelover@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Androids are obviously Hamas

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    • fne8w2ah@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Or Hez…

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  • HazardousBanjo@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    If ever anyone still doesn’t get how Western countries still support Israel despite the populations of those countries widely hating Israel, this shit is why.

    They have blackmail on all our politicians, but moreover they can sell their domestic surveillance spy tools (such as malware) to bad actors (such as the US gov) to spy on their own citizens too.

    Israel is the #1 perpetrator and exporter of fascism and police states.

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  • ILiveByTheRiver@lemmings.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    I was already thinking of getting a Linux phone next, this is helping to seal the deal. Fuck Apple the genocide enablers.

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    • tyler@programming.dev ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      please do explain how Apple is doing anything here. If Israel wants to provide their military with iPhones they’re going to no matter what Apple does.

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      • cockmushroom@reddthat.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        They don’t have to do business with/in Israel.

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    • NamedUser@slrpnk.net ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Mind sharing any linux phones candidates you are considering?

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      • biotin7@sopuli.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        PinePhone.

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      • JigglySackles@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Android is technically based on Linux so maybe go with a custom ROM like Grapheme? I’ve found the experience on it to be enjoyable personally and feel a lot better about my security even if I don’t lock it down as hard as some people.

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      • Psychonaut1969@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        FLX1s from furilabs.com is the one I’m going to try.

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      • Cybersteel@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Having to rely on webapps is a pain but Steve Jobs was right after all.

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  • NGC2346@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    The reason for this is because Pegasus is better used on iPhones than Androids and you can flash GrapheneOS on them while iPhones are locked down.

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  • SpaceCowboy@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    FFS a government makes a policy on phone security which may or may not be a good decision. OK whatever, who cares?

    Ah but that government is Israel. So now this is today’s reason for your daily Two Minutes Hate?

    Get a grip people.

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    • MedicPigBabySaver@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      I’ve hated the Israeli Gov’t much longer than 2 minutes.

      Fuck Israel, genocidal scum!

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    • Bakkoda@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Do you salt the boot leather first or just a dash of A1 maybe?

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      • diffaldo@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Probably licks raw

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    • ThrowawayPermanente@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      I’m not deranged and terminally online, you are

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  • BarneyPiccolo@lemmy.today ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    So Android phones are anti-Semitic now?

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    • ours@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Only if you use e-Sims.

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  • anzo@programming.dev ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    This can mean anything, it’s possible they wanted just 1 platform so that their expertise is focused. And android being a little more open may have been seen (biased) as a disadvantage (i.e. enemies are more prone to find a vulnerability). We can argue with it. It’s like the counterpart of people thinking that open source is per default more safe because of being open source… It’s a correlation that can’t prove anything…

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  • 5paceThunder@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Guess Blackberry security was right all along

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  • eruchitanda@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Like, maybe a manufacturer’s default ROM is worse than iPhone, but is it actually better than a GrapheneOS phone?

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    • scottrepreneur@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      You already know the answer is no

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  • ABetterTomorrow@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    When Linux phone?

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    • JigglySackles@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Nao.

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      • MeowerMisfit817@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        portuguese?

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    • frog@lemmus.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Pretty sure android is Linux, just really grown seperate

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      • ABetterTomorrow@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Doesn’t count. :P

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  • Rhoeri@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    I’m guessing it’s just for the security?

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    • setsneedtofeed@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      The first words of the article:

      So this is interesting. Just weeks after Google’s campaign to promote Android as being more secure than iPhone, the smartphone battle has taken a sudden twist.

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      • Rhoeri@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        Right. Well, if Google says it is more secure, it must be true right?? I mean, it’s not remotely possible that Google has a reason to sell its vict- I mean, customers on its “security”.

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