LastPass is warning its customers about a recent security breach. This follows another hacking incident that occurred in August, which looks like the two are related.

Earlier this week, LastPass CEO Karim Toubba shared a message to customers notifying them of the breach. It also sent emails to its customers with the same message.

Initially, the company noticed strange activity in its third-party cloud storage service. It immediately began investigating with the help of Mandiant, a leading security firm.

Toubba says the company discovered an ‘unauthorized party’ gained access to certain elements of its customers’ information.

LastPass claims that users’ passwords are safe

The messages confirm that the bad actor accessed this data using information they obtained in the breach back in August. Thankfully, LastPass ensures that users’ passwords are safe, however

“Our customers’ passwords remain safely encrypted due to LastPass’s Zero Knowledge architecture,” reads the statement to customers.

The company is traditionally transparent about breaches and similar activities that could endanger its customers. It will likely update the message page with more information as soon as more details are added.

LastPass didn’t share exactly what kind of information the hacker accessed. But it did confirm that passwords remain safe.

Additionally, the company recommends following these steps to ensure you use the best practices when setting up LastPass.

Consequently, it’s not a good look for a security-focused company to have multiple breaches as much as LastPass has had in the past few months.

However, the company has been very transparent, and it seems like it’s working hard to overcome and avoid these breaches in the future.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• LastPass says your passwords are totally safe and no one’s account was compromised
• LastPass users: it seems some master passwords are out in the wild and compromised
• How to export your LastPass data and switch to another password manager
• LastPass’ Android app is chock-full of trackers, says a security researcher

The post LastPass reports yet another security breach (updated) appeared first on KnowTechie.

The company has been aware that password sharing has been eating away at its profits for years, and it is finally preparing to address the issue.

A new report from The Wall Street Journal outlines how Netflix plans to address it.

Under its new rules, Netflix will start charging extra to users who share their passwords with people outside their homes.

It has already tested a similar feature in Latin America, charging around $3 for each extra household on an account.

WSJ says Netflix could adopt a similar method in the United States. The company may charge just below the $6.99 it costs for an ad-supported tier to add an additional household to an account.

By doing that, Netflix could potentially sway users to sign up for their own accounts instead of using a shared account.

The company plans on enforcing its new sharing rule by looking at IP addresses, device IDs, and other account activity.

Netflix has been aware of password sharing for years now. However, it turned a blind eye after a huge uptick in subscribers and revenue thanks to the pandemic.

But now, the platform has been losing subscribers for the first time in a long time. It hopes ending password sharing could help regain some lost revenue.

Netflix is treading lightly with this change, however. The company knows it will lose a lot of goodwill with customers by ending password sharing.

Look for the company to gradually start cracking down on password sharing worldwide in the next few months.

So much for “love is sharing a password,” right?

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Could Netflix be Microsoft’s next acquisition target?
• Can you still use a VPN with Netflix?
• Can you pay for Netflix yearly?
• Netflix finally lets you log out of individual devices remotely

The post Netflix to put an end to password sharing in early 2023 appeared first on KnowTechie.

The company announced this new feature on its website this week. The goal is to notify users of TikTok’s logic behind video recommendations.

When you’re scrolling through your For You page, the feature will be housed in the Share panel. Tap on the share button, tap ‘Why this video,’ and you’ll see why TikTok recommended the video.

TikTok recommends videos based on a variety of aspects. Maybe a particular video is popular with users in your region. Maybe it’s from an account that you follow.

You might see that a recommended video is similar to other videos you’ve liked or shared.

Regardless of the reasoning, you’ll get an explanation in the ‘Why this video section.’

TikTok’s new ‘Why this video’ feature is launching today on all devices. If you don’t see the option yet, don’t worry.

Features like this tend to roll out gradually, and this one should be available to everyone in the coming days.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• TikTok is now testing a full-screen horizontal mode
• Mastodon surges past 2 million users as Elon Musk ruins Twitter
• Tumblr adds livestreaming to Android and iOS app
• Meta brings Twitter-like Notes feature to Instagram

The post TikTok will start telling users why it recommends videos appeared first on KnowTechie.

Things are rapidly changing at the company. Musk fired the executive suite, making himself the company’s sole director, with unrestricted control.

In addition, moderation policies will likely be getting relaxed, as Musk has clarified he prefers a free-speech approach where everything goes.

Those changes will likely create more harassment of minorities, LGBTQIA+, and anyone Twitter trolls target.

We know that’s a lot to process. But you’re not alone. News of Musk’s Twitter takeover has prominent power users jumping ship.

If you’re looking for a ticket out of Dodge, we’ve rounded up some alternative Twitter replacements to flee the hellsite we all love. Here are all your options to use instead of Twitter.

Twitter alternatives to check out

Whether you use Twitter for your news, talking to friends, or microblogging, we’ve scoured the internet to find you some options.

All these Twitter-like replacements have moderation policies in place and, in most cases, mobile apps to go along with their website.

cohost

Cohost is a new social site that looks like Twitter and Tumblr had a baby. You can post, repost, or like other posts, and it has a very soothing material design.

It’s microblogging pared back to the essentials, and we’re all for it. The only issue right now is that there’s a waitlist if you sign up.

That’s only a few thousand people long right now, but expect that to grow as the site gets more coverage.

Counter Social

Created by a famed hacker and hacktivist, The Jester, Counter Social runs on a customized Mastodon instance.

It features tools to create communities, ways to watch news programming, and the ability to video chat.

The big draw here is that it promises “No trolls. No abuse. No ads.” and so on. Of course, you’d expect that from an anonymous hacker that served four “operational tours” in the U.S. Army.

Discord

Discord started life as a way for players of the popular MMO Final Fantasy XIV to communicate and organize in-game content. It’s since morphed into a social site with 150 million monthly active users.

Think of it as more early-internet chat rooms or Slack but for fun, and you’re not far off. You can text chat, voice chat, broadcast your gameplay, and more.

Mastodon

Mastodon is immediately recognizable for any longtime Twitter user. It copies most of the UI, except you send “toots” instead of “tweets.” Take that however you will.

The key difference is that Mastodon is open-source, with multiple servers at your disposal. There are no ads, and no one person can decide to pull the plug.

Reddit

Ahh, Reddit, the self-styled “front page of the internet.” If Twitter is for people to find you, Reddit is for you to find your people.

It’s more of an online forum with added social features organized into subreddits.

A subreddit could be organized around anything, from famous people to computer tech to complicated ideas broken down into toddler-sized explanations.

TikTok

One of the most popular social media sites, TikTok, rose to fame with remixed short videos of dances. Now the platform serves news, how-to tips, cooking recipes, and more in a familiar, never-ending stream.

The downside? ByteDance owns the site, who is located in China. You might be swapping from one authoritarian social media owner for another.

Post

Essentially, Post is yet another Twitter clone, but admittedly, this one does look extremely clean. Unlike Mastodon, navigation and connection seem easier, and the UI is much more reminiscent of Twitter.

That said, the platform is already making some big promises, many of which are unrealistic. The main one asking us to remember when social media was “fun.”

The platform offers some interesting features. There are no character limits, and posts feature the usual comment/like/share prompts.

However, the real intriguing part of Post comes in how it plans to deliver the news.

The plan here is to provide users a way to buy access to individual articles that are normally behind a paywall. Additionally, users can tip creators directly from the platform for content they enjoy.

There’s no direct replacement for Twitter

Finding a decent Twitter replacement isn’t easy.

While you can try to fit that bird-sized hole in your heart, there’s no direct alternative to Twitter. Nowhere else in social media can show you the news while conversing with strangers about the events.

That’s also true for emergencies, with government agencies at all levels using the platform to keep citizens informed.

There is also nowhere you can get instant replies from a wide range of experts. You might say Reddit is a good place for this, but Twitter currently verifies its experts.

LinkedIn is good for experts and networking, but we all know people who have gotten their best jobs from Twitter.

Even if you plan on sticking around, it’s a good idea to back up your Twitter data. You never know what might happen in the future.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• New Primetime Channels adds streaming services to YouTube
• Twitter is reportedly working on a Vine reboot
• This secret Facebook tool removes your phone number and email
• TikTok now shows creators who favorited their videos

The post Quitting Twitter? Try any of these 7 alternatives appeared first on KnowTechie.

But did you also know that memes can make you smile all the way to the bank? Guess not.

But yep, they can, thanks to the new Yepp app. With Yepp, you can easily turn your funny memes (images, videos, or texts) into an additional or even primary means of income.

Yepp is one of the latest and greatest ways to monetize your memes, whether you’re an established or up-and-coming meme maker.

Let’s dive deeper into Yepp and how you can earn with memes.

Yepp: What the yepp is Yepp?

Yepp lets meme creators and consumers worldwide create, share, find, and discover thousands of funny multi-theme memes.

Most importantly, Yepp lets users earn money while at it.

Yepp’s machine learning-powered algorithm provides an endless feed of funny memes.

Users can upload, edit, remix, and reuse trending memes and earn money by viewing, creating, or sharing them.

Yepp only recently launched its beta program but already boasts more than 100,000 users and counting, with the best memes enjoying hundreds of thousands of daily views and providing income for their authors.

A closer look at Yepp

Thanks to Yepp’s robust recommendation engine, users view memes an average of 40 minutes per day, roughly 4-5x the time spent on other meme makers.

This R&D effort has been 10+ years in the making.

This also allows users to discover and explore more authors, thereby giving creators more visibility, viewership, following, subscribers, and of course, more earning potential. 

Part of Yepp’s mission is to enable millions of people to successfully monetize their sense of humor and provide tools to make content creation easy and fun.

This mission underlies everything Yepp stands for.

Key Yepp features to look out for

What makes Yepp stand out as a meme maker? If you’re wondering or asking this same question, you’re not alone.

Like other meme editors, it allows you to create memes, but unlike them, it also allows you to earn.

The following features make Yepp the go-to app for meme creators and users. 

Ease to Use In-App Studio 

Sign-up is fast and easy. Once in, you’ll find Yepp’s In-App Studio’s intuitive user interface as fun as its memes.

The app is easy to navigate, with well-defined categories that make finding your way around a breeze.

With a few clicks, you can create and share memes with your friends, followers, and hundreds of thousands of other users who share a similar passion for memes.

Face Swap

The Face Swap feature is one of the most popular features on Yepp.

As the name suggests, it allows you to swap out the face on a meme with that of your friends, family, or colleagues.

This can be a fun way of mimicking characters, including actors, athletes, footballers, comedians, and more.

Which face would you like to swap? Find out on Yepp.

Endless Smart Feed

With a robust recommendation engine, you can expect endless memes in the Yepp app, not just random memes.

The app recommends memes to you based on your user behavior.

Specifically, it picks up on your action rate and text and image recognition.

Its smart algorithm then creates a personalized custom feed for each user, considering their likes and interests.

Auto Content Suggestion and Duplicate Detection

The app’s intelligent algorithm can recognize and analyze patterns in your user behavior.

As a creator, Yepp can study and mimic your sense of humor by automatically suggesting similar texts or images to the ones you’ve used before.

And if you’re worried about your creative work being stolen, you can rest assured that it won’t happen.

This is thanks to Yepp’s neural networks, which detect clickbait memes, duplicates, and stolen content and deranks them, starving them of views.

Income Potential

If your memes make people laugh, Yepp believes they should make you smile to the bank.

To this end, Yepp has introduced an industry-leading and transparent revenue-sharing model.

Yepp’s weekly ad revenue is split 50/50 between the app and its users, who can expect to earn up to $1,750 weekly.

30% also goes to friends invited by users, 17% to creators, and 3% to users who view memes.

Analytics

Whether a meme maker or user, the Yepp app allows you to take stock of all your activities and earnings.

It lets you see how many of your friends or contacts installed the app using your link.

You can also easily view how many times your memes have been viewed over a particular period of time, plus how much you’ve amassed from such views.

It also allows you to see daily or all-time views and earnings.

Create and earn with Yepp

Thanks to its machine-learning capabilities, you don’t need to be an expert to create your own memes.

Yepp has enough built-in tools and templates to get you started in minutes. What’s more, it’s free to use.

From its ease of use to its many features, revenue-sharing formula, and earning potential, Yepp is the number one meme editor you should use along with your friends, family, and colleagues.

Go ahead, download the app, sign up, create, share, and earn. The app is available on iOS and Android.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• The girl from the burning house meme just made a cool $500,000 from it
• This website uses AI to generate memes and they are terribly wonderful
• Tesla adds Steam Games and Apple Music in latest update
• Google Play reveals its most popular apps and games of 2022

The post Yepp is a new meme-maker app that makes you money appeared first on KnowTechie.

CEO Joshua Browder posted a demo of the new GPT-powered chatbot on Monday. The chatbot negotiates a discount on Xfinity’s internet services in the demo.

It does this with the same AI that powers ChatGPT, the chatbot taking the internet by storm.

All the user needs to do is give some information about their account, and DoNotPay’s chatbot does the rest.

Here it is! The first ever Comcast bill negotiated 100% with A.I and LLMs.

Our @DoNotPay ChatGPT bot talks to Comcast Chat to save one of our engineers $120 a year on their Internet bill.

Will be publicly available soon and work on online forms, chat and email. pic.twitter.com/eehdQ5OXrl

— Joshua Browder (@jbrowder1) December 12, 2022

Until now, DoNotPay’s services have all been form-based. These forms work because companies respond favorably to a specific way of writing.

This new chatbot is not scripted. Instead, it uses AI to talk to customer service agents.

Eventually, the company wants to make the tool more independent, so the user doesn’t have to sit there and monitor the chat.

DoNotPay is adding features all the time

That’s impressive and will be another powerful tool in DoNotPay’s legal bag of tricks.

The service already offers many tools to save you money and time.

There’s the free subscription sign-up that cancels things before you get the first bill and robo-dialer that will wait on hold until a customer service representative is free.

Additionally, there is a robot that sues scammers and one that scans your inbox to get refunds, cancel trials, and more.

Another feature lets you tweak your photos so that AI facial recognition won’t recognize you.

You can also use DoNotPay to sign up for sweepstakes, create legal documents, and find clinical trials.

The new GPT-powered chatbot will be open for testing within the next two weeks. The CEO says it will work with any company based in the US.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• When computers meet clutter: Redesigning my office with AI
• White Castle is hiring 100 robots to flip burgers
• This AI lets you talk with your loved ones after they die
• New San Francisco ruling lets police use killer robots (updated)

The post DoNotPay’s new GPT-powered chatbot negotiates bills for you appeared first on KnowTechie.

If you’re wondering if you can lock your WhatsApp from hackers, well, you’ve come to the right place.

WhatsApp allows you to secure your account with a fingerprint lock setting. This way, your account can only be accessed by, you guessed it, your fingerprint.

Not only is passwordless sign-in convenient, but it also helps protect your accounts. All you have to do is simply scan your biometrics, and boom, you’re in.

On WhatsApp, your data is safe and secure because the app doesn’t store your biometric data on the cloud or servers, making it difficult to hack.

Additionally, you can easily set it up on your Android or iOS device. We’ll show you how to set a WhatsApp fingerprint lock below.

Setting up the fingerprint lock setting on WhatsApp is quick and easy. Here’s how to do it step-by-step.

And that’s all you have to do. Once you toggle that option, WhatsApp will require your fingerprint before you can access the app.

How to manage your Whatsapp fingerprint lock settings

After setting up your WhatsApp fingerprint lock, you can also configure how it works.

You can set it to lock immediately after you exit WhatsApp, after one minute, or after 30 minutes.

To do this, navigate to the Automatically Lock section while still on the fingerprint lock screen and select how long you’d like to wait before the fingerprint lock kicks in.

After enabling and configuring the fingerprint lock, you will still be able to take calls even when WhatsApp is locked.

What you should know about WhatsApp’s fingerprint lock

If you want to use a fingerprint or face scanner to unlock WhatsApp, there are a few things you need to know.

First, this feature is only available on Android phones with a fingerprint sensor or face scanner. Second, your phone needs to be running Android 6.0 or higher.

And finally, some Samsung phones, like the Galaxy S5 and the Galaxy Note 8, don’t support this feature.

Also, fingerprint or face scanning happens entirely on your device. WhatsApp doesn’t have access to biometric information stored on your phone. So don’t worry; your private info is safe.

Can someone hack WhatApp’s finger lock setting?

Have you ever wondered if it’s possible to hack WhatsApp finger lock? Sure, it’s definitely possible, but it’s also illegal and highly unethical.

Plus, WhatsApp has security measures in place to protect users’ accounts, so it’s not exactly easy to do.

So, if you’re thinking about trying to hack into someone’s account, don’t. Instead, focus on keeping your own account secure.

Use a strong password, enable two-factor authentication, and use a fingerprint lock if your phone has one. This will help protect your personal information and keep your conversations private.

Bottom line: hacking is bad, okay? Don’t do it.

By locking your WhatsApp account with your fingerprint, you’re securing it not just for yourself but also for others with whom you chat, text, or call.

For example, if your account is hacked, the hacker may impersonate you and steal or obtain sensitive information from those who have you as a trusted contact.

In fact, you can also enable two-step verification for WhatsApp to further secure your account from both cyber and real-life criminals.

By combining two or more security measures, you can better safeguard and secure your account in the rare event that your biometric lock fails.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• How to make custom WhatsApp Sticker Maker stickers
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• What do the checkmarks mean on WhatsApp?
• How to mute WhatsApp notification sounds

The post How to secure your WhatsApp account with a fingerprint lock appeared first on KnowTechie.

That new feature was noticed by WABetaInfo, inside the WhatsApp beta for Android 2.22.25.20. It is not live yet, so beta testers can’t send these new messages yet.

It’s literally a read-once and it disappears secret message. When opened, a pop-up reminds the user it can’t be shared, forwarded, copied, or saved.

View-once picture messages block screenshots. We expect view-once text messages will be the same.

When using the feature, the send icon adds a padlock to the image. That lets you know you are sending a view-once message.

What we don’t know is how to get that special icon. Perhaps it will be a long-press on the send icon, or it will be on another menu option.

WABetaInfo notes that the feature isn’t live yet. A future update of WhatsApp will hopefully bring the feature to everyone.

View-once messages will be handy for content you don’t want showing in the message history.

View once images and videos already exist on WhatsApp

WhatsApp already has view once messaging. It works for photo and video content but not for text. It works similarly to Snapchat, the first social media to feature read-once messaging.

Text messages also have auto-delete options, but the shortest period is 24 hours. Other options are seven and ninety days.

WhatsApp users can set auto-delete as a default option. That’s great for privacy but not for using your message history as a memory reminder.

WhatsApp hasn’t said anything publicly about the upcoming feature.

If it follows the usual release habits, Android beta users will get view-once messaging first, then it will come to the main Android app. iOS, desktop, and web users will get it at some point after that.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• What is my WhatsApp number?
• Who owns WhatsApp?
• How to add people on WhatsApp
• How to preview voice messages on WhatsApp

The post WhatsApp is now testing view-once text messages appeared first on KnowTechie.

Did you know you can change your Activity Status and appear offline on Instagram? Well, yes, you can.

Using the ‘insta offline’ trick on Instagram lets you fly under the radar and avoid unwanted interactions with other users.

The platform includes an Activity Status feature that tracks how long it’s been since you were online and lets your friends know when you’re active on the platform.

As you can imagine, that has the potential to get a little invasive. Fortunately, Instagram only shows this to users you follow or message privately.

But it’s still nice to be able to hide that Activity Status, so you don’t have to worry about everyone knowing what you’re up to at all times.

What does appearing offline on Instagram do?

As we mentioned briefly, appearing offline on Instagram does several different things. And it all revolves around the Activity Status.

First, turning off your Activity Status to appear offline on Instagram will hide your status from other users.

That means nobody can see when you actively browse images and videos on the platform.

Additionally, toggling your Activity Status off will also hide the counter that tells people how long it has been since you were last offline.

So, you can essentially hide every aspect of Instagram’s Activity Status for your profile.

However, doing it also means you can’t see anybody else’s Activity Status.

So if you want to know when others are online, you’ll have to continue to let them know you are online.

Why would you want to appear offline on Instagram?

There are several reasons why you might want to appear offline on Instagram.

Maybe you’ve got that annoying aunt who won’t leave you alone whenever they find out you’re online.

Or maybe there’s someone you’ve connected with in the past that takes advantage of your Activity Status.

Although, it might be a better idea to go ahead and block that person completely.

Whatever your reason for wanting to appear offline on Instagram, the feature can be an incredibly useful tool.

And you can always go back and toggle the feature back on if you want to show your friends you’re online again.

How to go offline on Instagram’s app

Since Instagram is primarily used on mobile devices, this will likely be the most useful section for most people.

First, we’ll look at how to toggle off your Activity Status on the Instagram mobile app for iOS or Android.

The menus might look a little different, depending on what kind of phone you have. But the processes are the same either way.

After toggling off this setting, you will begin to appear offline on Instagram.

And whenever you want to appear online again, just repeat the same steps and toggle Activity Status back on.

Here’s how to toggle Activity Status on Instagram for desktop

Meta originally focused on developing Instagram as a mobile app.

Thankfully, that’s changed as the company has added features to Instagram’s desktop site to make it work more like an app.

And fortunately, you can at least use the website to toggle your Activity Status.

How to appear Invisible on Instagram’s desktop site:

1. Click your profile picture in the top right corner

2. Select Settings

3. Click Privacy and security

4. Toggle the Show activity status box off

That’s all there is to that.

Once you toggle the Activity Status box off from that menu, your online status and history are essentially invisible to everyone.

Remember, you also can’t see other users’ Activity Status if you’ve toggled this option off.

And if you ever change your mind, you can follow the same steps to return and turn your Activity Status back on again.

Use Instagram’s Activity Status to your advantage

Tons of people like to browse Instagram to keep up with friends or their favorite creators.

But you don’t have to let everyone know that you’re online when you’re browsing the platform.

Instagram’s Activity Status lets you choose when you want people to see that you’re online.

Of course, it also means that you won’t be able to see other users’ Activity Status with yours turned off. But that’s a small price for extra privacy on the platform.

You can change your Activity Status on Instagram regularly.

So get familiar with this process and start browsing Instagram on or offline. The choice is always yours.

Are you keeping this feature turned on? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• When did Instagram come out?
• Who’s the most followed person on Instagram?
• Can you see who views your Instagram Stories?
• How to unlink Facebook and Instagram

The post How to appear offline on Instagram appeared first on KnowTechie.

Eric Menzel, the founder of the company, tells us about the uniqueness of the product and the journey to success. Ever wondered how ValeVPN secured its mass support shortly after its release?

Users fighting for bandwidth

Every great story starts with travel. I traveled the world for business and pleasure. That’s when I realized a problem exists with current VPN providers, especially in places like China, Eastern Europe, and South America.

Existing solutions were unreliable, provided unstable connections, and were slow and constantly blocked. The situation was so bad I couldn’t get even limited access to content in those regions.

So I thought, “Why can’t users have their own private server with one press of a button?” That’s when ValeVPN was born.

So at that time, Robin (Robin Dutson, Sales & Marketing at ValeVPN) and I would manually start our own servers running on Amazon AWS.

We would go to places like Egypt, Columbia, and Peru and test our personal VPN servers in the middle of the jungle. They worked well, so we thought we should make this available to everybody.

The biggest problem with most VPNs is that they have a cost-first model, and they all want their users to use a single server. Think about a hundred thousand users trying to get into a single server.

The reason why it’s organized this way is to save money. And it’s a bad user experience because it’s always like a competition.

Imagine an arena with 10,000 other users on one server, fighting for bandwidth, trying to win priority access.

How do we differ? ValeVPN isn’t a traditional VPN that sends 10,000 users to one server. We’re closer to what they call a VPS, a virtual private server provider.

Users can start their own private server with one click in the major clouds of Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Oracle.

A VPN for programmers? There’s more to it

ValeVPN offers some in-depth server customization. It allows people to fully configure and launch their own private servers on their phones, a power that no users had before.

That includes changing ports, changing protocols, changing the cloud providers, changing the DNS, and changing the individual settings.

Doing it manually is very complicated, and you’d have to be a programmer.

But I wanted to make it easy for everyone to get information from places like Iran or China with the touch of a couple of buttons.

That’s the power of what we’re doing—making server management, configuration, and launching accessible for people with no programming skills. 

This is high security and high availability with the push of a button.

The Kickstarter campaign

People coming to support our project this early is an important part of our team. We want to treat them like family.

They’re going to come into this with no guarantees that we’re going to succeed, but they’re going to support us with money and are testing the product in ways we can’t imagine.

The reason we treat them like family is that they’re the ones that are going to make ValeVPN successful. I want to convey that to the whole community.

Kickstarter is not where you come and milk cows; that’s not what it’s for, and the users shouldn’t be treated like that. This is a community that you have to nurture and work with.

And they’ve been very supportive and have already helped us tremendously.

Moreover, they’ve been very forgiving. Some think that paying for a product that’s not finished makes no sense.

And I talk to them and say,

“The purpose of being here is not to use a finished product; to get a finished product, you go to a store and buy it. But if you’re supporting us on Kickstarter, you see the value of what ValeVPN does, and you want to help and support the project. So come work with us to make this the best product possible.”

Of course, we want to show our gratitude to those people. That’s why we introduced a lifetime subscription which is not a revenue model.

A lifetime subscription is a liability, meaning we are responsible for taking care of subscribers for the rest of their lives.

They will cost us money, their help can’t be overstated, it will make our product amazing.

They’re trading instability, testing, and effort to access the early product and be with us for a lifetime of service. 

It’s like opening a buffet restaurant where you say the first hundred guests can pay one small fee and eat everything.

Now you could have a hundred greedy people come in and eat all your food, then you’re in trouble. But maybe not. Maybe you have hundred people that appreciate the restaurant and want it to succeed.

They come, pay the fee, have one or two plates of food, and make much-needed recommendations for improving the restaurant.

Then they can go out into the world and tell all their friends to eat at your restaurant. That is what we’re doing.

The development journey

When I first came up with the concept of ValeVPN, I recruited two people to start with us, who were both Ukrainians. Andrew Shkira was from Dnipro, and Sergei Borodkin from Odesa.

Andrew was a programmer, and Sergey was a DevOps engineer. Therefore, Andrew built all the applications: iOS, Android, desktop applications, and full-stack servers.

Sergey did all the scripting of the launching and was the DevOps engineer of the cloud servers. Andrew was one of the most brilliant men that I’ve ever met in my life.

Tragically, he passed away in October 2021, after we had worked together for almost two years.

I attended his funeral in Dnipro, and near that time, I met Julia (Julia Yashchuk, Business Analyst at Anadea). 

It’s Julia who connected me to the app development company Anadea.

We reviewed our application development progress – maybe 60–70 percent working applications, which we needed to be 100 percent ready for launch.

When I met the team for initial discussions and proposals, they weren’t trying to push me into a more expensive route.

Almost every company I talked to would say the same thing—rebuild the product from scratch—but Anadea adapted to our investment and situation.

They agreed to complete the build based on what we already had, although it could not be the most convenient or financially beneficial way for them.

The first time Anadea stepped into a code base, they had a lot of work. With Andrew, one man wrote all the applications, so you can imagine how one man’s knowledge of everything shaped the code base.

The code was not excellent—but he made it work. And it’s always difficult to step into another person’s code.

Ultimately, because of their attention, love, and care for the product, ValeVPN is a hundred and ten percent better and could go to market.

We couldn’t have done it without Anadea, but it took four people to replace Andrew; he was that incredible.

Team management

I’m a technology executive. It’s my responsibility to understand the technology from top to bottom.

I need to understand the full stack from a very high level— but I also need to understand the developers and their needs. 

I won’t write the code (at least, I try not to.).

It keeps developers honest and focused because, ultimately, I know what is possible or can work to find a way to make it possible by bringing the technologies around each other. 

One of the challenges to being somebody who understands technology is going the extra mile. I never take no for an answer, and I hate to hear the words, “I can’t do it.”

You know, there’s always a way to make things work. When I first proposed that we do this VPN with one press of a button to launch, I was told it was impossible.

Whenever I hear a developer say, “That’s impossible,” I say, “Okay, let’s figure out how it’s possible.” And we always find a way.

Henry Ford came up with the idea of casting a V8 engine. And every engineer who saw the design said it was impossible to do. But Ford wouldn’t take “no” for an answer, and now it’s the reason we got the V8 engine. 

Same with Elon Musk and landing rockets back on earth. Sometimes you just have to do the impossible.

Where it’s going

The target metrics we’re looking to are one million downloads in each app store and 55,000 active users in the next twelve months. Currently, we have approximately 2,000 users.

They have all come from Kickstarter—we have done no marketing. And we still have a lot of work to do by January–February, when we hope to release v2 of the application. 

Then we will start marketing it to the general public and businesses worldwide. We will increase the extent to which an individual user can control their VPS.

There will also be some advanced features, which I can’t discuss just yet.

Ultimately, there is a consumer product that is now available and being improved on, and there is an enterprise product for business customers. 

Consumers value privacy, speed, and security, and enterprises value security. And we aim to give it to them both. 

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• VPN security: How VPNs help protect your data online
• What is a VPN, and what can you do with it?
• Top VPN scams revealed – here’s what to look out for in 2022
• Google One VPN is now available on Windows and Mac

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Google Play recognizes some of the platform’s most popular apps every year.

The annual Best of Play awards looks at apps and games across different devices and genres, highlighting the year’s best apps.

Google Play’s yearly awards are broken down into apps and games, then into separate categories under those two umbrellas.

You’ve likely heard of many of these apps, as they tend to be pretty popular.

But if not, the Best of Play awards is a great way to find new apps and games that you might enjoy.

The awards kick off with the overall winners for both games and apps. Dream by WOMBO took home the Best App award.

Dream is an AI art tool that lets you create beautiful designs in seconds with just a text prompt.

The Users’ Choice winner for Google Play’s best apps was the breakout social media platform BeReal.

BeReal challenges its users to share candid images randomly during the day, prompted by the app.

Apex Legends Mobile took home the top spot in the gaming category for both Best Game and Users’ Choice.

EA’s mobile iteration of its popular battle royale has been a huge hit since it came out earlier this year.

Best Google Play apps and games categories

In addition to the best overall apps and games, Google Play breaks its awards into categories to celebrate even more games and apps.

Those are the winners of 2022’s Best of Play app awards. If you’ve been looking for new apps to download, there are some great options on this list.

Click any of the links above to head to the Google Play app page. And if you’re looking for more, Google also shared a handful of honorable mentions in its awards post.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Donald Trump’s Truth Social is now available on Google Play
• ‘Bahamut’ hackers target Android users with phony VPN apps
• How to use Android Smart Lock
• Android users: Delete these apps – they’re stealing your data

The post Google Play reveals its most popular apps and games of 2022 appeared first on KnowTechie.

Want to know if the viral hits of 2022 landed in your constant rotation? Maybe you want to prove to your peers that your tastes are eclectic and impeccable.

Regardless of what you want to gain from the report, Spotify Wrapped has become a yearly tradition for many music lovers.

This year, you’ll see your Top Songs of 2022, Your Artists Revealed, Top Tracks & Artists of 2022, A Look Back at 2022, and more.

2020’s Wrapped had mini-quizzes, but you get some more personal touches this year. That includes music personality tests and listener habits.

READ MORE: Apple Music Replay 2021 is Apple’s pathetic take on Spotify Wrapped – here’s how to check yours

You’ll also get basic stats, like how many minutes of music you listened to and artist messages to top fans.

Here’s how to see your Spotify Wrapped 2022 stats

READ MORE: Spotify wants to share your listening habits in real-time

Again, you’ll only be able to see your Spotify Wrapped 2022 on the iOS or Android app.

Once you’ve had enough of reliving your year in music, go to literally any social media platform to see what your friends are posting about.

Spotify Wrapped has become a huge event, and it’s always fun to see what friends are sharing regarding music tastes.

Have any thoughts on this? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• How to hide your Spotify listening activity
• How to listen to audiobooks on Spotify
• Apple Music is finally coming to Teslas
• TikTok is moving forward with its music streaming plans

The post Spotify Wrapped 2022 is here – here’s how to check your stats appeared first on KnowTechie.

Oceanic+ is a dedicated Apple Watch Ultra app designed by Huish Outdoors alongside Apple. The smartphone giant revealed the new app in a blog post on its website earlier this week.

Oceanic+ adds a new feature to the Apple Watch Ultra for recreational divers. With the ability to reach down to 40 meters or 130 feet below the surface, Oceanic+ acts as a depth gauge and water temperature sensor.

The Apple Watch Ultra came out back in September. Apple’s goal with the premium smartwatch was to create a more durable, rugged device for the outdoors and watersports.

Now, the Oceanic+ app helps to deliver on that goal. The app lets divers create complete dive plans, including surface time, depth, gas, and no-decompression time.

“This is the most user-friendly dive computer I’ve ever used. The screen is super bright, and all the information you need is clearly displayed,” says Torben Lonne from DIVEIN.com.

Torben has been diving Apple Watch Ultra and testing the Oceanic+ app for two weeks, logging more than 15 dives.

He continues, “with clear instructions and animations telling you to ‘go up,’ ‘stop’ or ‘start safety stop’ you’re never in doubt on what you should do.”

It also includes several premium features like decompression tracking, tissue loading, and more. But you will have to pay $9.99 per month or $79.99 for the year.

Oceanic+ is designed specifically for the Apple Watch Ultra, so it’s unavailable on any other model. This is fine, considering you probably shouldn’t take any other models 100+ feet underwater.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Apple reveals the App Store’s best apps of the year
• Apple Watch’s new crash detection has already saved a life
• Meta just killed the Portal and its unreleased smartwatch
• PSA: Apple has cut trade-in values for iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks

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Every year, Apple spotlights the biggest games and apps across all of its devices for the year. The company includes all kinds of apps, from social or fitness to games and more, on its 2022 App Awards list.

Kicking things off with the top spot on iPhone is the BeReal app. BeReal is a breakout social platform that lets users share a more authentic look at their life.

Good Notes 5 took home the award for the best app on iPad. Good Notes 5 is a note-taking app with excellent support for the Apple Pencil.

MacFamiliyTree 10 was this year’s winner for Mac apps. The app lets you explore your genealogy and build a family tree with your loved ones.

ViX took home the award for best Apple TV app, bringing Spanish stories to the mainstream. And finally, Gentler Streak, a fitness app, was this year’s winner for Apple Watch.

The annual App Store awards also highlight the best games on Apple’s App Store throughout the year.

Here are this year’s winners:

• iPhone Game of the Year: Apex Legends Mobile
• iPad Game of the Year: Moncage
• Mac Game of the Year: Inscryption
• Apple TV Game of the Year: El Hijo
• Apple Arcade Game of the Year: Wylde Flowers
• China Game of the Year: League of Legends Esports Manager

Apple isn’t necessarily synonymous with gaming. But the company is still a major player in today’s gaming industry across all its platforms, especially mobile.

Finally, Apple highlights five ‘Cultural Impact Winners’ from 2022. These are apps that make a lasting impact on users’ lives.

This year’s Cultural Impact Winners include How We Feel, Dot’s Home, Locket Widget, Waterllama, and Inua – A Story in Ice and Time.

That does it for Apple’s App Store Awards for 2022. If you’re looking for some new apps to try out on your Apple devices, check out these that the company has highlighted.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Apple VR headset: Release date, features, and price
• Apple Music is finally coming to Teslas
• Donald Trump’s Truth Social is now available on Google Play
• Get ready for more ads in the Apple App Store

The post Apple reveals the App Store’s best apps of the year appeared first on KnowTechie.

It sounds lonely and a bit sad, but trust me, it isn’t. In short, it’s a note-taking tool that allows users to create memos without leaving the app. 

Here’s how it works. When you want to leave a note for yourself, just start a new chat. Your name will appear at the top of your contacts list.

WhatsApp will synchronize your memos across the various devices you’re logged in, with notes protected by the company’s end-to-end encryption. 

Unlike the changes to WhatsApp’s account-sharing capabilities, which we discussed earlier this week and remain in beta, WhatsApp’s memo functionality is available to use now.

The feature appears on version 22.23.74 on iOS, and version 22.22.23.77 on Android. 

With this update, WhatsApp catches up with the competition. As mentioned, Slack already lets you leave notes for yourself by DMing Slackbot.

Signal rolled out its “Note to Self” tool in 2021. Even iMessage lets you text yourself. 

WhatsApp is the world’s most popular messaging app. In recent months, the Meta-owned platform has sought to narrow the functionality gap between itself and its many competitors. 

To access WhatsApp’s new notes feature, update your app in the App Store or Google Play Store. If you still don’t have it, you’ll likely have to wait a few days for the company to complete its rollout. 

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• How to add people on WhatsApp
• Twitter will no longer mention which device tweets come from
• Signal adds Stories to its app
• Telegram founder says we should ‘stay away’ from WhatsApp

The post WhatsApp now lets you send a message to yourself appeared first on KnowTechie.

With more than 5 billion downloads and counting, WhatsApp is undoubtedly one of the most downloaded apps of all time.

Of this number, more than 2 billion active users use the app at least once a month.

WhatsApp is also popular among businesses, as WhatsApp Business has been downloaded more than 500 million times.

Although WhatsApp knows every one of its billions of users, at least by phone number, not all of its users know who owns WhatsApp.

So, who owns WhatsApp?

Short answer: Facebook (now known as Meta)

WhatsApp was founded by the duo of Jan Koum and Brian Acton on February 24, 2009. However, it was not the free cross-platform instant messenger and VOIP service it has now morphed into.

It was initially designed as an app to let you know what’s up with your contacts by showing their current status, like where they are, what they’re doing, etc.

With time, chance, and the arrival of push notifications, it gradually transformed into what it is today.

Seeing its brilliant performance and widespread adoption, Facebook (now Meta) offered to buy WhatsApp for a whopping $19 billion in 2014, its largest acquisition and the largest venture-backed company in history.

READ MORE: What do the checkmarks mean on WhatsApp?

Two years prior, in 2012, Facebook also bought Instagram for $1 billion from founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger.

Since 2019, Will Cathcart has piloted the affairs of WhatsApp as CEO and brought about many improvements and updates to the messaging platform.

For instance, users can now undelete chat messages, download and use WhatsApp for Windows, move chat history from Android to iPhone, block other users, create groups of 512 people, build their own Communities, among several others.

And what’s Meta?

Short answer: The parent company of Facebook and WhatsApp

Meta Platforms’ name points towards the word Metaverse, a combination of meta and universe.

It represents Mark Zuckerberg’s dream of using virtual and augmented reality to drive social connections. The Menlo Park conglomerate describes itself as a social technology company.

To date, Meta, which also owns Instagram, has acquired more than 90 companies, including startups and potential competitors, with WhatsApp as its largest acquisition yet.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• You can now move your WhatsApp chats from iPhone to Android – here’s how
• How to make all your WhatsApp messages self-delete by default
• Here’s how to change the Slack notification sound
• WhatsApp now lets you undelete chat messages

The post Who owns WhatsApp? appeared first on KnowTechie.

To help EV owners find the right charger, Google Maps will now show the fastest charging stations in the nearby vicinity. 

Manufacturer support, a growing charging ecosystem, and healthy government subsidies have all contributed to the rise of the zero-emissions car. 

But there are still obstacles to overcome. Not all chargers are made equal. That’s where the Google Maps update comes in.

While the US had 48,000 charging stations by 2022’s halfway point, only 6,000 were fast DC charging stations, which can replenish a battery in as little as fifteen minutes. 

When you search for a charging station, Google Maps will show the power throughput of each charging station, allowing you to avoid sluggish Level 1 and Level 2 chargers, which typically deliver speeds under 43kW. 

Google Maps users can filter results to show only the fastest charging options — namely those with speeds above 50kW.

Another filter option allows you to select stations that are compatible with your particular electric vehicle. 

To be fair, this information was already available to people in the US. The catch was that you had to visit the Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center, which looks and feels like a website from the early 2000s. 

Google’s solution is cleaner, faster, and vastly more mobile-friendly. It’s also available worldwide. To start searching, update the Google Maps app on Android and iOS. 

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Google Maps can now estimate how much you’ll pay in tolls
• Tesla faces criminal investigation over Autopilot claims
• Google Pixel 8: Release, price, and features
• Dodge’s electric Charger will use fake engine and exhaust sounds

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With no sense of urgency, it’s all too easy to hit “snooze” on those all-important patches and upgrades.

Now, with the latest improvement to the Google Play Store, users have a new incentive to update their apps.

Whenever an Android app crashes, Google will prompt users to install the latest version to hopefully prevent future crashes.

As noted by Android Police, the November 2022 Play Store system update changelog says it will “help users resolve app crashes with new update prompts.”

A dive into the Play Store’s source code by esper.io’s Mishaal Rahman revealed the following text:

There’s no shortage of reasons why Android apps crash. These range from sloppy coding and network connectivity issues, to a lack of quality control. Some crashes are the product of unforeseen edge cases. 

With thousands (if not tens of thousands) of device types and billions of users, crashes are inevitable. 

Inevitable, but undesirable. Developers want to make software that works. This desire — and the Google Play Store’s rating system — motivates developers to fix their code. But patches only work if people install them. 

With this relatively minor tweak, the Google Play Store will hopefully help users to help themselves.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Google hit with record $391 million settlement over shady tracking
• Get ready for more ads in the Apple App Store
• Apple App Store subscriptions raked in twice as much money as the Google Play Store
• The Google Play Store will finally show ratings that are actually relevant to you

The post Google now warns users to update apps that crash appeared first on KnowTechie.

While this makes it easy for people to find you, it does have one major downside: using the same WhatsApp account across multiple devices is damn hard. 

Fortunately, that’s about to change. The latest WhatsApp beta for Android (version 2.22.24.18) allows users to pair their number with a secondary phone, making life easier for those who carry work and personal devices.

How it works

Spotted by WABetaInfo, this functionality works much like WhatsApp Desktop. To link your account with another device, you only need to scan a QR code.

And, like WhatsApp Desktop, the main device doesn’t need an Internet connection — or even power.

So, if your personal phone is about to run out of power, you could conceivably switch your WhatsApp account to your work phone without having to swap SIMs. 

The beta allows users to link their accounts with four other devices. At the time of writing, it’s unclear whether this figure also includes PCs. 

I can imagine this feature proving useful for small businesses that rely on WhatsApp to field customer inquiries.

Rather than pass the same mobile device between employees, businesses can simply share the WhatsApp account between multiple devices, ideally resulting in more efficient customer service. 

In fairness, this functionality was previously possible using third-party services like Tyntec. But soon, it’ll be a native WhatsApp feature.

A push for tablets

Android Police notes the latest WhatsApp beta contains references to a yet-unreleased version of the messaging app for Android tablets.

This represents a welcome change for the messaging platform, which has largely ignored tablet devices. For instance, the company still doesn’t have an iPad app, although that may soon change. 

In an interview with The Verge published in July, Will Cathcard, Head of WhatsApp, said the company would “love” to release an iPad app. 

The barrier, he explained, was the app’s previous reliance on the user’s smartphone. This acted as a single-point-of-failure. If the smartphone lost power or connectivity, WhatsApp would cease working elsewhere. 

The company cleared that hurdle in November 2021, making it possible to seamlessly roll out the service to other non-smartphone form factors. 

Getting the latest WhatsApp beta 

The latest WhatsApp beta is only available to a handful of pre-approved testers.

At the time of writing, this program is full. It’s unclear whether the company will open it to more people. Nor is it known when the feature will see a proper general release.

Unless you’re one of the lucky few, you’ll have to wait. Patience is a virtue.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• How to add people on WhatsApp
• How to edit iMessages in iOS 16
• Signal adds Stories to its app
• Telegram founder says we should ‘stay away’ from WhatsApp

The post WhatsApp will soon let you use your number on multiple phones appeared first on KnowTechie.

Both businesses and individuals use it alike, all in the name of not having to give away personal numbers for things that most likely will result in an annoying amount of sales and marketing calls.

Burner has been around for a long time and has tended to be a favorite amongst people looking to use a temporary number for SMS verification or any other reason.

Yet, as the years have gone on and more and more other services have become available, do they still rank number one on the temporary number market?

In this article, we look at the best current alternative to the Burner app and compare it to a new – totally free – alternative.

Burner review

There’s still little doubt that Burner offers an excellent service.

Classing themselves as the original second phone number app, the service has definitely evolved, shall we say, over the years.

The service offers an endless supply of temporary numbers in the US and Canada – but nowhere else yet – with various pricing packages. This is one of the things we wanted to highlight.

Burner still offers a 7-day free trial, but other than that, it is now an exclusively paid-for service, meaning that the days of casually going on to their site to use a temporary number for free are long gone.

Still, every subscription includes unlimited calls and texts, muting and blocking, delete or switch functionality, and more. 

How does it work?

With Burner, you basically have to choose a subscription. So, essentially, that’s how it works.

You also can use the 7-day free trial, but this does involve inputting your card details on the understanding that you will be charged for a subscription after your 7-day free trial has ended unless you remember to cancel.

Once you have signed up and paid, you’ll have access to:

• Unlimited calls and texts
• Muting & blocking
• Delete or switch
• Picture messages
• Ad-free services
• Spam blocking
• Other such features

Is it safe to use, or is it a scam?

Burner is not a scam. Not in any way. At least not in the traditional sense. You pay for a service that you then receive.

Burner prices, though, are not particularly competitive, especially when considering some of the other services offering free use of temporary numbers.

Burner is also safe to use – but if you need to spend so much money or subscribe to a service to use a temporary number.

Again, you must ask yourself if this is the best way to spend your hard-earned money.

What is the best alternative to Burner?

When it comes to Burner and the need to pick a subscription and pay money, one has to ask: Is it worth it, especially when there are some other excellent services out there.

AnonymSMS, for example, is a relatively new service receiving pretty excellent reviews and is becoming increasingly popular.

So let’s look at this company as a potential alternative to Burner. 

While relatively new on the scene, AnonymSMS creates a lot of chatter on the temporary number scene.

In fact, it is proving to be one of the most popular temporary number services. 

Why AnonymSMS?

You know when you find a lot of different services, all offering a fantastic feature, but normally never more than one each?

For example, some may be free to use, some may have a wide range of different numbers, and some may receive SMS very quickly – you get the point.

Yet, imagine if one single company offered all of those things for free. Now you have a good image of AnonymSMS.

They’ve also become super trusted by the people that use it, with no scamming, slow service, or secret charges reported. 

AnonymSMS features 

As mentioned above, AnonymSMS have some (literally) unbeatable services. Let’s take a look at just some of them: 

• Free to use
• Use as many different numbers as you want
• Numbers from all around the world
• No delays or lagging
• New numbers are added daily
• Use for SMS verification, one-time passwords, and more

So there you have it. Maybe you’ve started reading this because you want to be sure that Burner is the right service, or perhaps you’ve already concluded that you wanted to try an alternative service but weren’t sure which one.

Either way, AnonymSMS is a fantastic alternative worthy of your time.

Have any thoughts on this? Carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• How to use SMS for business marketing
• WhatsApp will soon let you use your number on multiple phones
• How to add a different Trusted Phone Number to your Apple ID
• Why businesses shouldn’t use their personal phone number

The post The best alternative to the Burner app (2022) – a free alternative appeared first on KnowTechie.