A 96GB database containing more than 149 million logins and passwords was recently discovered by respected cybersecurity researcher Jeremiah Fowler. The findings, which ExpressVPN published in its research blog, lay out Fowler's findings in detail.

The data, which was openly accessible to anyone who knew where to find it, was full of usernames and passwords from people all over the world. Estimates place email credentials at the top of the list of leaks, with Gmail alone taking up 48 million entries. Outlook is on the list with 1.5 million leaks. Yahoo, iCloud, and .edu addresses make up more than 6 million leaks.

Fowler lists Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, OnlyFans, HBO Max, Disney+, Roblox, Binance, and X (aka Twitter) as other notable accounts discovered in the exposed database.

It gets worse. Financial accounts, including crypto wallets, banking, and credit card credentials, were also spotted in the limited sample that Fowler viewed. The presence of .gov domain credentials from "numerous countries" has Fowler concerned about national and public safety; this sort of info can be used as an entry into protected government networking.

That's a wide enough swath that practically anyone plugged into the internet could be exposed. Here's a quick estimation of Fowler's findings:

• Gmail — 48 million
• Yahoo — 4 million
• Outlook — 1.5 million
• .edu — 1.4 million
• iCloud — 900,000
• Facebook — 17 million
• Instagram — 6.5 million
• Netflix — 3.4 million
• Binance — 420,000
• OnlyFans — 100,000

It's important to note that this database isn't the result of a single data breach or a targeted attack by hackers on one site. This is a gargantuan collection of credentials and other sensitive documents gathered over time by malware.

As Fowler explains it, data that is stolen has to be kept somewhere, and cloud storage is usually the first choice. It piles up over time, evidently harvesting from numerous sources. The hackers who originally had hold of the data were likely subject to their own data breach, which resulted in the database's open doors.

It's noted that the database isn't tied to any ownership; Fowler reported the breach to the cloud provider, but quickly hit a dead end due to the IP being a subsidiary acting under the provider's umbrella and name.

Fowler spent "nearly a month" involving "multiple attempts" before he was able to get the exposed database taken offline. There's no indication as to how long this database was being fed with stolen data, but Fowler notes that its records continued to increase right up until it was taken offline.

As I noted when I covered one of Fowler's previous discoveries involving 40 billion unencrypted records, use strong passwords (ideally through a password manager), never use the same password twice, and use multi-factor authentication to prevent access should a bad actor indeed get their hands on your credentials.

(via Tom's Guide)

What are you doing to protect yourself against data breaches like this? Let me know in the comments section!

What are the odds that Mark Zuckerberg would file a lawsuit against Meta? You’d think the chances were slim to none, but it actually happened. Well, sort of. For context, it wasn’t the Meta CEO who filed the suit, but rather a bankruptcy lawyer from Indiana who happens to share the same name.

Meta recently deleted the lawyer's Facebook account for “impersonating a celebrity.” But that’s not the case; he simply shares the same name as Mark Zuckerberg. More concerningly, this isn’t the first time his Facebook profile has been flagged and taken down.

He's been in the same predicament five times over the past eight years. This has acted as a s setback for his business, since he uses the Facebook page to advertise his legal practice and even communicate with potential clients.

While speaking to Indianapolis’ 13WTHR, bankruptcy lawyer Mark Zuckerberg indicated:

“It’s not funny. Not when they take my money. This really pissed me off.”

So far, the lawyer has spent approximately $11,000 marketing his legal practice on Facebook. Despite repeated efforts to expand his client base, Facebook has blocked his ads multiple times for allegedly violating the platform's community guidelines on impersonation. Nevertheless, Mark Zuckerberg still receives payments for the ads, even though the lawyer's account has been deactivated.

Mark Zuckerberg has spent over $11,000 to advertise his page on Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta platforms, but when Mark Zuckerberg’s account was disabled for allegedly impersonating Mark Zuckerberg, Mark Zuckerberg still had to pay for these advertisements. "I've had that name longer than him," the lawyer lamented.

The lawyer is suing Meta for negligence and a breach of contract. While speaking to the New York Post, he indicated:

“Normally, you would say, well, it’s just Facebook and it’s not a big deal. But this time it’s affecting my bottom line because I was paying for advertising for my business to try and get clients.”

Lawyer Zuckerberg has been in communication with Meta about his predicament since as early as 2017, when he sought assistance for his account being wrongly disabled.

The lawyer's troubles spread beyond a deactivated Facebook account

As it turns out, sharing a name with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has opened up the lawyer's world to endless trials and tribulations. The attorney revealed that he received death threats and money requests. He's even been sued by the state of Washington.

The challenges have even affected his personal life when trying to make reservations. “I can’t use my name when making reservations or conducting business as people assume I’m a prank caller and hang up,” the lawyer added. "My life sometimes feels like the Michael Jordan ESPN commercial, where a regular person’s name causes constant mixups.”

Meta has since confirmed to The Independent that lawyer Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook account has already been reinstated. "We know there’s more than one Mark Zuckerberg in the world, and we are getting to the bottom of this," Meta added.

Major platforms were recently hit by what cybersecurity experts are calling "the largest data breach." The Cybernews research team uncovered a whopping 16 billion leaked login credentials, including passwords to Facebook, Google, and Apple accounts buried under massive datasets (via Forbes).

The number of cybersecurity threats threatening the safety and privacy of your confidential data is on the rise, with bad actors leveraging sophisticated tools like generative AI to deploy their deceptive ploys.

Now, Cybernews has been looking into this issue since the beginning of the year, discovering "30 exposed datasets containing from tens of millions to over 3.5 billion records each."

Perhaps more concerning, none of the exposed datasets had been previously reported, further elaborating the magnitude of the data breach. However, there might be an exception for the 184 million record “mysterious database” uncovered by security researchers, as reported by WIRED.

According to the research team:

"This is not just a leak – it’s a blueprint for mass exploitation. With over 16 billion login records exposed, cybercriminals now have unprecedented access to personal credentials that can be used for account takeover, identity theft, and highly targeted phishing."

"What’s especially concerning is the structure and recency of these datasets – these aren’t just old breaches being recycled. This is fresh, weaponizable intelligence at scale."

The research team revealed that the data was packaged as a URL, featuring login credentials and a password. They further revealed that the data breach could provide malicious users with access to "pretty much any online service imaginable, from Apple, Facebook, and Google, to GitHub, Telegram, and various government services."

To that end, those behind the data breaches remain unknown, making it impossible to issue action items to wipe the data stored in these batches. The team also indicated that they could not pinpoint what kind of attacks the hackers were planning to deploy with the exposed login credentials at hand.

However, BleepingComputer claims that the data breach is not newas the websites involved weren't recently compromised to steal the login credentials. According to the outlet:

"These stolen credentials were likely circulating for some time, if not for years. It was then collected by a cybersecurity firm, researchers, or threat actors and repackaged into a database that was exposed on the Internet."

In the interim, frequently changing your passwords, using up-to-date software, and avoiding suspicious links is often your last line of defense against malicious attacks. Keep your accounts secure.

If you thought artificial intelligence was a fad that would wither away, then you might be in for a rude shock. According to the Financial Times, Meta wants to integrate AI-generated characters into Facebook to bolster engagement.

The report details that Meta will develop the AI-generated characters through its AI studio. The AI-powered characters will sport human-like tendencies, allowing users to engage with them in the same conventional way they would interact with humans.

While speaking to the Financial Times, Meta's VP of product for generative AI Connor Hayes indicated:

"We expect these AIs to actually, over time, exist on our platforms, kind of in the same way that accounts do. They'll have bios and profile pictures and be able to generate and share content powered by AI on the platform... that's where we see all of this going."

Meta has heavily invested in the AI landscape, shipping a wide range of AI-powered services and products across its tech stack. Admittedly, bots have been closely tied to manipulating public discussion, inciting hate speech, spreading misinformation, and enacting fraud and scams. In this case, Meta's AI-powered characters could serve the important role of flagging such instances.

As you may know, Meta launched its AI Studio platform earlier this year. The platform allows users to create an AI character based on their interests via the platform. More interestingly, creators can even build an AI extension of themselves.

Meta plans to expand AI Studio's access beyond the US in 2025 as part of its broader plan to double down on AI efforts. While the Facebook maker is treading on dangerous grounds, the move could be profitable and worthwhile if it implements elaborate measures and guardrails.

The company has already integrated measures that dictate the labeling of AI-generated content across its platforms. Competitors in the social media space, including Snapchat realized a 50% annual increase in users after embracing AI.

What you need to know

• A market agency admits it listens to user voice data using its “Active Listening” software via smartphone microphones.
• It's reportedly in partnership with Google, Facebook, and Amazon, and uses its software to channel the right ads to users.
• As part of the agency's defense strategy, it claims that the disclaimer of its software is often included in the fine print of the terms of services agreement when downloading a new app or update. 

While Microsoft decides whether it will make its controversial and privacy-riddled Windows Recall feature in Windows 11 an opt-in experience and allow users to uninstall it, more trouble seems to be brewing in the AI world. 

Have you ever stumbled on an ad on social media or while browsing that features the item you were searching for on the web or talking to someone about over a phone call? Turns out, there's more to this than meets the eye. 

According to a new report by 404 Media, a marketing agency admitted it listens to user voice data using its “Active Listening” software via smartphone microphones. Consequently, it uses the data to channel the "right" Facebook and Google ads to customers. The agency reportedly has access to more than 470 sources, including Microsoft's LinkedIn. 

The market agency has been wrapped up in this controversial situation since December 2023. And now, new details in a pitch deck reveal that Cox Media Group (CMG) leverages AI capabilities to "capture real-time intent data by listening to our conversations" using its "Active Listening" feature. 

The pitch deck further revealed a list featuring Facebook, Google, and Amazon as clients of its "Active Listening" service. According to 404 Media, Google has since removed the media group from its Partners Program (perhaps an indication that it has severed ties with the agency). 

This caused a ripple effect, prompting Meta to investigate and examine the agency's terms of service to determine whether it has been using users' data without their consent, breaching their partnership agreement. According to the pitch deck:

"Advertisers can pair this voice-data with behavioral data to target in-market consumers."

Amazon refuted claims that it's embroidered in the marketing agency's privacy fiasco and further stated that it doesn't intend to seek its services. The company warned it would take legal action if it discovered that one of its partners violated its terms of service.

In a since-deleted blog by the marketing agency:

"We know what you're thinking. Is this even legal? It is legal for phones and devices to listen to you. When a new app download or update prompts consumers with a multi-page term of use agreement somewhere in the fine print, Active Listening is often included."

Interestingly, the marketing agency claims that the presence and use of the listening software are often included somewhere in the fine print of the terms of use agreement when downloading a new app or update.

Best Labor Day deals: Quick links

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What you need to know

• Microsoft released Windows 11 Build 22621.1325 and Build 22623.1325 to Insiders in the Beta Channel this week.
• The builds bring new widgets to those in the Beta Channel, including Messenger, Spotify, Phone Link, and Xbox Game Pass.
• Build 22621.1325 has features off by default while Build 22623.1325 has features enabled by default.

Microsoft released a pair of builds to Insiders in the Beta Channel this week. Windows 11 Build 22621.1325 and Build 22623.1325 are now available to download. The former has features turned off by default while the latter has new features enabled by default.

The biggest addition is the rollout of widgets for Facebook Messenger, Spotify, Phone Link, and Xbox Game Pass. Microsoft is working to make the Widgets Panel more functional by adding support for third-party widgets. The blog post announcing this week's builds also includes details on how to create widgets for Windows 11.

Microsoft also shipped a Windows 11 build to Dev Channel Insiders this week.

Build 22621.1325 & 22623.1325: What's new

New Widgets: Messenger, Spotify, Phone Link, and Game Pass

We are beginning to roll out support for new preview widgets for Messenger, Spotify, Phone Link, and Xbox (Game Pass) to Windows Insiders in the Beta Channel. To give them a try, go to the widgets collection in the Microsoft Store and update to the latest version of the apps. Then open the widgets board and navigate to the widgets picker by clicking the “+” button at the top-right of the board to pin your widgets.

New commercial policy: Enable features introduced via servicing that are off by default

This new policy enables commercial customers to enable features introduced via servicing (outside of the annual feature update) that are off by default for devices that have their Windows updates managed. Windows update managed devices are those that have their Windows updates managed via policy; whether via the cloud using Windows Update for Business or on-premises with Windows Server Update Services (WSUS). Learn more about this new policy here.

Build 22623.1325: Changes and Improvements

Start menu

For devices that are Azure Active Directory (AAD) joined, we are personalizing your experience by delivering AI-powered recommended content within your Start menu. When you open the Start menu, you will find related content to help you prepare for upcoming meetings, quickly access files you’re collaborating on, and more.

Build 22623.1325: Fixes

Taskbar & System Tray

Fixed an issue that was causing taskbar to be cut off after resolution changes.

Build 22621.1325 & 22623.1325: Fixes

• We fixed compatibility issues that affected some printers. Those printers used Windows Graphical Device Interface (GDI) printer drivers. Those drivers did not completely adhere to GDI specifications.
• We fixed a reliability issue that occurred when you used Task View.
• We fixed an issue that affected copying from a network to a local drive. Copying was slower than expected for some users.
• We provided support for the United Mexican States’ daylight-saving time change order for 2023.
• We fixed a date information issue. It affected the format of dates sent between Windows and some versions of the Heimdal Kerberos library.
• We fixed an issue that affected provisioning packages. They failed to apply in certain circumstances when elevation was required.
• We fixed an issue that affected which folders appeared in the Browse for Folder picker.
• We fixed an issue that affected File Explorer. When you used Shift + Tab or Shift + F6, the input focus did not move.
• We fixed an issue that affected the user interface (UI). The volume up and volume down commands from a Bluetooth keyboard did not display.
• We improved the reliability of Windows after you installed an update.
• We fixed an issue that might have affected lsass.exe. It might have stopped responding when it sent a Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) query to a domain controller that had a very large LDAP filter.
• We fixed an issue that affected Azure Active Directory (Azure AD). Using a provisioning package for bulk provisioning failed.
• We fixed an issue that affected the software keyboard. It did not appear in the Out-of-Box Experience (OOBE) after a Push-button reset (factory reset). This type of reset required an external keyboard to be attached to provide credentials.
• We fixed an issue that affected AppV. It stopped file names from having the correct letter case (uppercase or lowercase).
• We fixed an issue that affected Universal Print’s Configuration Service Provider (CSP). A command prompt window appeared when you installed a printer.
• We fixed an issue that might have affected the touch keyboard and the PIN entry keyboard. You might not have been able to use them to enter text when you signed in to your device.
• We fixed an issue that displayed a blue screen during video playback. This occurred after you set high dynamic range (HDR) on your display.
• We fixed an issue that affected parity virtual disks. Using Server Manager to create them failed
• We fixed an issue that affected IE mode. The text on the status bar was not always visible.
• We fixed an issue that affected the Color filters setting. When you selected Inverted, the system set it to Grayscale instead.
• We fixed an issue that affected Microsoft Edge. The issue removed conflicting policies for Microsoft Edge. This occurred when you set the MDMWinsOverGPFlag in a Microsoft Intune tenant and Intune detected a policy conflict.
• We fixed an issue that affected the Appx State Repository. When you removed a user profile, the cleanup was incomplete. Because of that, its database grew as time passes. This growth might have caused delays when users signed in to multi-user environments like FSLogix.

What you need to know

• A new Windows 11 preview build is now available in the Insider Dev Channel.
• Today's build is 25284 and adds support for Facebook Messenger in the Widgets Panel.
• There are also a handful of fixes and minor improvements to test.

Microsoft has released Windows 11 build 25284 to Windows Insiders in the Dev Channel today, which includes support for a new Facebook Messenger widget in the Widgets Panel. Sadly, today's build is not available on ARM64 devices due to a bug that causes issues when booting.

The new Facebook Messenger widget can be accessed once Insiders in the Dev Channel update the app to the latest version via the Microsoft Store. From there, you can pin the Facebook Messenger widget in the Widgets Panel just like any other Windows Widget currently.

Here's the changelog for today's build:

Changelog for build 25284

• Ready to try out a new widget? The Messenger app now has a preview version of its widget available. To give it a try, go to the Microsoft Store and update to the latest version of Messenger. Then open the widgets board and navigate to the widgets picker by clicking the “+” button at the top-right of the board to pin your widget.
• Fixed an issue where right clicking on certain icons in the hidden icons flyout would make the flyout dismiss rather than bringing up the context menu for that icon.
• Fixed an explorer.exe crash which was impacting some Insiders, related to the search box in the taskbar.
• When search suggestions are triggered while using the Pinyin IME, keyboard focus will now stay on the current candidate. To move focus to the search suggestions, press Tab.
• Fixed an issue for PCs with touch, where when using certain apps in full screen mode it wasn’t possible to swipe down from the top of the screen to make the title bar appear.
• Fixed an issue which was causing certain apps to hang or crash when saving files as PDF in the last few builds.
• Fixed an issue where using the cast option in an app may unexpectedly not show any devices in recent builds.

OBS Studio is the most popular app for streaming on the planet. Not only is it completely free to use (though you should really toss a few bucks their way if you enjoy it) and open-source, but it's incredibly powerful and it's available on Windows, Mac, and Linux. There are a ton of features built-in and a healthy community of plugin developers to help you really accelerate your experience.

Not everything in OBS Studio needs a plugin to add convenient features. In the case of stream chat, everything you need to have a window of your audience messages is baked right into OBS Studio out of the box. Having this in your streaming software means you don't need a separate window open and makes more efficient use of your screen space. 

Best of all, this isn't just limited to Twitch streamers, either. Virtually every current platform can do this with OBS Studio. You just need to know where to look. 

How to add Twitch chat to OBS Studio the easy way

If you're streaming to Twitch, there's a really simple way to pull in your stream chat. When you set up your stream output to Twitch, if you link your account to OBS Studio instead of using a stream key, you'll get browser docks for both chat and stream activity automatically pulled in.

You're not giving your password to OBS Studio, either; it pops open an OAuth window for you to log in directly to Twitch. These docks can be resized and moved around to anywhere in your OBS Studio window. Of course if for any reason you don't want to link your account you still have options.

How to add stream chat to OBS Studio

This method works for any streaming service with a popout chat feature. Twitch and YouTube both have this, as do some of the smaller platforms like Trovo and DLive. Facebook Gaming does not at this time, but we'll talk about this platform later on.

To add your stream chat into your OBS Studio window follow the steps below. For the purposes of this guide, we've used Twitch.

1. Go to your channel on your streaming platform of choice.
2. In the chat window on your channel, select Popout Chat. This may also be called Popup Chat on some platforms.
3. From the window that pops out, copy the URL from the address bar.
4. Open up OBS Studio.
5. Go to the View menu.
6. Select Docks.
7. Click Custom Browser Docks.
8. In the first empty box under Dock Name give your chat a memorable name.
9. In the corresponding box under URL, paste the URL from the popout chat window you copied in step 3.
10. Click Apply.

You'll now have a dockable window for your stream chat within OBS Studio that you can move around. As you drag it across the window, when a space you can dock it to is available, it'll highlight in blue as in the image above. When docked you can resize the window, as you see fit.

Now you'll have a real-time stream chat right in your OBS Studio command center without the need for browser windows or additional displays.

If you want to turn off your stream chat for any reason, follow the steps above to open up the Docks menu again and simply click on your custom stream chat to turn it off. Only docks with a tick next to them will be visible in OBS Studio at any time.

How to get Facebook Gaming chat in OBS Studio

So, Facebook Gaming, then. Seemingly the odd one out. But, despite having no popout chat feature on the website, there is still a straightforward way to get Facebook Gaming chat inside OBS Studio.

The answer is StreamElements' OBS.Live plugin. If you're using StreamElements for your alerts and overlays already, it's a no-brainer. But even if you're not, it's free to use and will let you have a Facebook Gaming (it supports Twitch and YouTube, too) chat window inside OBS Studio.

Simply download the plugin and authenticate your Facebook account, and you're set. OBS.Live does have some other neat features, too, including an activity feed and even music controls, but even if you only need Facebook Gaming chat, it's worth getting.

That's all there is to it. It's a very efficient way of keeping your stream chat within easy reach without the need to have a separate window open and is particularly useful to those who don't have the space or budget for a monitor dedicated to their stream chat.

What you need to know

• Facebook Gaming is a streaming service from Meta, baked into Facebook's website and its live streaming platform. 
• Today, it started sending notifications out to partners that its apps will shut down in October.
• Facebook Gaming has struggled to meaningfully find growth in a game streaming world dominated by Twitch and YouTube. 
• Microsoft's similar Mixer live streaming platform shut down a few years ago, with its users ushered to Facebook Gaming in the process. 

Facebook Gaming is a live streaming platform run by Meta, and is analogous to platforms like Twitch and YouTube for allowing content creators to broadcast themselves to audiences. Typically, Facebook Gaming and similar services revolve around video games, although they have branched out to "IRL" streams that focus on simply chatting, art creation, or even Microsoft Excel esports. During the pandemic, live streaming platforms like YouTube and Twitch enjoyed a boom period, with more users than ever stuck at home as offices and other work places shuttered.  In the post-pandemic era, we're starting to see patterns that are perhaps less favorable than some streaming platforms would like. 

During that same pandemic boom, Microsoft's own Mixer platform struggled to court new users, which spoke to the likelihood that the service was never going to be able to compete with Twitch. As such, Microsoft cut a deal with Facebook Gaming to onboard its creators, offering instant partnerships. Many users opted instead to jump across to Twitch, given its dominance in the space, and general scepticism of the Facebook platform which is increasingly divisive and "uncool" particularly among younger internet users. Facebook itself saw its first decline in monthly active users earlier this year, almost instantly wiping 20% off its share price. It's with that in mind that we cast our sights over Facebook Gaming, which may be heading the way of Microsoft's Mixer. 

Today, Facebook Gaming began notifying some of its partners that it's killing off its mobile game streaming apps. While the statement below claims that it plans to continue supporting game streaming within Facebook itself, I don't think it's unreasonable to expect that this could signal a wider pivot away from live game streaming video in favor of its ethereal "metaverse" push. 

A quick glance at Facebook Gaming shows streams running far fewer concurrent numbers than the top shows on Twitch, although we can dig deeper into data provided by StreamLabs, which shows a steady decline in Facebook's miniscule 7% market share since Spring of this year. In April, Facebook Gaming sported 211 million  hours watched, which has sank to 178 million hours as of June 2022. For comparison, YouTube Gaming added 30 million hours during the same time frame. Both platforms pale in comparison to Amazon's Twitch, which racked up 1.85 billion viewing hours in June. Facebook Gaming saw half of its viewing hours wiped out from its pandemic peak, in a trend that shows no sign of abating any time soon. 

The patterns are relatively familiar as someone who followed Microsoft's Mixer, which failed to add meaningful viewing hours during the pandemic boom period that saw Twitch and other platforms hit record viewerships. Microsoft decide to cut its losses and focus on new ventures like Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Cloud Gaming instead, in what was quite arguably the right move. 

Conversely, Meta is hedging all of its bets on the so-called "metaverse," which is a loosely-defined confluence of technologies that Facebook hopes will give it control over the point of access to a VR version of the web that lacks the privacy controls of iOS and Google Play — both of which have wiped billions off Meta's revenue streams in recent years. 

Speaking personally, I think Microsoft is making a safer bet with the cloud right now. 

FB Pages Manager for Windows Phone essentially helps you stay on top of administrating your Facebook pages (hence the name). The app sports numerous features that are absent from the official Facebook app and is a must-have should you regularly interact with your Facebook page(s) on a daily basis. The app has recently been bumped to version 1.5 and we're looking at a sizeable update with a strong list of new features, joined by fixes and alterations.

So what exactly is included in version 1.5? According to the official changelog, you'll be able to enjoy the following after updating:

• Uservoice link
• Ability to send feedback via facebook message
• App is now WP8 native
• In app purchases (lite only)
• Post likes
• App update notifications
• Swedish, Polish and Malay languages
• Post preview
• Option to manually add a link to a post
• Schedule posts
• Pull to refresh on timeline and messages
• Logout option
• Post insights (full only)
• Message inbox
• Setting to enable the display of cover photo on the page view
• Message notifications
• Loading when a notification is pressed

That's quite the update, especially being upgraded to take full advantage of Windows Phone 8, as well as providing a means to use IAP (in-app purchasing) for extras in the lite version of FB Pages Manager. We're certain those of you who use this app to manage said pages will enjoy what's included in the above list, particularly message notifications and the option to manually add a link to a post.

The new features aren't the only new additions in the latest release. The developer also included numerous changes and fixes - perfect if you've been experiencing issues when attempting to use FB Pages Manager. A full list of what's been fixed or altered can be found in the official changelog (see link above). These include: dates being relative to the local time, performance improvements and more.

You can download FB Pages Manager (Lite version - right QR code) from the Windows Phone Store. Thanks, Michael, for the tip!

Look, we know the official Facebook app leaves a lot to be desired from most of you. But thankfully we’ve got a great community of developers willing to step up and fill a need. If you manage a Facebook page as either a hobby or a more serious role you’ll want to check out Page Manager.

Facebook Pages are a great way for fans to interact with favorite brands, companies, and personalities through Facebook. If you manage one of those pages you’ll have noticed by now the inability to do anything through that official Facebook app. Here are some of the main features of Page Manager:

• Update Status messages or post links to your Facebook page(s)
• Upload pictures
• View insights
• View page(s)
• Pin tiles to home screen for quick access to features

Even though updating a status message or uploading a picture seems like a trivial task, the official app doesn’t do that. Which is a shame if you’re managing your brand on the road and want to share photos from an event.

The analytics are fairly straight forward. You get to see the number of new likes, unlikes, page views, ‘people talking about this’, total reach, organic reach, viral reach, total impressions, and more for your page. It’s handy to see if the content you’re pushing to your page is having the impact you want, unfortunately I didn’t see any way to view more than the current day and previous day. Having the option to view longer periods of time would be a welcomed addition.

The app is still a work in progress and the developer is open to feedback and feature requests. You can hit him up on Twitter right at @SrikanthNairPro for any suggestions. Two things that are coming in a future version include the ability to manage comments and messages.

The app costs $0.99 for both Windows Phone 7.x and 8. There is a trial that limits you to accessing only one of your pages, so if you manage more than one page you’ll want to part with the dollar. You can find it here in the Windows Phone Store, use the QR code below, or swipe to the right in our app. Update: The app is currently unavailable from the Store. You can read more about it here. 

P.S. While we're on the topic of Facebook pages, why don't you go ahead on 'like' the Windows Phone Central page?

The Windows Phone "Next App Star" contest is winding down with voting for the final four apps ending tonight at 11:59pm PST. After which voting for the championship round will take place from April 6th to 8th.

While the WPCentral app made it to the elite eight, we fell short to ProShot, who is now facing (and leading) Amazing Weather HD. On the other side of the semi-finals you will find Wikipedia leading Voice Translator.

All four are heavy weight apps but the Amazing Weather HD/ProShot winner may be the odds on favorite to win it all.

The winning developer will have their app appear in a Windows Phone TV ad. Voters will have their chance to win a Nokia Lumia 920. Winners are chosen at random from all the votes cast per day with a total of 21 Lumia 920's being eligible for giveaway.

Just scan the QR Codes (Amazing Weather HD has a free and paid version) below to check out the final four apps and you can vote for your favorite here at the Windows Phone Facebook page.

Source: Windows Phone Developer Blog

According to a number of reports on our forums, coupled with confirmation by the team, there appears to be an issue with Facebook notifications and the "Me" tile. The issue is it seems as though the notifications sent through get caught up and continuously alert the user to the same content.

Some of our readers have stated that the service corrected itself over time and now functions as it should (while others have to resort to clearing notifications via the Facebook app), but it still remains to be a particular annoyance to many. We're not sure as of yet whether this is due to Facebook's service or with Microsoft servers. 

We previously had issues with Twitter notifications back in January, so this is nothing new unfortunately. Be sure to let us know in the comments, and join in the discussion over at our forums, should you be experiencing issues as well.

Chris Finlay, web developer at PokerStars, has created something special for those Windows Phone users who are avid Facebook fans. The Timeline cover photo is a perfect way to show off some interesting photos, but why don't we take it a step further with a personalised "I love Windows Phone" graphic?

Finlay has provided the tools and means to do just that, should you have the right software for the job of course. We've got a .PSD template, which will enable anyone (regardless of photo editing skills) to create an images similar to the above. So how do you go about achieving the above result? 

1. Download the .PSD template (we'll use Photoshop as the software of choice for this walkthrough).
2. Edit the network placeholder text and add your own image for the "Pictures" tile, using the red rectangle as a guide for dimensions.
3. Change / personalise other aspects of the template as you see fit.
4. Hide the "Guides" group to remove Facebook template and disable the guide lines (View > Show > Guides). 
5. Select "cover" from the Load Selection dialogue (Select > Load Selection).
6. "Copy Merged" (Edit > Copy Merged) and then paste into a new document.
7. Save and upload to Facebook.

Remember that this is just a template, only your imagination is the limit. Take the design and add your own touches. Do let us know in the comments should you take a few minutes to create your own cover photo to further promote Windows Phone. As for Chris Finlay, be sure to follow him on Twitter.

Thanks Chris for sending in the .PSD!

We mentioned how this morning version 2.3 of the official Facebook app should be going live today and true to their word, it has.

The new version brings a complete redesign of the UI as can be seen above in some new screenshots. The panorama look makes the app more Metro friendly and more importantly, it adds much more functionality like the ability to see and add "likes" to posts. There's also a refined tool bar at the bottom with quick access to Check in, Add (post) or quickly add/take a new photo.

In addition, you now have access to pages, groups, feed filters, privacy information and banner images. Speed of the app seems on par with before and we're hoping for more reliable notifications (always a tricky issue that is more Facebook than Windows Phone).

So far it looks to be a solid and respectable update, something many of you have been wanting for months now--so are you satisfied? Hit us up in comments...

Pick up the official Facebook app version 2.3 here in the Marketplace (and watch our video tutorial on how to force the update).

Bitstream has recently updated it's Windows Phone browser, Bolt, to version 2.1. The update adds support for HTML 5 Video and throws in a little Facebook integration.  The Facebook integration in Bolt 2.1 allows users to paste links directly to Facebook accounts and work the Facebook's instant messaging.

Bolt 2.1 continues to utilize the server-side rendering of pages to speed things up. Version 2.1 has a little more zip to it than previous versions. The first 25% of pages does take a few seconds to load, then the remaining portions load in a flash. Also, remember that Bolt is a Java App and will be installed within your Java program.

The layout still needs some work (fonts still a little on the small size even when set to XXLarge) but the speed is definitely present. You can download your free copy of Bolt 2.1 by going to http://boltbrowser.com/bolts2.jad from your mobile browser. Additional installation instructions can be found at the Bolt Browser website.

[read: jkontherun.com]

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