Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service?

#11

Post by jowsie » Wed, Jul 05, 2017, 2:59 PM UTC

microcolonel wrote: post #9

fredley wrote: post #3

What's one more keylogger? Your OS is already logging your keystrokes, your browser is already logging your keystrokes, who even knows what else is already logging your keystrokes. Obviously I speak here for the majority of computer users, I imagine many (most?) in the HN readership have taken steps to reduce the amount of keylogging they are exposed to as much as possible already.

Whose browser and OS is logging keystrokes? OSX/Windows users with IE/Edge/Safari? Are you insinuating that Google has a patch which integrates keylogging in their Chrome builds of Chromium? I typically use Chromium on OpenBSD, am I being keylogged. I'm pretty sure we all have a choice, and many of us choose convenience over privacy.

You should take a look at the kind of js that gets injected into most mainstream websites nowadays.

Re: Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service?

#12

Post by zemo » Wed, Jul 05, 2017, 3:07 PM UTC

jowsie wrote: post #11

microcolonel wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Whose browser and OS is logging keystrokes? OSX/Windows users with IE/Edge/Safari? Are you insinuating that Google has a patch which integrates keylogging in their Chrome builds of Chromium? I typically use Chromium on OpenBSD, am I being keylogged. I'm pretty sure we all have a choice, and many of us choose convenience over privacy.

You should take a look at the kind of js that gets injected into most mainstream websites nowadays.

attaching an event handler to a keyboard action is not the same thing as keylogging...

Re: Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service?

#13

Post by zer0tonin » Wed, Jul 05, 2017, 3:11 PM UTC

zemo wrote: post #12

jowsie wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You should take a look at the kind of js that gets injected into most mainstream websites nowadays.

attaching an event handler to a keyboard action is not the same thing as keylogging...

If it's on all keyboard actions, then it's the same thing.

Re: Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service?

#14

Post by kawsper » Wed, Jul 05, 2017, 3:17 PM UTC

I don't know, but I did think the same thing, and that is why I uninstalled it.

Re: Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service?

#15

Post by fredley » Wed, Jul 05, 2017, 3:19 PM UTC

microcolonel wrote: post #9

fredley wrote: post #3

What's one more keylogger? Your OS is already logging your keystrokes, your browser is already logging your keystrokes, who even knows what else is already logging your keystrokes. Obviously I speak here for the majority of computer users, I imagine many (most?) in the HN readership have taken steps to reduce the amount of keylogging they are exposed to as much as possible already.

Whose browser and OS is logging keystrokes? OSX/Windows users with IE/Edge/Safari? Are you insinuating that Google has a patch which integrates keylogging in their Chrome builds of Chromium? I typically use Chromium on OpenBSD, am I being keylogged. I'm pretty sure we all have a choice, and many of us choose convenience over privacy.

The amount of data Windows reports by default is well covered. Chrome has a built in spell checking service - which happens to send keystrokes up to Google. AFAIK it's enabled by default.

Re: Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service?

#16

Post by johnnyfaehell » Wed, Jul 05, 2017, 3:20 PM UTC

fusiongyro wrote: post #7

canadianwriter wrote: post #2

They've been advertising to me hardcore and it is completely free. It makes me wonder what data they are selling. I have no issue with them advertising to me based on what I've typed but if they put me in audiences based on it and sell those I get uncomfortable.

It's not completely free. Their free version is a limited-feature advertisement for the premium version, which is between $12 and $30 a month depending on billing frequency. https://www.grammarly.com/premium

I use the free version. I would use the premium version if it was like 5-10 a month. But if I want to pay monthly it's 30 and that's a bit too expensive for my liking.

Re: Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service?

#17

Post by 27182818284 » Wed, Jul 05, 2017, 3:23 PM UTC

zer0tonin wrote: post #13

zemo wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

attaching an event handler to a keyboard action is not the same thing as keylogging...

If it's on all keyboard actions, then it's the same thing.

Often it is this too, because of sloppy coding, not even malicious intent. I've seen people implement JavaScript easter eggs that play a funny joke, but in doing so the developers had created a keylogger by accident that was logging everything you did on the site. Again, wasn't malicious at all they didn't think about it at all.

Re: Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service?

#18

Post by diggan » Wed, Jul 05, 2017, 3:24 PM UTC

zer0tonin wrote: post #13

zemo wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

attaching an event handler to a keyboard action is not the same thing as keylogging...

If it's on all keyboard actions, then it's the same thing.

Unless you're not actually logging the actions but just listening for certain combinations like "ctrl+x" or even "x"

Re: Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service?

#19

Post by marcinzm » Wed, Jul 05, 2017, 3:25 PM UTC

fredley wrote: post #15

microcolonel wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Whose browser and OS is logging keystrokes? OSX/Windows users with IE/Edge/Safari? Are you insinuating that Google has a patch which integrates keylogging in their Chrome builds of Chromium? I typically use Chromium on OpenBSD, am I being keylogged. I'm pretty sure we all have a choice, and many of us choose convenience over privacy.

The amount of data Windows reports by default is well covered. Chrome has a built in spell checking service - which happens to send keystrokes up to Google. AFAIK it's enabled by default.

>Chrome has a built in spell checking service - which happens to send keystrokes up to Google. AFAIK it's enabled by default.

I just checked, it's off on my install of Chrome so likely it' not on by default. The regular spell check is purely local.

Re: Ask HN: Is Grammerly a Keylogger as a Service?

#20

Post by EGreg » Wed, Jul 05, 2017, 3:31 PM UTC

I have always wondered why spelling and grammar checkers - which could easily fit on your computer back in the 90s - needed a cloud-based provider.

One could easily build chrome extensions that DIDN'T phone home.

Today deep learning data can be downloaded to each computer. They are doing it with small IOT!!