This is an opt-in feature, and is for the Android app.
So it will add up to your GPS data..
Facebook is able to identify music and TV when writing status update
11–20 of 126 posts
Re: Facebook is able to identify music and TV when writing status update
#12Is it just me or is it _beyond_ creepy ? Location, sound ... soon they will be collecting biometric data as well, "just to get room temperature, promise".
As long as it's opt-in I don't find it that creepy to be honest.
Facebook has a history of starting with opt-in and then making it opt-out and then over time making it harder to opt-out. It is a well established pattern.
Re: Facebook is able to identify music and TV when writing status update
#13Earlier quoted context omitted.
As long as it's opt-in I don't find it that creepy to be honest.
If it's a big wall of legalise that regular users have to click past to get at Facebook, then that's hardly "opt-in".
It's a button you have to press: https://www.facebook.com/help/android-app/1499418503612943
Re: Facebook is able to identify music and TV when writing status update
#14Android is in desperate need of allowing users to change permission for app. It's ridiculous that the application decides what it has access to (and android it is not making it easier with a bad permission granularity). And I believe this functionality was in some pre-release 5.0 versions. They removed it because apps would just crash if permissions were removed. However, there are apps that solve this (for rooted phones) by providing dummy (null) data on API calls that you blocked.
For example, there is absolutely no reason my facebook app should ever have access to a microphone.
Re: Facebook is able to identify music and TV when writing status update
#15Is it just me or is it _beyond_ creepy ? Location, sound ... soon they will be collecting biometric data as well, "just to get room temperature, promise".
Look, I know that nowdays it's popular to pay attention to security and privacy, and I understand that it's important. But can we for once not immediately assume ill intentions?
I mean come on, do you seriously believe that programmers at facebook are rubbing their hands and laughing at how smart they are, figuring out how to turn on your mike for 15 seconds? Is that really what you believe is going on?
Or is it just trendy to scream "creepy! surveilance!" on every occasion?
Re: Facebook is able to identify music and TV when writing status update
#16and i still won't use facebook.
Re: Facebook is able to identify music and TV when writing status update
#17That's one very scary invasion of privacy masked as a "feature".
Re: Facebook is able to identify music and TV when writing status update
#18Is it just me or is it _beyond_ creepy ? Location, sound ... soon they will be collecting biometric data as well, "just to get room temperature, promise".
Look, I know that nowdays it's popular to pay attention to security and privacy, and I understand that it's important. But can we for once not immediately assume ill intentions? I mean come on, do you seriously believe that programmers at facebook are rubbing their hands and laughing at how smart they are, figuring out how to turn on your mike for 15 seconds? Is that really what you believe is going on? Or is it just…
My thoughts were that this is probably quite similar a technology to Shazam and other song identification apps. The usage is a bit different, and as long as they're really, really clear about when they're listening (for example, Shazam has an "auto-shazam" feature that highlights a big red bar on my iPhone), I would be okay with this.
Re: Facebook is able to identify music and TV when writing status update
#19Is it just me or is it _beyond_ creepy ? Location, sound ... soon they will be collecting biometric data as well, "just to get room temperature, promise".
Look, I know that nowdays it's popular to pay attention to security and privacy, and I understand that it's important. But can we for once not immediately assume ill intentions? I mean come on, do you seriously believe that programmers at facebook are rubbing their hands and laughing at how smart they are, figuring out how to turn on your mike for 15 seconds? Is that really what you believe is going on? Or is it just…
Look, I know that nowdays it's popular to pay attention to security and privacy, and I understand that it's important. But can we for once not immediately assume ill intentions?
Not really. If I find it important to mention what I am watching or listening too, I can add it myself.
Obviously, the goals is not surveillance, since 15 seconds would be a too small amount of time. The goal is getting an even more fine-grained idea of your preferences for advertising.
A company who knows more and more about me, removing privacy one small step at a time, is creepy.
Re: Facebook is able to identify music and TV when writing status update
#20Android is in desperate need of allowing users to change permission for app. It's ridiculous that the application decides what it has access to (and android it is not making it easier with a bad permission granularity). And I believe this functionality was in some pre-release 5.0 versions. They removed it because apps would just crash if permissions were removed. However, there are apps that solve this (for rooted ph…
Android 6.0 has the functionality you describe - there's a warning if you try to disable it for certain apps (presumably for older API levels) though that it may cause them to crash. I imagine this'll go away with time.