iOS 11's Misleading "Off-Ish" Setting for Radios Is Bad for User Security

Post by 794CD01 » Fri, Oct 06, 2017, 3:36 PM UTC

jonahx wrote: post #50

Terretta wrote: post #6

> In an attempt to keep you connected to Apple devices and services, iOS 11 compromises users' security. No. It is in an attempt to resolve the real loss of money experienced by everyday users who turn off WiFi when it’s flakey and then forget to turn it back on, costing them cash on their cellular data plan. (And the very real frustration when things don’t work they expect to work, and they don’t know why.) Meanwhil…

> No. It is in an attempt to resolve the real loss of money... Naked apologism. So unthoughtful, and delivered with such a righteous tone. If this was their intention, they could have implemented the feature honestly, informing users about what was happening, and offering a clear choice, such as an immediate popup, between "turn off for this location" and "turn off completely." That would have been fine. But the exis…

Post by gervase » Fri, Oct 06, 2017, 3:52 PM UTC

new299 wrote: post #29

dvcrn wrote: post #23

I hate this. I have a ton of wifi hotspots setup in the city, some of them require authentication, some of them don't. I leave work, mount my phone on my bike, "turn off" WiFi and cycle before realizing that nothing (like maps) is updating because I connected to a wifi point that needs authentication, or a point that is now far away because I already cycled by. While cycling, I reach to my phone and switch it "off" a…

Right, I feel like this is a bigger issue than the privacy angle too. For privacy/security, I feel like it's only really going to help to turn off all radios (airplane mode).

Post by djrogers » Fri, Oct 06, 2017, 3:58 PM UTC

trowawee wrote: post #110

djrogers wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Turn off ‘ask to join networks’ - mine been that ways for 10 years and it’s much better.

I...don't want my phone to automatically connect to random open access points? I live in a city where there are at least 5 separate open networks available at nearly all times if you're just walking around, most of which I do not want to connect to.

Post by kec » Fri, Oct 06, 2017, 4:02 PM UTC

golangnews wrote: post #227

lloeki wrote: post #225

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You can't use 3D touch to turn off wifi. According to Apple you have go into settings to do so. Indeed, the detailed block of controls does not present the three possible states to the user. In the same zoomed in block, the Airdrop toggle does. Conversely, going to Settings is binary and allows only for On/Off, not that very practical Disconnect state. The difference between Off and Disconnected is a light bar acro…

I agree it's not a huge security vulnerability, just bad design by Apple. There are also a few other reasons for disabling wifi - battery life, tracking, debugging connections, and of course security as well (not in response to specific vulnerabilities, but on the principle of less attack surface being safer).

Post by [deleted] » Fri, Oct 06, 2017, 4:05 PM UTC

Terretta wrote: post #6

> In an attempt to keep you connected to Apple devices and services, iOS 11 compromises users' security. No. It is in an attempt to resolve the real loss of money experienced by everyday users who turn off WiFi when it’s flakey and then forget to turn it back on, costing them cash on their cellular data plan. (And the very real frustration when things don’t work they expect to work, and they don’t know why.) Meanwhil…