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Smartphone contact tracing has failed everywhere

eclecticlight.co

11–20 of 204 posts

Re: Smartphone contact tracing has failed everywhere

#12
post #9
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, the Apple/Google mechanism is not useful for surveillance.

It’s optional and opt-in now. Do you trust it to stay that way once the framework is in 99% of people’s pocket? I sure don’t.

Yes I do - because everybody is watching.

This feels like a "slippery slope" argument. If so then I would argue the situation demands us to take a small step further towards the start of the slope.

Re: Smartphone contact tracing has failed everywhere

#13
post #9
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, the Apple/Google mechanism is not useful for surveillance.

It’s optional and opt-in now. Do you trust it to stay that way once the framework is in 99% of people’s pocket? I sure don’t.

It doesn't matter, the technology doesn't provide any means for central tracking.

Re: Smartphone contact tracing has failed everywhere

#15
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe, but privacy is worth protecting, more than ever.

Over lives?

This is the same argument as justifying the NSA's mass surveillance with terrorism. Because lives are involved, it's propagated like a killer argument. Fact is, you don't know if even worse things aren't going to be enabled with this technology.

Re: Smartphone contact tracing has failed everywhere

#17
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe, but privacy is worth protecting, more than ever.

Over lives?

It's a false choice.

But even if it were true, yes, over lives. People already died fighting for my liberal rights, I'm not willing to trade any of that for some temporary safety.

I'm from a Warsaw pact country. Seeing westerners so willing to give up their rights these days is so deeply disappointing.

Re: Smartphone contact tracing has failed everywhere

#18
post #9
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, the Apple/Google mechanism is not useful for surveillance.

It’s optional and opt-in now. Do you trust it to stay that way once the framework is in 99% of people’s pocket? I sure don’t.

If Apple or Google are going to introduce a non-optional surveillance mechanism into their devices, there’s no particular need to build it off of their contact tracing platform.

You’re thinking the contact tracing platform somehow paves the way for an actual surveillance system, but it doesn’t. If they want to build a surveillance system then they will, and the success/failure/adoption rate of their contact tracing platform won’t affect that at all.

Re: Smartphone contact tracing has failed everywhere

#19
post #4
post #3

Good. Why are people suddenly okay with building likely-permanent surveillance systems for temporary outbreaks? How would Apple ever reasonably remove this feature?

Well, the Apple/Google mechanism is not useful for surveillance.

It is. It just requires additional beacons and at least one point where a real identity can be matched.

Re: Smartphone contact tracing has failed everywhere

#20
post #4
post #3

Good. Why are people suddenly okay with building likely-permanent surveillance systems for temporary outbreaks? How would Apple ever reasonably remove this feature?

Well, the Apple/Google mechanism is not useful for surveillance.

It is, though. If you're not infected you retain your privacy, but once you're infected and give up your contact tracing key, everyone can know whether you have been near them or not. Combine this fact with a network of Bluetooth beacons at fixed locations and a malicious actor can basically track where anywhere an infected person has went.
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