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Google made it nearly impossible for users to keep their location private

businessinsider.com

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Re: Google made it nearly impossible for users to keep their location private

#21

Post by Taek »

toastal wrote: post #12
chimen wrote: post #4

Even attempting to stay private gets you banned on most services.

Ran into this today logging into PayPal (the password-must-be-8-20-characters payment service) for the first time in a long time to buy a band t-shirt. After jumping through two different types of CAPTCHAs, now they require you share your phone number to log in. I contacted support via Twitter saying they have my email if they want to verify a login because I'm not comfortable with SIM jacking nor how data-mining is…

This is one of the use cases for cryptocurrency. Decentralization means there is no company in the middle that can force you to give up your data.

Re: Google made it nearly impossible for users to keep their location private

#22

Post by koheripbal »

lazyeye wrote: post #15

It used to be "don't be evil". Now its "hide, deny and obsfucate our evil".

I think a more useful life lesson is that an organization's motto is not a useful measure of its true internal or external ethics - regardless of what it says - regardless of the type of organization.

A motto is, by definition, marketing.

Even more generally, I worry about the trend on social media to value words so much more than actions.

Re: Google made it nearly impossible for users to keep their location private

#23

Post by ppf »

ttt0 wrote: post #7
judge2020 wrote: post #2

This could all be solved by breaking 'web & app activity' up into more granular permissions.

We can also try to break up Google into something more granular and see if it helps.

I'm always amused by calls for the breakup of the "unbearable monopoly" of Google, when it is itself the epitome of the Silicon Valley "monopolies need disrupting!" business model.

Re: Google made it nearly impossible for users to keep their location private

#25

Post by dividedbyzero »

whoknowswhat11 wrote: post #16
im3w1l wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Eh? I certainly paid for my phone so I don't see the applicability of that soundbite here.

You paid for Google maps - weird

They paid for a phone advertised to include this service, so, in a way, yes, they did.

Re: Google made it nearly impossible for users to keep their location private

#26

Post by C-x_C-f »

sunstone wrote: post #3

I've had a string of Google phones going back to the Nexus 5x but, for the very reasons laid out in this article, my next phone will likely be from Apple. That will be my first Apple product.

FYI you can install GrapheneOS on a Pixel (3rd to 5th gen)

Re: Google made it nearly impossible for users to keep their location private

#27

Post by mormegil »

toastal wrote: post #12
chimen wrote: post #4

Even attempting to stay private gets you banned on most services.

Ran into this today logging into PayPal (the password-must-be-8-20-characters payment service) for the first time in a long time to buy a band t-shirt. After jumping through two different types of CAPTCHAs, now they require you share your phone number to log in. I contacted support via Twitter saying they have my email if they want to verify a login because I'm not comfortable with SIM jacking nor how data-mining is…

Could you call them with Calling Line Identification Restriction? (I. e. caller ID blocking) There is usually a prefix you can dial to suppress your ID. But the exact prefix depends on your location, I think.

Re: Google made it nearly impossible for users to keep their location private

#28

Post by ppf »

im3w1l wrote: post #11
max_hammer wrote: post #9

If you are not paying for it, you're not the customer; you're the product being sold. Few years back you could easily root your android device and get custom ROM installed. Now, only solution is use a feature phone without gps and wifi and have a separate device for connecting to internet. IPhone is also a good alternative but I don't agree with thier walled garden development philosophy. Edit: You pay a separate fee…

Eh? I certainly paid for my phone so I don't see the applicability of that soundbite here.

In some ways, it sounds like you didn't pay enough, if the cost is subsidised by data collection and advertising.

Re: Google made it nearly impossible for users to keep their location private

#29

Post by jeffbee »

Sounds like lots of people are going to have to re-take the "You Said What‽" training. But seriously why would a product manager know with certainty how different settings interact? The only person who really knows would be the authors of the features that read those settings, and possibly not even them. These systems are too complex, no intelligent person should claim to understand them perfectly.

Re: Google made it nearly impossible for users to keep their location private

#30

Post by toastal »

Taek wrote: post #21
toastal wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ran into this today logging into PayPal (the password-must-be-8-20-characters payment service) for the first time in a long time to buy a band t-shirt. After jumping through two different types of CAPTCHAs, now they require you share your phone number to log in. I contacted support via Twitter saying they have my email if they want to verify a login because I'm not comfortable with SIM jacking nor how data-mining is…

This is one of the use cases for cryptocurrency. Decentralization means there is no company in the middle that can force you to give up your data.

In this case, Bandcamp, which I generally like, doesn't yet support crypto. I think it's also a lot to ask a small band to pick anything other than PayPal for international payment.
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