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TikTok requests access to devices on local network

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Re: TikTok requests access to devices on local network

#21

Post by alerighi »

diebeforei485 wrote: post #15

Some other apps (Signal?) have also done this out of the blue, though they may have since added a UI around this. Regardless, Apple has done the right thing by putting this behind a permissions box, but the developer should be required to have some sort of explanation string of why they need this.

That thing makes it annoying for the kind of applications my company does, that needs to communicate with other devices on the local network.

It's annoying because it's not like other permissions, where you can ask the OS to prompt the user, and check if the user granted it or not, but it's some special permission. If the user, by mistake because it doesn't know that it's needed, doesn't give it one time it's impossible to ask again, and the app doesn't have a way to know that the permission is not granted. It's just things that the customer service has to handle, and that is bad.

Sure, right to ask a permission, so make it like a regular permission as the location permission.

Re: TikTok requests access to devices on local network

#23

Post by oefrha »

rafale wrote: post #16
Lammy wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any discussion of intent is always going to be speculation. All we can think about is what such a thing would be capable of if it were somehow malicious. The first possibility that comes to my mind would be sniffing Ethernet MAC addresses because it could be done without any sort of device-specific support built in to the app. Assuming your local devices’ manufacturers are following Da Rulez, the first part of their…

Can you send packets to local network if you are using a VPN on ur phone? Sounds like a VPN bug to me.

Of course you can. Look up VPN routing / split tunneling. It’s not uncommon for corporate VPNs to only route intranet traffic for instance; and LAN is usually whitelisted.

Re: TikTok requests access to devices on local network

#24

Post by SavantIdiot »

dangoor wrote: post #2

Perhaps there's something nefarious here, or perhaps it's just looking for a Chromecast or Apple TV?

If it only connects to multimedia devices, and if my OS lets me know that TikTok is using my multimedia devices, then I'd be OK with it, but I don't TikTok. Like MicroSnitch, which warns you when a mic/camera becomes active (macOS only).

Re: TikTok requests access to devices on local network

#25

Post by jeffbee »

There are two ways that the TikTok mobile app can be used to control the app running on a smart TV, android TV, roku, or whatever.

1) The app on the smart tv can connect to a command-and-control network in the cloud, which will make deranged HNers howl in disapproval.

2) The app on the phone can discover local devices it can control, which will make deranged HNers howl in disapproval.

Re: TikTok requests access to devices on local network

#26

Post by lloydatkinson »

uniqueuid wrote: post #20

Microsoft Teams does this as well, purportedly for video calling (!?) Was there ever an explanation why the permissions are needed?

For MS I suspect either incompetence or laziness and just checking all the permissions (because a lot of Teams seems poorly thought out and designed by committee, probably an “agile” one too).

As for Tick Tock it’s obviously spyware meant for direct user identification. How anyone can use it when it’s uploading their biometric information (face, voice) to the CCP is beyond stupidity.

Re: TikTok requests access to devices on local network

#28

Post by andrewmd5 »

lloydatkinson wrote: post #26
uniqueuid wrote: post #20

Microsoft Teams does this as well, purportedly for video calling (!?) Was there ever an explanation why the permissions are needed?

For MS I suspect either incompetence or laziness and just checking all the permissions (because a lot of Teams seems poorly thought out and designed by committee, probably an “agile” one too). As for Tick Tock it’s obviously spyware meant for direct user identification. How anyone can use it when it’s uploading their biometric information (face, voice) to the CCP is beyond stupidity.

It is to support finding devices you can cast to inside the app (like conference calling boxes.)

Re: TikTok requests access to devices on local network

#29

Post by uniqueuid »

uniqueuid wrote: post #20

Microsoft Teams does this as well, purportedly for video calling (!?) Was there ever an explanation why the permissions are needed?

Just did a quick search and found that teams does in fact support some sort of local-only streaming:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-US/microsoftteams/use-ndi-in-m...

I do trust Microsoft to collect all tracking data that's possible at all, but at least there is also a valid use case here.

It's even somehow plausible that they would require this permission for any kind of video streaming - to make sure all permissions are present before someone wants to start a locally streamed call.

Re: TikTok requests access to devices on local network

#30

Post by sam0x17 »

Lammy wrote: post #13
dangoor wrote: post #2

Perhaps there's something nefarious here, or perhaps it's just looking for a Chromecast or Apple TV?

Any discussion of intent is always going to be speculation. All we can think about is what such a thing would be capable of if it were somehow malicious. The first possibility that comes to my mind would be sniffing Ethernet MAC addresses because it could be done without any sort of device-specific support built in to the app. Assuming your local devices’ manufacturers are following Da Rulez, the first part of their…

You can also just take the collection of devices typically on the network, hash the MAC addresses all together, and now you have a unique identifier for a household
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