Someone had that on Android a decade ago. I saw it demoed. Whatever happened to that?
When an app asks for permissions, it should have a “feed fake data” option
191–200 of 413 posts
Re: When an app asks for permissions, it should have a “feed fake data” option
#192Earlier quoted context omitted.
This would never land in a factory image or upstream Android, but it has a reasonable chance to become part of projects like LineageOS, given enough user demand for it.
LineageOS already had this feature in Cyanogen as the Privacy Guard. It was taken out because of pressure from Google.
Pressure from Google?
I myself removed that feature because the effort to have it was more of an hassle than anything else.
Re: When an app asks for permissions, it should have a “feed fake data” option
#193Earlier quoted context omitted.
The iOS shows a phone number input if you try to initiate a chat and have contacts permissions disabled. I'm not sure whether that's because it's to comply with app store regulations, or the product owners on both sides prioritizing different things. On both platforms you can still initiate chats without contacts access by using the wa.me domain, eg. wa.me/12125551234 for +1 (212) 555 1234.
Alternatively on Android, the app "Click to chat" is a tiny utility that directly opens up a WhatsApp chat with any given number: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.trianguloy...
The fact that this is necessary is wild.
Re: When an app asks for permissions, it should have a “feed fake data” option
#194Samsung phones have a camera access and microphone access toggle. Here's what I get when I turn it off: ``` Turn off Camera access? All apps will be blocked from using the camera. Apps will still work, but they will only be able to access an empty black screen. For example, you can still make and receive video calls, but the other person won't be able to see you. ```
For microphone access: ```Turn off Microphone access? All apps will be blocked from using the microphone Apps will still work, but they won't be able to access any sounds from the microphone. For example, you can still make and receive calls, but the other person won't be able to hear you.```
All apps seems like not very useful
Re: When an app asks for permissions, it should have a “feed fake data” option
#195I’m all for the “fake data” idea, but also: Apps should be required to gracefully handle the cases where users deny permission to access real data. I know last time I developed for iOS, it was Apple’s policy that apps cannot punish users or exit() the app in retaliation for them denying a permission. Apps must gracefully handle it and continue running. Also, and this was even longer ago, apps could not require users…
Couldn't find another place to put this comment but how do I get the privilege of posting an Ask HN discussion starter thread for startup advice?
I believe it’s just a thread with “Ask/Show/Tell HN:” in its title.
Re: When an app asks for permissions, it should have a “feed fake data” option
#196Earlier quoted context omitted.
> it was Apple’s policy that apps cannot punish users or exit() the app in retaliation for them denying a permission. Meanwhile, WhatsApp still "punishes" users for denying contacts access by hiding everyone's names (only the phone numbers are shown), including for contacts that have their own names set in their own profiles. Facebook^W Meta is scum.
WhatsApp has always done this (to my knowledge). Phone numbers -> name resolution is done using your contact list. At least last time I checked. Usernames are not given much weight in the UI--there's no guarantee that my username reflects who I really am. Feels rightly more suspicious IMO to see a message from an unknown number than from "~Elon Musk". I believe this happens regardless of whether the app has contact p…
The Whatsapp app could easily let you assign your own locally saved aliases to those phone numbers, when you're not sharing your address book. "Frankie" is a more usable moniker to me than "+12822745113". They could give us that ability in an afternoon. But they just won't. Because they want your address book. ALL OF IT.
I wish there were some kind of "modern tech" technical review panel on board in, say, EU and US regulatory institutions. Not to impose or forbid certain changes, but to curate an evilness score. Publicly.
And then if a monopolistic company consistently enshittifies things, when the time comes to apply a penalty (for some anti-competitive legal reason), the regulators will apply the reputation ("evilness") score as a multiplier (or divider, if you will) on the sum of the fine.
Evilness can't be measured and expressed fully objectively. So citizens should be able to override a reputation score mutation (remember, they're public) through a referendum.
An advantage of this approach would be that it could increase citizen awareness that things don't have to be this shitty. I'm occasionally amazed by how friends and colleagues put up with being pushed around by their OSes, their apps, their phones, sometimes to the point that cognitive dissonance makes them into apostate apologists.
Re: When an app asks for permissions, it should have a “feed fake data” option
#197I’m all for the “fake data” idea, but also: Apps should be required to gracefully handle the cases where users deny permission to access real data. I know last time I developed for iOS, it was Apple’s policy that apps cannot punish users or exit() the app in retaliation for them denying a permission. Apps must gracefully handle it and continue running. Also, and this was even longer ago, apps could not require users…
> apps could not require users to have “an account” in order to run There is some big qualification missing or I don't understand what does that even mean. How could a banking app run without an account? An online game? The Twitter app nowadays? Dropbox/Nextcloud/...? Etc. Yeah, I agree that for a lot of apps, requiring a account is just a marketing gimmick, but I don't think such a general rule could work.
For example, Gaia Maps. It's just a navigation app using publicly funded USGS or crowd sourced base maps, but by switching over to a user account requirement, they can con people into paying a monthly subscription for map "updates".
If you're going to rip people off with "software as a service" then you need to require an account.
Re: When an app asks for permissions, it should have a “feed fake data” option
#198Earlier quoted context omitted.
Right, locking the functionality off to only people with a deep understanding of it would work but it’s sidestepping the problem. People without understanding would still benefit from it so it’s a shame to lock them out of it and it’s harder to justify a feature only 0.5% of your user base will use.
Maybe just seed it with very sensible default settings like "send real data when asking for directions"?
It's impossible for the OS to know the intent of the app requesting location with certainty. That being said, android at least has options for "Approximate" and "Precise" locations and locations in the background or only when the app is open.
Re: When an app asks for permissions, it should have a “feed fake data” option
#199Earlier quoted context omitted.
You have a source on that? I used to be a lineageOS user and I always wondered why privacy guard disappeared.
I found this: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28096873 Looks like Privacy Guard was dropped because the rewrite wasn't worth the effort.
Thanks for digging it up.
Sometimes I can't comprehend how people come up with that stuff when it was already publicly explained how/why it happened :/
Re: When an app asks for permissions, it should have a “feed fake data” option
#200I love this idea.
For now, all laws are location based because sovereignty is defined by geographical boundaries for historical reasons.
If you use "feed fake data" to avert those laws, I think that is ok. As an example, I am the criminal if I lie to an app to say I am in Pennsylvania to bet on sports. I don't think my phone manufacturer should conspire with law enforcement to prevent me from being able to lie to commit that crime.