Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Tell HN: Google does not list application permissions in the Play Store any more

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 174 posts

Re: Tell HN: Google does not list application permissions in the Play Store any more

#11

Post by hbn »

devit wrote: post #9
hbn wrote: post #4

> They had implemented that already a while ago, then reverted the behaviour, and now implemented it once again. This is, among many other reasons, why I finally dropped Android after the better part of a decade. The constant A/B/C/D/E testing makes every single thing they put out feel like it's a constant state of beta testing. It's to the point where you don't even know what to expect when you do something as funda…

Just don't use proprietary applications (or don't expect them to serve you).

I switched to an iPhone and I'm using proprietary applications, but ones that don't randomly change their UI on a regular basis whenever some nameless product manager decides they want to use me to gather some new engagement metrics by rearranging UIs on my phone

Re: Tell HN: Google does not list application permissions in the Play Store any more

#12

Post by morder »

simonsarris wrote: post #2

That seems OK since it still asks you as it needs them when running an app, and "prunes" permissions away from apps that you do not use often. Lots of apps only need specific permissions if you use specific parts of the app. And apps are much larger (one app does more things) than they were 5-10 years ago. Eg you can use some apps as a camera, but never as a photo editor, and get use out of it by only giving some spe…

I'd prefer to avoid even downloading apps if they ask for permissions that aren't necessary. To hide that just makes me never want to use the play story anymore.

Re: Tell HN: Google does not list application permissions in the Play Store any more

#13

Post by blip54321 »

martin_bech wrote: post #3

Probably because all apps are now required to target the latest api, which means most permissions are done by user prompts, and not just by downloading the app.

I hate installing and uninstalling apps. And overly permissive apps are a good sign they're not my friend in the first place.

Re: Tell HN: Google does not list application permissions in the Play Store any more

#14

Post by skykooler »

martin_bech wrote: post #3

Probably because all apps are now required to target the latest api, which means most permissions are done by user prompts, and not just by downloading the app.

Given that modern apps are dozens or hundreds of megabytes, on a slow connection I'd really like to avoid having to download the app just to learn it requires permissions it doesn't need.

Re: Tell HN: Google does not list application permissions in the Play Store any more

#15

Post by is_true »

simonsarris wrote: post #2

That seems OK since it still asks you as it needs them when running an app, and "prunes" permissions away from apps that you do not use often. Lots of apps only need specific permissions if you use specific parts of the app. And apps are much larger (one app does more things) than they were 5-10 years ago. Eg you can use some apps as a camera, but never as a photo editor, and get use out of it by only giving some spe…

This clearly isn't OK. I want to choose between an app that asks for what it needs to work and an app that ask everything it can, before installing it. It's a dark pattern.

Re: Tell HN: Google does not list application permissions in the Play Store any more

#16

Post by thaumasiotes »

simonsarris wrote: post #2

That seems OK since it still asks you as it needs them when running an app, and "prunes" permissions away from apps that you do not use often. Lots of apps only need specific permissions if you use specific parts of the app. And apps are much larger (one app does more things) than they were 5-10 years ago. Eg you can use some apps as a camera, but never as a photo editor, and get use out of it by only giving some spe…

> That seems OK since it still asks you as it needs them when running an app, and "prunes" permissions away from apps that you do not use often.

No no no no no, this is a total catastrophe. I can't understand how it got implemented at all.

I just missed a birthday notification from my calendar app because Android "helpfully" removed the app's ability to create notifications! After all, I hadn't opened the calendar app in more than six months!

Infuriatingly, I caught the original message telling me "hey, we just noticed that your calendar shouldn't be allowed to send you reminders" and I tried to restore the permission, but that doesn't seem to have worked.

Whoever designed and implemented this "feature" shouldn't be trusted to put on pants.

Re: Tell HN: Google does not list application permissions in the Play Store any more

#17

Post by bornfreddy »

LineageOS. Or Murena, if you can't be bothered to install it yourself. And then use f-droid, or if it's not available there, Aurora store.

As seen on computers, OS is too important to be left to companies - if you value your freedom of choice and privacy, that is.

Re: Tell HN: Google does not list application permissions in the Play Store any more

#18

Post by djbusby »

Dig1t wrote: post #10
simonsarris wrote: post #2

That seems OK since it still asks you as it needs them when running an app, and "prunes" permissions away from apps that you do not use often. Lots of apps only need specific permissions if you use specific parts of the app. And apps are much larger (one app does more things) than they were 5-10 years ago. Eg you can use some apps as a camera, but never as a photo editor, and get use out of it by only giving some spe…

You are right, but that doesn't seem like a good excuse to remove that information from the Play Store completely. It would be trivial for the Android APIs to require that all permissions requested programmatically are also present in the manifest. This would continue to give user's a picture of what the app could/would request. They could just change their play store listing from "Required permissions" to "Permissio…

IIRC it's already in the manifest.

Re: Tell HN: Google does not list application permissions in the Play Store any more

#20

Post by roughly »

hbn wrote: post #4

> They had implemented that already a while ago, then reverted the behaviour, and now implemented it once again. This is, among many other reasons, why I finally dropped Android after the better part of a decade. The constant A/B/C/D/E testing makes every single thing they put out feel like it's a constant state of beta testing. It's to the point where you don't even know what to expect when you do something as funda…

I heard a phrase a while back: “the subtle gaslighting of A/B testing” - that feeling that you’re pretty sure that button used to be over there, or the app used to have that function, but not entirely sure, because one day it’s just Different, no release or upgrade or reinstall, just - it’s not the same anymore - or, is it?
Post reply on HN