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Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

arstechnica.com

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Re: Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

#121

Post by Ericson2314 »

burtonator wrote: post #101
throwaway189262 wrote: post #66

We desperately need a standardized open source phone. The raspberry pi of phones. Linux may be a better platform than AOSP. Android and iOS were designed for control first. Control over apps, control over the store, over what users are allowed to do. If you don't need any of that to make money why not run a regular Linux distro. Opens source phones will never be mainstream. Same as desktop Linux. But it would be nice…

HN loves to talk about how Open Source and distributed system are going to change the world. Apache and Linux were open source. The Internet was designed to be distributed. We failed. We still had centralization. We still have SPoF... The issue is economic, not technical. When corporations like Amazon and Google have severely unfair competitive advantages we're going up in this situation again and again and again. Th…

Yes, I agree. But it's far easier to push technology----where incremental progress like Pine64-ing everything you own is possible----than push for political stuff when e.g. FTFP means you'd have to move first.

I, for one, see technological replicating the stagnation and over-complexity of human systems (say US was kinda alright in 1790, Unix in 1970). I Hope that if the technological and organizational problems of free software/hardware can be solved, we can use that experience to tackle the real-life problems.

Re: Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

#122

Post by wongarsu »

mav3rick wrote: post #111
propogandist wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a weak argument to defend your employer. I'll use a version of AOSP without the data harvesting spyware baked in, although Google seems to be keen on shutting aspects of it down.

You have the option to do AOSP at least. What do you have with Apple ? Why don't you apply the same yardstick to them ? Can you flash your own bits on an iPhone ?

Apple seems to respect privacy a lot more and delivers updates for basically the phone's usable life. That removes the top two reasons for flashing your phone.

Re: Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

#123

Post by propogandist »

mav3rick wrote: post #111
propogandist wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is a weak argument to defend your employer. I'll use a version of AOSP without the data harvesting spyware baked in, although Google seems to be keen on shutting aspects of it down.

You have the option to do AOSP at least. What do you have with Apple ? Why don't you apply the same yardstick to them ? Can you flash your own bits on an iPhone ?

AOSP and the "openness" of Android is responsible for its global domination and success. I've been a big Android advocate for over a decade, but I am not a fan of what's happening and what Google's been doing as of late. Everything seems to be headed down a path to make Android like iOS, where it's more locked down and controlled... and this is the concern.

I don't trust Apple much and don't hold them to any high standard. I am not a fan of their locked down ecosystem and their moves to remove things like headphones, which become accepted as industry norms. We know they sell overpriced hardware and ads are not a core business for them, it's the big thing that enables people to trust their [recent] "privacy" marketing. Now that they've made a big deal about it, we can expect them to (atleast) protect their brand aggressively and try to not screw things up.

As much as I hate to say it, I am going to give iOS a trial run soon. I've gotten custom ROMs on my phone in the past to remove analytics SDK, trackers, and other hostile app functions that tries to exfiltrate data from my device without my knowledge. If I have to give up some OS level leverage to get more control over my user data overall, I'll consider it.

Re: Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

#124

Post by propogandist »

infogulch wrote: post #107
propogandist wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. I was looking at MicroG again given Lineage OS has updated to Android 10, unfortunately it seems there are a changes for Android 10 that's preventing microG from being being fully compatible (SafetyNet API). Google's moves to lock down the platform further is also disgusting. They will be mandating a new App bundle format (AAB) instead of APK beginning in 2021. This will force more apps to run through Play St…

> They will also require devs to give a copy of their signing key to Google for them to sign applications. What.

from the article...

>Mandatory Android App Bundles for Newly Published Apps in 2021

>The .aab file contains APK files for the base application and all supported architectures (ARM, ARM64, and x86), languages, and layout variants.

>This format requires giving a copy of your app’s signing key to Google so the Google Play Developer Console can generate a bundle with signed versions of each APK in the bundle; the correct APK for a particular device’s architecture, language, and layout are delivered via Google Play Dynamic Delivery....

Re: Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

#125

Post by infogulch »

propogandist wrote: post #124
infogulch wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> They will also require devs to give a copy of their signing key to Google for them to sign applications. What.

from the article... >Mandatory Android App Bundles for Newly Published Apps in 2021 >The .aab file contains APK files for the base application and all supported architectures (ARM, ARM64, and x86), languages, and layout variants. >This format requires giving a copy of your app’s signing key to Google so the Google Play Developer Console can generate a bundle with signed versions of each APK in the bundle; the correct…

Why require the key instead of a small db of signatures of all possible combinations? It seems Google wants the power to publish on your behalf arbitrary transformations of your software releases. That doesn't seem reasonable.

Re: Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

#126

Post by GeekyBear »

robin_reala wrote: post #85
sli wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It may feel good to say it, because you get to offload the responsibility onto consumers rather than the entity committing questionable (but legal) acts, but in reality "just don't do X" is never going to affect any sort of change. It's simply shifting blame onto people with no power to do anything. More to the point, you're essentially recommending that everyone pony up $1000+ for an iPhone. None of those lesser kno…

$399+, not $1000+.

More to the point, that $399 original iPhone SE is starting it's sixth year of OS and security updates.

Less than $70 per supported year.

Re: Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

#127

Post by wincy »

GeekyBear wrote: post #126
robin_reala wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

$399+, not $1000+.

More to the point, that $399 original iPhone SE is starting it's sixth year of OS and security updates. Less than $70 per supported year.

I just got my wife the new SE and MAN it feels weird to use because it’s just so QUICK! It’s a really amazing phone for the price.

Re: Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

#128

Post by fxtentacle »

fierarul wrote: post #96
jevgeni wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

True. I also think the techbro meme of “M$ bad, Google good” still has a certain hold on people's minds.

On the contrary, the current tech bro pretty much loves Microsoft ever since the cool CEO took over and deeply distrusts Google.

I'd attribute that to the fact that they actually have support. My MSDN subscription once had a problem activating, but it was quick and painless to solve by calling them. That alone makes them feel a lot more humane than Google, where you have to be lucky to ever reach a person even with critical problems like data loss inside GSuite.

Re: Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

#129

Post by pjmlp »

guerrilla wrote: post #77
throwaway189262 wrote: post #66

We desperately need a standardized open source phone. The raspberry pi of phones. Linux may be a better platform than AOSP. Android and iOS were designed for control first. Control over apps, control over the store, over what users are allowed to do. If you don't need any of that to make money why not run a regular Linux distro. Opens source phones will never be mainstream. Same as desktop Linux. But it would be nice…

It seems like we're getting there with Prism [1] and Pine [2]. Seems to be a couple more I've never heard of [3]. [1]. https://puri.sm/products/ [2]. https://www.pine64.org/pinephone/ [3]. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_open-source_mobile_pho...

Those are just the next ones on a long list started with Openmoko.

Re: Google reportedly peeks into Android data to gain edge over third-party apps

#130

Post by lowdose »

aasasd wrote: post #21

Android 10 (on googlephones) has a feature called ‘digital wellbeing’ that can measure how much I gawk at the screen, and show that to me. Interesting, I think, let's see if that data stays locally. The only piece of info on data usage that I've found is a link to Google's overarching privacy policy. Oy vey. Some data-processing features in the settings are marked with ‘data stays on the phone’—but this one isn't. So…

I recommend buying a Google Hub with a screen for Google Assistant. It's pretty awesome to just ask Google to play Spotify on my Sonos without having to touch anything.

On the screen I can see all my interaction history with the assistant with 2 taps.

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