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Intel's GPU Drivers Now Collect Telemetry, Including 'How You Use Your Computer'

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121–130 of 184 posts

Re: Intel's GPU Drivers Now Collect Telemetry, Including 'How You Use Your Computer'

#121
post #89
post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I long for a return to common sense. Maybe AI will do the trick, but I doubt it. Plenty of people are happy with behavioral prediction if it means convenience without caring about the implications. The general population isn't going to care about "privacy" in the abstract, that kind of thinking reserved for an activist fringe. IMHO, the only way any progress will every be made on such abstract things is activists i…

> The general population isn't going to care about "privacy" in the abstract, Totally agree. It's better to frame it in terms of "Nvidia tracks every porn site you visit and what you do there" or "company x knows everything you buy online and sells it to anyone who can pay".

Well, be careful how you word it. At the core of the problem, nobody has control over their devices. If you beat a drum complaining about Nvidia having DMA access then you have to go after Apple and Microsoft next, which would probably lead to most people getting confused. If they found out about PRISM or XKeyscore, they would probably feel hopeless and give up.

Treating privacy in the abstract is how you help people meaningfully resist it. In the literal sense, we can do very little to ensure our privacy on consumer hardware.

Re: Intel's GPU Drivers Now Collect Telemetry, Including 'How You Use Your Computer'

#122
post #32
post #14

I don't understand the need to include "the types of websites you visit" in GPU driver telemetry. AMD's telemetry doesn't seem to include that: https://www.amd.com/en/legal/privacy/user-experience-program... I couldn't figure out what telemetry is collected by Nvidia.

>I don't understand the need to include "the types of websites you visit" in GPU driver telemetry. Do you visit Youtube and Twitch other streaming services often? Focus on video decoding. Do you visit sites that heavily utilize graphics[1]? Focus on 3D acceleration. There are reasons this data can be useful, especially since Intel wants to unfuck their otherwise imperially fucked drivers. Websites aren't just plain t…

That's BS. Intel needs spyware to know people are visiting YouTube? Give me a break.

Re: Intel's GPU Drivers Now Collect Telemetry, Including 'How You Use Your Computer'

#123
post #86
post #44

The problem is that the driver is closed-source. Even if the driver sent data in a format which is easily inspectable by user, and with only benign-looking data, it would be really hard to prove that something nefarious and underhanded is not being sent instead under that guise.

If you see where the packets are going you might be able to block at the DNS level.

Unless they circumvent the system set DNS and use a hard coded one, which many that collect telemetry seem to do. On Android I see lots of traffic to Google's DNS even though I do not use their DNS servers (and it is in fact blocked).

Re: Intel's GPU Drivers Now Collect Telemetry, Including 'How You Use Your Computer'

#125

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even if you were to overcome the massive hurdle of porting a driver between two completely different kernel architectures, you would not be able to load it without enabling driver testing mode at boot time, or without buying a code signing certificate.

> Even if you were to overcome the massive hurdle of porting a driver between two completely different kernel architectures Hmm, would that be a massive hurdle? I haven't looked at that driver code, but I have done a lot of driver development for both Windows and Linux, and have ported a number of drivers between the two. Sight unseen, it's not obvious to me that this would be a huge hurdle. The code signing is an is…

I can't imagine it's easy, but if you say you've done it I'll have to defer to you.

Re: Intel's GPU Drivers Now Collect Telemetry, Including 'How You Use Your Computer'

#126
post #3

This is definitely not what I'd be ready to approve: "Intel provides a long list of the types of data it collects" ... "Those include the types of websites you visit , which Intel says are dumped into 30 categories and logged without URLs or information that identifies you, including how long and how often you visit certain types of sites. " Emphasis mine. I surely don't expect that from a GPU driver company. Damn.

I wonder what are those categories and if Intel knows something we don't know. For instance, this information will be useful for the coming implementation of CBDC in various countries and form a basis of social credit score. Intel will probably make a ton of money by selling this information to governments.

Nvidia would likely have much better data to sell as they have collected data for years.

Re: Intel's GPU Drivers Now Collect Telemetry, Including 'How You Use Your Computer'

#128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

An airline put me in precheck a few years ago due to FF status. Now it requires an application to government and fingerprint. And global entry (immigration) wants an eyeball scan. Biometric collection to avoid a TSA massage is not privacy.

If you want to ALL avoid biometric collection when you travel, you're pretty much out of luck: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biometric_passport#/media/File... https://www.cbp.gov/travel/biometrics

Then of course every country in the world records you on arrival.

Re: Intel's GPU Drivers Now Collect Telemetry, Including 'How You Use Your Computer'

#129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> how many people do you see opting out of full body scans at TSA They're all in the pre-check line.

An airline put me in precheck a few years ago due to FF status. Now it requires an application to government and fingerprint. And global entry (immigration) wants an eyeball scan. Biometric collection to avoid a TSA massage is not privacy.

It basically always required all those things. For a brief period they were doing a trial with frequent fliers, but it was always the exception and never the norm.

But uh, make no mistake, they were only putting you into Pre because they had all the data you are being asked to provide already. The application is like your tax returns - the goal is to see if you provide what they already know, not to surprise them with something new.

Re: Intel's GPU Drivers Now Collect Telemetry, Including 'How You Use Your Computer'

#130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Even if you were to overcome the massive hurdle of porting a driver between two completely different kernel architectures Hmm, would that be a massive hurdle? I haven't looked at that driver code, but I have done a lot of driver development for both Windows and Linux, and have ported a number of drivers between the two. Sight unseen, it's not obvious to me that this would be a huge hurdle. The code signing is an is…

I can't imagine it's easy, but if you say you've done it I'll have to defer to you.

Don't defer to me. As I said, I've not looked at the code, so I don't actually know. I'm speculating based on my experience with other drivers.
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