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I'd rather we not help our own government "more effectively" spy on American citizens, thanks.
Oof, you’re going to have a hard time using pretty much any technology then. Especially if the EARN IT act passes.
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On your iPhone you can go to Settings -> Privacy -> Location Services -> System Services -> Significant Locations and you will see that Apple does keep track of at least some of your location history and tries to analyze it if you don't actively turn it off.
> you will see that Apple does keep track of at least some of your location history That's not Apple keeping the data, that's your phone keeping the data. And that data isn't accessible to Apple - only you and your device. From page 6 of https://www.apple.com/privacy/docs/Location_Services_White_P... "This data is not shared with third parties, is fully encrypted, and can’t be read by Apple."
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I could argue the exact same about literally any database used by the government. Their tools are just easier to use and more expressive. If you don’t like the bullshit the government does, that seems like an issue you should take up with the government, no? You’re using a tech company as a scapegoat.
> Their tools are just easier to use and more expressive. And that's the problem – they're giving governments tools that let them more easily and effectively infringe on the privacy rights of their citizens. Privacy isn't invaded when the data is collected, although that's a necessary step; it's invaded when a cop or bureaucrat queries that data to see what a citizen has done. Giving them that tool is morally complic…
Quite frankly, I don't think any reasonable person would consider selling software to the government to be morally corrupt unless they were reasonably confident the government would use it for evil. Right now, nobody has made a compelling-enough argument to make me believe the government will use this software for evil.
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So governments already have all the potassium nitrate, Palantir is just helping them make bullets?
Sure, if you think querying a database is the same as shooting someone. If so, please don’t tell me you’re a DBA.
A crucial step in shooting someone (or a drone strike) is figuring out who to target and where they are.
The fact that this is an important use case for Palantir makes it not hyperbole to talk about "weaponising information".
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Given that Palantir is involved, I'd not touch it with a long stick https://tech.newstatesman.com/coronavirus/palantir-covid19-d...
Having worked at Palantir, I’m curious which outdated misconceptions you’re still harboring? It’s a giant federated search engine... that’s about it. They don’t even hold any data themselves, it all stays on site with the customer.
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Not sure about Android, but if you're on iOS you have the choice to disable "full location access". In case it's needed to run certain feature in the app, you can choose the "Allow while using" option. I do that will all the apps that require location access: local food delivery, cab services, vehicle rental and what not.
We can and for most apps I do this too. But some apps, like this one, require the location or they won't even start. Also at least on android(which also has fine-grained permissions now), this app specifically requires on-going(background?) location access. Recently this has also been made mandatory for employees, public and private. So organizations have to ensure all employees have this app on their smartphones. We…
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I disagree with that analogy. Palantir isn’t getting them more data. It’s helping them use it more effectively. The organizations already have all the data recorded. If you don’t like the data that organizations record, I’m right there with you, but demonizing the tools that allow them to access data more effectively is an absurd stance to take. Their system also does things like add an immutable audit log, or enforc…
I'd rather we not help our own government "more effectively" spy on American citizens, thanks.
HN won't let me reply to that, so I'll do it here. I didn't feel the need to offer a "defense" of Palantir there since I already outlined it above and don't feel like there's value in repeating myself.
But you asked, here you go - The government is going to use the data regardless, so long as they have it. The only effective recourse is to make them collecting or storing the data illegal, but good luck with that, seeing as even when it is illegal they do it anyways (see: Snowden).
Do you think is Palantir weren't there they'd just say "Ah well, I guess that's that" and be done with it? Nope; they'd go to Lockheed, Raytheon, IBM, or another long-time contractor to build a replacement almost immediately. The technology is genuinely nothing special. It federates searches across disparate database, and stitches results together.
But for me, having worked at Palantir, I know what mechanisms are provided to attempt to mitigate abuse. So as long as that data does exist and is going to be used, I'd prefer to have it be as well controlled and audited as possible. And sure, you can argue that the government may forego auditing, or be entirely corrupt, but that doesn't seem to me to be a good reason to not use tools that at least provide that capability.
The title says "ban use of location tracking", but the article says "will not allow use of GPS data". There are many ways to extrapolate a user's precise location from non-GPS data.