Google should be in favor of privacy, their advertising model serves ads only when you want them about the subject you’re searching for. Facebook relies on knowing everything about you to show you ads when you don’t want them, hoping they’ll give you something you’re interested in clicking on.
Google’s new popup will further weaken Facebook’s advertisement business
151–160 of 221 posts
Re: Google’s new popup will further weaken Facebook’s advertisement business
#152Whenever I read articles like this, I get more and more horrified. I mean, I know that adtech spy on us a lot, but I didn't knew for example that using Bluetooth while the app is shut down was possible. Makes me very wary even of dumbphones, for example I bought a dumbphone recently, and yet it came with Facebook and Google Assistant both pre-installed.
> Whenever I read articles like this, I get more and more horrified. > Makes me very wary even of dumbphones If you care about it, consider GNU/Linux phones, Librem 5 and Pinephone, which run FLOSS and have hardware kill switches for microphone and other things.
Last time I checked, these phones are not allowed in my country.
In my country all phones must have permission from the government to operate, and the phone manufacturer that need to ask this permission in first place, any phone detected by cell towers that aren't one of them, can be legally banned from the network (not just YOUR phone, but all identical model phones!)
Re: Google’s new popup will further weaken Facebook’s advertisement business
#153Whenever I read articles like this, I get more and more horrified. I mean, I know that adtech spy on us a lot, but I didn't knew for example that using Bluetooth while the app is shut down was possible. Makes me very wary even of dumbphones, for example I bought a dumbphone recently, and yet it came with Facebook and Google Assistant both pre-installed.
Some years ago, I questioned those sort of pre-installations on smartphones of Facebook and G-whatever on HN. I got some reply that this is what users wanted. Total nonsense. At that time, most people who bought these computers had zero familiarity with these things. Anyway, users were never asked. There is no opt-out. There is a long history of pre-installed crapware on computers. It predates "smartphones" and "apps". Resistance from computer purchasers today seems nearly non-existant. Not too long ago, we used to remove this stuff after purchasing a new computer, e.g., a laptop.
Re: Google’s new popup will further weaken Facebook’s advertisement business
#154But Google still gets that info, just not Facebook. How is this not abuse of its market position?
For me, it's a lesser evil thing I guess. If I have to choose only between Facebook and Google, I'd choose Google to have my data.
In 10 years google could have 50% different work force and different leadership. Does that make you reconsider your choice?
Re: Google’s new popup will further weaken Facebook’s advertisement business
#155Earlier quoted context omitted.
I get pop ups from sites all the time asking me to try their site, every darn time I visit. Mai it stuff like Reddit, Imgur, most news sites. I’ve tried the apps and they’re worse. I’m not sure there’s any explanation other than more ad/data revenue. Are there apps that give superior experience than web sites nowadays? Even not accounting for privacy, the apps are generally just shittier with less functionality. I us…
> Are there apps that give superior experience than web sites nowadays? The IMDB app is far better (to me) than the dumpster-fire that has become their website. Other than that, I agree with the sentiment that most apps for websites are not worthwhile to install.
It is not necessarily a dumpster fire if one uses something else besides a popular graphical web browser to make the HTTP request and view the text. The "modern" web browser is complicit in creating the dumpster fire. Web developers can provide the inflammable materials, but a "modern" browser that by default auto-loads resources and runs Javascript is required to ignite it. There is no fire unless the right (=wrong) HTTP client is used.
I use a text-only browser and write simple command line "apps" (scripts) to retrieve text from sites like IMDB. It works very well. Opening pages on these sites in a "modern" web browser is an entirely different experience. We cannot ignore the complicity of the "modern" web browser in degrading the "user experience" in cases like this one.
Re: Google’s new popup will further weaken Facebook’s advertisement business
#156So we basically are seeing that google was "right" from their point of view in securing a mobile OS. Facebook maybe thought this day would never arrive and could have avoided that by doing their own mobile OS too. Well, maybe they declared this battle as lost and focused on the next one: VR. Problem is that VR took too long to arrive and death on mobile can kill Facebook?
> Problem is that VR took too long to arrive and death on mobile can kill Facebook? Facebook owns the most popular messaging app in the world (WhatsApp) and two of the most popular social networks in the world (Facebook, Instagram). Are they really in trouble because of the Android/iOS changes?
People need a phone to use Instagram. Instagram makes money out of ads, not out of its users. So anything that threatens this revenue source can kill Facebook.
They can still do ads without tracking, but would that still be a trillion dollar business?
Re: Google’s new popup will further weaken Facebook’s advertisement business
#157Earlier quoted context omitted.
There's several reasons why everyone wants you to install the app, some of which aren't sketchy.
I get pop ups from sites all the time asking me to try their site, every darn time I visit. Mai it stuff like Reddit, Imgur, most news sites. I’ve tried the apps and they’re worse. I’m not sure there’s any explanation other than more ad/data revenue. Are there apps that give superior experience than web sites nowadays? Even not accounting for privacy, the apps are generally just shittier with less functionality. I us…
Everyone should have a computer powerful enough to run vms for compartmentalisation.
If you can simulate 5 different phones it won`t matter if someone gets their spyware onto one of them.
Re: Google’s new popup will further weaken Facebook’s advertisement business
#158Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have an app for most sites, its called my browser. If the app isn't taking advantage of a feature on my phone then it doesn't make sense to package it as an app.. unless they are getting something out of it. Going to make a broad and sweeping generalization here: they are getting money from tracking.
Counterthought: I've been running a popular web-only site for about 5 years now and I get a little under a hundred requests per month for it to be made "into an app". A lot of users just want to be able "to install it" or to "get to it from my home screen" or "to get to it faster" (even after pointing out they can add bookmarks to home screens). It's also tempting from my POV to make an app just for discoverability r…
You can contract out the app development.
Freelancers are cheap if you hire from poor countries.
Re: Google’s new popup will further weaken Facebook’s advertisement business
#159Whenever I read articles like this, I get more and more horrified. I mean, I know that adtech spy on us a lot, but I didn't knew for example that using Bluetooth while the app is shut down was possible. Makes me very wary even of dumbphones, for example I bought a dumbphone recently, and yet it came with Facebook and Google Assistant both pre-installed.
Some years ago, I questioned those sort of pre-installations on smartphones of Facebook and G-whatever on HN. I got some reply that this is what users wanted. Total nonsense. At that time, most people who bought these computers had zero familiarity with these things. Anyway, users were never asked. There is no opt-out. There is a long history of pre-installed crapware on computers. It predates "smartphones" and "apps…
Custumors need to be taught agency to avoid this stuff.
How can we teach it to them?
Re: Google’s new popup will further weaken Facebook’s advertisement business
#160Earlier quoted context omitted.
Google has a reputation for good internal controls (that Facebook was lacking at the time).
Going slightly tangential: It seems like there are a lot more political activists working at Google. It also seems likely that this will backfire in a spectacular way at some point. The risk here is politically strategic data leaks of individual user data - not Cambridge Analytica-like situations. Could be blackmail material on a few key people, or perhaps a giant data leak on millions of people from the "enemy side"…
That will be a problem with any company that doesn`t let you encrypt your data.
It is technically impossible for something like Protonmail to read my emails.
This feature does not exist with most other email providers e.g. Gmail.
Even if we drop the activist threat model there is still the possibility of external hacking.
Possibly organized crime. I heard of one Yandex employee caught selling access to Yandex users email accounts.
Maybe something similar could happen?
I do not know which internal systems Google or related companies have to prevent employees from accessing user data.
Does anyone here have resources on this topic?