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Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

nytimes.com

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Re: Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

#161

Post by aembleton »

refurb wrote: post #150
HenryBemis wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I installed NoRoot Firewall, it has a "Access Log" tab, that logs all connections (allowed or block). My phone just didn't shut up'. Every other second some app (that wasn't in the foreground) was talking to some IP. My battery was getting slaughtered and my privacy as well. I proceeded to disable the "Run in background" almost every application, kept only a handful that are really needed (e.g. Signal). Since then my…

Question - does stopping apps from running in the background actually help privacy? Can’t the app just buffer all that data (including time stamps) and just send it when you use it again? Or is the app truly “turned off”?

The app can't collect and buffer data if it is not running.

Re: Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

#162

Post by KozmoNau7 »

kevingrahl wrote: post #65
wyldfire wrote: post #22

I'm about to go commit a crime. How do I turn off this feature?

I’m assuming you’re just joking but think about location tracking the next time you want to attend some demonstration for example. Should be perfectly legal to demonstrate but if you’ve got you’re phone on you someone will know you were there and protesting for X. That’s very valuable information not just for law enforcement but also for marketing/advertising and also for more scummy stuff like influencing your polit…

Activists are already well aware of the need for proper opsec.

Leave your phone at home, use a burner phone (and don't reuse it!), don't call any personal phone numbers,, don't use your normal accounts, don't blab on social media, and so on and so forth.

Basic stuff, but sometimes people do get careless.

Re: Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

#163

Post by ryacko »

KozmoNau7 wrote: post #162
kevingrahl wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m assuming you’re just joking but think about location tracking the next time you want to attend some demonstration for example. Should be perfectly legal to demonstrate but if you’ve got you’re phone on you someone will know you were there and protesting for X. That’s very valuable information not just for law enforcement but also for marketing/advertising and also for more scummy stuff like influencing your polit…

Activists are already well aware of the need for proper opsec. Leave your phone at home, use a burner phone (and don't reuse it!), don't call any personal phone numbers,, don't use your normal accounts, don't blab on social media, and so on and so forth. Basic stuff, but sometimes people do get careless.

There should be a service where you can buy the aggregated information that advertising exchanges have on you, as well as any other shared details.

Re: Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

#164

Post by speeq »

aembleton wrote: post #161
refurb wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Question - does stopping apps from running in the background actually help privacy? Can’t the app just buffer all that data (including time stamps) and just send it when you use it again? Or is the app truly “turned off”?

The app can't collect and buffer data if it is not running.

Are you sure? I’m currently learning how to develop apps for Android and during my testing I was surprised that you’re able to send silent data-only notifications to devices, even when the app is closed / removed from the drawer. You’re able to run background functions like update a local SQLite database but I haven’t tried making requests to a backend server yet (my guess is it works too) or accessing any sensors.

Re: Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

#165

Post by spurgu »

incompatible wrote: post #130
UweSchmidt wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Next level analysis could take into account which/whose phones are (untypically) switched off when the bombs went off. Next next level would take into account phones that are "left at home" - where the phone is not in use and not moving around according to usual movement patterns. I would guess that there is already substantial research done on exactly this, and that it is possible to detect many deviations of normal…

What are the typical movement patterns for a phone at home? Mine is usually sitting on a particular spot on my desk.

In that case you should be safe to go out and do some mischief! Or... image recognition in CCTV's might recognize your face and couple it with the fact that you're not carrying your mobile.

Re: Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

#166

Post by HenryBemis »

speeq wrote: post #164
aembleton wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The app can't collect and buffer data if it is not running.

Are you sure? I’m currently learning how to develop apps for Android and during my testing I was surprised that you’re able to send silent data-only notifications to devices, even when the app is closed / removed from the drawer. You’re able to run background functions like update a local SQLite database but I haven’t tried making requests to a backend server yet (my guess is it works too) or accessing any sensors.

I don't develop apps for Android, but I do for iOS. I will assume that my operating systems knowledge though is from Windows/Unix. To use Windows terminology, an app is running either as 'manually launcher's or as a service (system launched). Android (at least my Honor phone and any tablet I ever used) gives me the ability to manually intervene and change the auto-launch and the background running. I windows that would be things found (and 'killed') in SysInternals AutoRuns.

I don't leave 'everything on default' in the power/background running settings, and thus I don't give the apps the option to do what the device decidsd. Plus with the firewall I Block all the nasties (e.g. 31.13.x.x - FB, or the various IPs for ads and tracking).

Re: Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

#167

Post by syshum »

DontGiveTwoFlux wrote: post #2

The article describes a case where an innocent man had to spend a week in jail. Eventually, he was released and the presumed actual perpetrator was caught. The lead seemed to come from the location data, so it wasn’t useless at least. But the so called justice system says that it got it right here. The innocent man lost his job when he couldn’t work for a week. Depending on his situation he could miss rent and be evi…

too bad the 4th amendment, which is suppose to bar these very type of generalized warrants and searches, is not respected by the courts at all, and has soo many "exceptions" that it might as well not even be present anymore.

Re: Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

#168

Post by syshum »

shhehebehdh wrote: post #122
giancarlostoro wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This also showcases how innocent until proven guilty is not honored at all. Don't throw me in jail just because you're investigating me, throw me in jail if I run off out of town or do something sketchy to interfere with the investigation. If I am not guilty I wont be running out of town, but I sure wont be talking to you without a lawyer no matter what[0]. [0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-7o9xYp7eE

I think this problem is best solved by requiring that the state make amends for arrests which turn out to be incorrect. You lose your job? State funds two months of severance (more if there’s an economic downturn and it’s harder to find a job). Evicted? State provides relocation assistance. Etc. this would also probably be a great disincentive for false arrests. Of course there could be unintended consequences, inclu…

I think this problem is best solved by

1. Honoring the plain text, and original intent of the Constitution

2. Holding law enforcement personally liable for their mistakes (i.e ending immunity)

3. Ending the rubber stamp warrant process where law enforcement routinely lies to obtain warrents

4. Ending the moronic 3rd party doctrine exemption to the 4th amendment

What I do not think it s a resolution is putting the tax payers on the hook for monetary compensation for the bad actions of law enforcement, that provides zero incentive for law enforcement to change their aggressive, unconstitutional, and authoritarian methods, policies and procedures

Re: Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

#169

Post by syshum »

loteck wrote: post #80
rexpop wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My representatives do not listen to me.

They probably do, but they also have to listen to hundreds of thousands of others just like you, and pick which opportunities to act on. Can you understand why they may both listen to you and not take action on your concern?

Multiple studies have been done to show they in fact do not listen to the average person

The most famous in recent memory is the 2014 Study "Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens" (https://doi.org/10.1017/S1537592714001595)

Which Concludes

"In the United States, indicate, the majority does not rule at least not in the causal sense of actually determining policy outcomes. When a majority of citizens disagrees with economic elites or with organized interests, they generally lose ... majorities of the American public actually have little influence over the policies our government adopts."

Re: Tracking Phones, Google Is a Dragnet for the Police

#170

Post by incompatible »

spurgu wrote: post #165
incompatible wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What are the typical movement patterns for a phone at home? Mine is usually sitting on a particular spot on my desk.

In that case you should be safe to go out and do some mischief! Or... image recognition in CCTV's might recognize your face and couple it with the fact that you're not carrying your mobile.

I don't usually carry it when I go out, actually. I may be unusual.
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