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Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

discuss.privacyguides.net

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Re: Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

#501

Post by soraminazuki »

Gigachad wrote: post #402
0x262d wrote: post #290

Earlier quoted context omitted.

right, that comment reads as if they're victims for intentionally putting themselves in the position of holding and reading the maximum amount of information about everyone they can. bizarre

There’s also no indication Google wants to wind down Gmail. This change just looks like an aggressive method to stop bots and spammers.

It also happens to be convenient for data mining, which happens to be the case for every single security measure that Google takes. It's almost as if Google is doing everything it can to undermine people's privacy, and the occasional security benefits are just side effects of that.

Re: Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

#502

Post by soraminazuki »

b00ty4breakfast wrote: post #240
Night_Thastus wrote: post #177

People complain a lot about Gmail, but honestly I kind of understand Google's plight here. They've essentially gotten roped into maintaining a huge chunk of internet infrastructure, for free . If they ever shut it down the whole world would end up rioting because it's so widely used. But it's expensive, complicated and time-consuming to maintain - and both a source of and recipient of endless waves of spam and scams.…

This is their entire MO though; they offer a free product to build a customer base then they figure out how to get to know them biblically in an attempt to extract a profit and it doesn't matter how underhanded or unsavory it is. Maybe at some point in the mists of time, someone just wanted to offer people a good email service but at this point it's a pattern of behavior across every Google consumer product so I can'…

Yeah, this often repeated narrative about poor Google being a charity losing tons of money is bonkers. They're a trillion dollar company for heaven's sake and no private entity amasses that much wealth by asking nicely. I can't roll my eyes any harder.

Re: Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

#503

Post by sdevonoes »

Night_Thastus wrote: post #177

People complain a lot about Gmail, but honestly I kind of understand Google's plight here. They've essentially gotten roped into maintaining a huge chunk of internet infrastructure, for free . If they ever shut it down the whole world would end up rioting because it's so widely used. But it's expensive, complicated and time-consuming to maintain - and both a source of and recipient of endless waves of spam and scams.…

But gmail is not free. Google benefits from our email data, way more than charging a mere 9.99$/month

Re: Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

#504

Post by throwaway173738 »

KennyBlanken wrote: post #460
elmomle wrote: post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They'd generate a huge amount of ill will by shutting it down, and that in turn would likely lead to a nontrivial share of people moving away from Google core products (like search) out of pure spite.

To what? Google Search sucks thanks to the idiot who ran Yahoo into the ground, but everyone else sucks more. Every time I try to use non-google search the results are virtually useless. Google has firmly been in the "we're so big we can suck at everything, but you'll still use our stuff because you have no other choice" phase that Microsoft was (is?) in. They've dominated email so much that their spam filter makes i…

kagi has been pretty good. Not great but way better for searches for information that happen to have a lot of people selling you something.

Re: Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

#505

Post by windexh8er »

aboardRat4 wrote: post #112
windexh8er wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The simple fact that you believe this is insane to me. Microsoft? Security and compliance ? Ahhh, yes the north star of security! No, you don't need either of these companies if you need a corporate stack for communication and collaboration. And anyone who believes Microsoft or Google is doing anything out of the ordinary to protect their users or data is out of the loop.

>No, you don't need either of these companies if you need a corporate stack for communication and collaboration A lot of corporate (customer) email sevices drop email from everybody except a very short whitelist.

This is a fascinating trope since I have zero issues and host many domains on my own infra. Zero issues with either.

Re: Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

#506

Post by vel0city »

account42 wrote: post #476
denkmoon wrote: post #424

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are plenty of free email services _after_ Gmail too. If Google want to destroy their product, have at it.

There aren't any alternatives that let you keep you @gmail.com address.

I'm not able to continue to receive mail at the apartment I lived at a decade ago. It turns out after I stopped paying for the apartment I lost the ability to control that mailbox.

This is a normal thing to happen in the physical world. We really shouldn't have such strict connections between email being a primary identifier for a user, requiring only a single one on an account, and not letting users change what they consider their primary email address. Email addresses can and should change over time. If someone really wants to ensure you have a piece of digital real estate one should get into the "ownership" game and get your own domain. People somehow end up buying and selling houses all the time which is far more complicated paperwork-wise, and yet we act like registering a domain name and configuring it for an email provider is just nearly impossible for normal people to handle.

Re: Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

#507

Post by windexh8er »

SV_BubbleTime wrote: post #51
windexh8er wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is hilarious. Microsoft has had many issues and outages with M365 in the last few years. I mean, I guess if you don't rely on mail, then sure.

We are 365 shop… I cannot think of one single time the 365 being down has affected us at all. Maybe you’re right I don’t know. Maybe your region is worse than my region.

Then I would gather you don't rely on mail like many of their customers. Just do a simple search of M365 outages and you'll get plenty just in the last year.

Re: Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

#508

Post by account42 »

vel0city wrote: post #506
account42 wrote: post #476

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There aren't any alternatives that let you keep you @gmail.com address.

I'm not able to continue to receive mail at the apartment I lived at a decade ago. It turns out after I stopped paying for the apartment I lost the ability to control that mailbox. This is a normal thing to happen in the physical world. We really shouldn't have such strict connections between email being a primary identifier for a user, requiring only a single one on an account, and not letting users change what they…

It's a giant pain in the ass in the real world. I don't think we should accept such friction for switching providers online just because we have such limits in superficially similar operations.

Re: Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

#509

Post by vel0city »

account42 wrote: post #508
vel0city wrote: post #506

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not able to continue to receive mail at the apartment I lived at a decade ago. It turns out after I stopped paying for the apartment I lost the ability to control that mailbox. This is a normal thing to happen in the physical world. We really shouldn't have such strict connections between email being a primary identifier for a user, requiring only a single one on an account, and not letting users change what they…

It's a giant pain in the ass in the real world. I don't think we should accept such friction for switching providers online just because we have such limits in superficially similar operations.

Its not really just superficially similar, its incredibly similar. Its their servers, its their domain. If they want to stop hosting email services on their domain and delete gmail.com IN MX records they should be allowed to do so in line with whatever contractual promises they've made. If an apartment complex wants to shut down and tear down the building they can do so once they've completed all lease commitments.

What are you suggesting happen otherwise? Once you're an email provider you're forever committed to being an email provider for those users until the end of time?

Re: Gmail registration now requires scanning a QR code and sending a text message

#510

Post by mapt »

s1mplicissimus wrote: post #323
WalterBright wrote: post #295

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except gmail is hardly a cartel, etc. I've never had a gmail account.

I'd assume that you also never tried running your own email server and have the email actually delivered to a gmail address, then.

We needed a stamp.

Regulated "Emails cost 1 penny" would have worked fine. All you need to do to meaningfully fight spam is have a cost that isn't completely negligible; Spammers started out at a rate where they spend less than a day's wages to message literally every human being on the planet; At those costs even finding a single person you can convince of your Nigerian prince account nets you a profit.

We controlled the pipes and the formats in the 90's and 00's almost unilaterally. We should have made a stamp.

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