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GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

blog.tomaszdunia.pl

521–530 of 967 posts

Re: GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

#521

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One time I had to reset my password with the power company - they had such a system, and the lady had to read me something like: Uh4zB4DP55WD! Apparently I was a bit salty with the system when I set it. The fact that she shouldn't have even been able to look up the password in the first place due to hashing was lost on her.

That's pretty funny on a few levels, not in the least that they required a "secure" password like that but stored them in plain text.

I regularly conduct transactions at the branch of my local bank wherein they ask me for no credentials whatsoever. I also once forgot to bring my account number with me and the teller said "no worries, I'll look it up for you." Kind of horrifying.

Re: GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

#522
post #319

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hope and pray that is a Samsung S Ultra device. The built-in stylus transforms the whole user experience, I would not go back to a device that I must swipe my dirty fingers across.

I’m just imagining myself pulling out the stylus on the train/plane, dropping it, and watching it roll away forever.

Millions of owners of Samsung devices somehow manage to not do that every day.

Re: GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

#523
post #479

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, it's a huge difference. However , you can install the very latest Google Camera app through the Aurora app (or Play Market), and it works perfectly except you don't get photo preview within that app ; to fix that minor issue, you can install the Gphotoshim which someone else mentioned in the comments. On the other hand, if you switch to the latest Google camera app, you will not really be participating in making…

Duckduckgo's only hit for "Gphotoshim" is your comment. Any hint at what to look for?

https://github.com/CaramelFur/GPhotosShim

Re: GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

#524
post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I can use my bank on some linux distro, crazy that they trust me enjoy it while it lasts. hardware attestation requirement for (at least) banking apps is a question of 'when', not 'if'.

I hope this isn't going to be the case universally. If my bank cuts off my access from my browser-on-linux setup, then I'm finding an alternative bank (hopefully some will always exist), which I don't say lightly since I've been with my current bank since I was old enough to have a bank account.

You'll quickly find out - as people are finding out in EU nowadays - that *no* bank will go through the trouble of fighting checklist security auditors to keep your linuxes working.

Wait till you find out that your prefered Linux bank won't have the same mortgage terms as you'd like and you'll be running to buy a Google/Apple phone to get those % down.

Re: GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

#525
post #382

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can the PIN change? How to issue new key if needed? How does it integrate with the voting?

> Can the PIN change? You can change it in the app, yes. > How to issue new key if needed? I think you’ll have to reissue your ID. There’s also digi-ID (similar e-signature certificate on a card, but without any ID features), Mobiil-ID (e-signature on a SIM-card, no idea how it works), Smart-ID (in app, tied to secure storage in Android/iOS, cross-signed by the server which is supposed to check the device somehow) an…

How much the certificate costs and lasts?

Re: GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

#526

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A collegue of mine was tech lead at a large online bank. For the mobile app, the first and foremost threat that security auditors would find was "The app runs on a rooted phone!!!". Security theater at its finest, checkboxes gotta be checked. The irony is that the devs were using rooted phones for QA and debugging.

As long as copying some numbers, printed on a piece of plastic, into an online order form is all the authentication that is needed for a transaction, anything more than that is inherently security theater.

That’s why for most transactions I do with a credit card in my country, you need an extra validation with the mobile app. It is mostly American websites that do not enable this functionality.

Re: GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

#527
post #395

I personally tend to own two Phones. One all-day carry GrapheneOS device (Pixel 8) and an older WiFi and at home only iPhone for all payment and ensurance stuff. This is inconvenient in some ways, but at least it is sort of privacy as good as it gets while still being able to run official apps when I need them at home. To de-google the phone, I use F-Droid as primary App store, Aurora as fallback for non-f-droid Apps…

What would sandboxing an app like Google Maps look like? There are definitely situations where a sub-par map app would be detrimental. Obviously it's going to send data to Google, but do I have to sign into an account or will it have some other way of identifying my phone if I used a one-off account just for it?

It doesn't need to be logged on to a Google account, and it supports locally storing map data and generating routes, so you could turn on network access, download local maps, block network access, then use it for navigation without it calling home.

Re: GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

#528
post #521

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's pretty funny on a few levels, not in the least that they required a "secure" password like that but stored them in plain text.

I regularly conduct transactions at the branch of my local bank wherein they ask me for no credentials whatsoever. I also once forgot to bring my account number with me and the teller said "no worries, I'll look it up for you." Kind of horrifying.

Oh! But that’s safe! Secret question time: What’s your mother’s maiden name.

Re: GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

#529
post #499
post #425

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, I really meant that AOSP is not Android. Android builds on top of AOSP. I elaborated here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47047167

Well. I do get your point and I am aware of the situation and how Google pivoted away from a truly open source OS by systematically moving components like the keyboard to separate closed source apps. The fact remains though that it's Android Open Source Project where all Android systems are based on. It's become sort of a GNU/Linux kind of distinction where the "certified" Android is AOSP + Google. Though the situati…

> Though the situation is not that clear because there are other Android based phones that do not contain the Google layer but are still Android.

Which ones? I'm pretty sure that being "Android" means that you are certified by Google. You cannot sell an Android device if it's not certified by Google.

> It's become sort of a GNU/Linux kind of distinction where the "certified" Android is AOSP + Google

It depends on the context. If someone asks you "are you using Windows or Linux?", answering "I'm using GNU/Linux" is a way to show that you are that kind of people. But if someone asks you what userland you are using, then suddenly it makes sense to make a distinction between GNU and, say, busybox.

When someone asks me if I have and iPhone or Android, I say Android (even though I am running GrapheneOS). But when we're talking specifically about an alternative to Android that builds upon AOSP, then I think it makes sense to make a distinction. There is a whole (niche) market of AOSP-based alternatives to Android, that users choose specifically because they are not Android. When we talk about that, it makes sense to use the right words.

Re: GrapheneOS – Break Free from Google and Apple

#530

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Especially in Europe! They shouldn't be forcing you to run an OS from an American company.

Even the EU initiative Wero requires Google or Apple. You can't even use it on a desktop pc and you're not even allowed to have developer options on. Ridiculous. I've never seen any app that is so strict.

Weird, because Wero is an internationalization of the dutch iDeal and that worked fine without any apps. You clicked ‘continue to bank’, select your bank, and then login on the bank web portal.
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