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Gmail confidential mode

gsuiteupdates.googleblog.com

61–70 of 206 posts

Re: Gmail confidential mode

#61
post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Airbnb app prevents screenshots on certain pages on the OS level on Android, I'm sure the Gmail app will do the same.

> The Airbnb app prevents screenshots on certain pages on the OS level on Android it is creepily dystopian that this sort of behavior is even possible

I think you're overreacting there and misappropriating that term to express your outrage, without thinking of realistic use cases. It's a security feature. Bank apps and 2FA apps probably have it as well when displaying sensitive information. In Airbnb it's probably a protective measure to avoid sharing information via screenshots instead of links to the app / website though. That's not dystopian either though.

Re: Gmail confidential mode

#62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The Airbnb app prevents screenshots on certain pages on the OS level on Android it is creepily dystopian that this sort of behavior is even possible

I think you're overreacting there and misappropriating that term to express your outrage, without thinking of realistic use cases. It's a security feature. Bank apps and 2FA apps probably have it as well when displaying sensitive information. In Airbnb it's probably a protective measure to avoid sharing information via screenshots instead of links to the app / website though. That's not dystopian either though.

It's not a "security" feature, anything which can be displayed can be captured, you can even take a picture of your phone with another phone if you want, it just makes users annoyed without adding any security.

Re: Gmail confidential mode

#63

> Recipients who have malicious programs on their computer may still be able to copy or download your messages or attachments. “Malicious programs” such as any standards-complaint email software?

I assume the mail body is simply an URL pointing to somewhere the email can be read. Once there it would need to be rendered in the browser as an image.

Re: Gmail confidential mode

#64
post #6

Will this be a lock in feature that makes it harder for people using external mail clients?

Won't it simply fallback to regular email view on external clients, like outlook's "recall email" function?

The reasonable implementation would be to not send anything more than a link to a site where the receiver can view the content.

Re: Gmail confidential mode

#65
post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

why do you suppose that?

Because they very explicitly say they don't: https://gsuite.google.com/learn-more/security/security-white...

I'm probably misunderstanding "read your emails" but the link you provided suggests that GSuite users are very much subject to their "emails being read" but with greater restrictions on who can read it and why (https://gsuite.google.com/terms/dpa_terms.html). Lots of text about following EU or other legislation, but definitely this text does not say, "Google does not process your email." There is an entire page dedicated to "subprocessors" who consume your email to provide services (https://gsuite.google.com/intl/en/terms/subprocessors.html).

I get that this agreement presents restrictions on how Google can process GSuite user data, but it does not prevent it from doing so.

Re: Gmail confidential mode

#67
post #45

This has the potential to create a huge legal headache. We can no longer rely on email to be there in our archive and presented as evidence in court, but now have to worry about expiry. In many countries an exchange of emails which represents a series of terms, restrictions, an offer, and finally acceptance can be considered a legally binding contract between parties and can be presented in court. With expiry and ema…

If it’s from your org, vault keeps the records, if it’s from personal or outside gmail accounts those vaults should retain records. A court order could compel the other party to provide records. Of course this adds a complication but it’s not completely deleting the records everywhere.

>this adds a complication

This increases the cost of access to justice so it reduces access to justice.

Re: Gmail confidential mode

#68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The Airbnb app prevents screenshots on certain pages on the OS level on Android it is creepily dystopian that this sort of behavior is even possible

I think you're overreacting there and misappropriating that term to express your outrage, without thinking of realistic use cases. It's a security feature. Bank apps and 2FA apps probably have it as well when displaying sensitive information. In Airbnb it's probably a protective measure to avoid sharing information via screenshots instead of links to the app / website though. That's not dystopian either though.

How about app makers stop infantilizing us? I'm an adult, responsible for my actions and the consequences thereof. I keep records of actions I take on my bank's website, so I have to work around them disabling right-clicks.

I give them the benefit of Hanlon's razor as far as their reasoning is concerned, but it's not something to excuse.

Re: Gmail confidential mode

#69
post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The day this comes out I hope there will be a browser extension that automatically strips the retarded DRM by copying the html from the "viewer" website and replies to the original sender with the contents, so that a "cracked" copy of the email is saved in both the sender's and recipient's history as it should have been in the first place.

Netflix moved their high-definition DRM to end devices by now. The only way to rip their shows is by getting the output from HDMI.

You also need to defeat HDCP for HD content, which is possible but not as easy as a simple HDMI capture.

Re: Gmail confidential mode

#70
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If I were implementing something like this, it would just be a link to an auto-expiring viewer page, if you opened the email in a third-party email client. And according to Google, that's exactly how it's implemented: https://support.google.com/mail/answer/7674059 "Malicious programs" here most likely refers to things like keyloggers.

You aren't really sending email any more, just a link to a website.

Also requiring the recipient to log into Google to allow google to track them.
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