Comment by const_cast | Hacker News Reader

Comment by const_cast | Hacker News Reader

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> source?

When I'm connected to a VPN that's far away, applications with my precise location, such as Google Maps, use my real-life location.

> You also imply that mobile operating systems are surreptitiously sending locations back to google/apple even if users have all location related features disabled

I did not, I said the operating system has access to your location, which it does. You're relying purely on trust in both Apple and Google to not send that location out. The toggle is just that, a software toggle in an app. The operating system is billions of lines of closed-source code.

> and this falls into same category as "facebook is secretly listening to you" territory until proven otherwise

Meaning, almost certainly true? If I gave Facebook microphone access, I would 100% expect it to be using my microphone for analytics. If you read their privacy policy, this is definitely allowed.

Personally, in my opinion, you'd have to be very naive to think tech isn't trying to maximize it's gains here. If you can get the data, and there's no consequences, and it's allowed... why wouldn't you?

>When I'm connected to a VPN that's far away, applications with my precise location, such as Google Maps, use my real-life location.

that's because VPNs don't change your phone's geolocation, which is determined by GPS/wifi signals. It's not a "VPN bypass" in any meaningful sense, any more than amazon knowing where you live because you filled out your address isn't a "VPN bypass".

>Meaning, almost certainly true? If I gave Facebook microphone access, I would 100% expect it to be using my microphone for analytics. If you read their privacy policy, this is definitely allowed.

Both iOS and Android has microphone indicators, so the idea that it's surreptitiously listening to you behind your back is doubtful, or requires some sort of conspiracy between it and Google/Apple. That's not impossible, but should be considered a crank theory until proven otherwise.

>[...] and there's no consequences, and it's allowed... why wouldn't you?

Strongly disagree. Google has been sued and lost for much lesser privacy infringements, like tracking users while in incognito, which if you read the suit is pretty absurd. Evidence that any big tech company was intentionally eavesdropping on users (ie. excluding something like voice assistants being accidentally triggered) would be a bombshell.

> Google has been sued and lost for much lesser privacy infringements, like tracking users while in incognito, which if you read the suit is pretty absurd.

But those suits dont matter:

- the penalty they have to pay is laughably small

- consumers by and large dont know or dont care enough to switch away from Chrome.

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