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The FBI has released a new Fitness app
- Thread starter Regulus Tera
- Start date
"Please download 'Totally Not an Activity-Tracking App' today! It's totally free and fun to use! And remember, this is totally not an activity-tracking app!"
Those are some light permission requests for a fitness app..
I still wouldn't download this.
It's really baffling how discernable people suddenly are when it comes to an app by the government, yet at the same time just press the okay button to evenmore permissions when it pertains a commercial app. I also would like people to explain how they think a fitness app should work without those permissions.
On the plus side, this possibly also allows military/FBI/CIA and other government bodies to use fitness apps again, since they were banned from services like Strava due to security risks.
I mean sure, and given it's supposedly a fitness app I guess geolocation, storage, and some network access make sense. But I believe it still kind of gives apps A LOT of capabilities. Even if it's standard practice. Those permissions are not nearly granular enough. Who knows what else the app is doing within those same permissions? And any joke aside, the fact that it's an app made by a governmental entity like the FBI should definitely make people ask questions.
And if true, asking for microphone access on top of everything else is kind of excessive...
Want to set Black people back 4 generations and look great while doing so? Downloaded our new Fitness App!
That's true. People should put a lot more thoughts about the apps installed on their phone. Whether it's commercial apps, or apps from government entities. The potential impacts of pressing that 'okay' button is still not clear for a lot of people. Or often they just don't care.
Not saying they shouldn't be, but more that they also should hold 'ever more data hungry for profit organizations' to some higher standards. At least people seem to slowly be realizing what kind of access they are giving with apps, cookies and the likes.
"Alright we know Trump loves his smartphone, so I asked Johnson to create a wiretap app."
"So I disguised the wiretap as a fitness app..."
::Everyone else facepalms::
lmao!"It only tracks your fitness progress guys, don't worry about all those other system permissions".
The thing about the app needing access to all that, a lot of apps require access to shit they don't need. It's why i don't have Facebook/Facebook msg on my phone. Most require shit like microphone, pictures, storage access, wifi access. Everything is spying on you.
I'll give you some free advice
Read the thread before you download...
They need all those to function if you also do voice calls and share pictures.
But considering the companies behind it, it sucks you can't trust them not to be shady.
It's not just social media. There are apps/games that have nothing to do with your camera, microphone etc but still require access. It's because every company is in the business of selling your information to ad agencies. I wouldn't be shocked if your own ISP/Mobile carrier already logs and sells most of this data anyways.
Trumps gotta download it now, what's he afraid of you got nothing to hide right? Just like the patriot act remember I hAvE nOtHiNg tO hIdE
Thing is, the potential impacts of those blanket permissions models do not necessarily always come from malicious intents of the company responsible for the apps. Bugs in software happen all the time. And in some cases those bugs inadvertently affect parts of the software that are governed by those permissions. It's no wonder there's such a market for zero-day exploits.
And don't get me started about how companies often mishandle the data they record through those permissions...
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