If you use Google Search, you may notice they've inserted a new "AI Mode" on the Search Results page. This fresh piece of enshittification consumes prime real estate in the UI: the first menu item. It's another example of a Big Tech company pushing AI hype and adding a new feature nobody asked for.

The fix is to add this term to your web browser's ad-blocker: "google.com##.olrp5b"

#Google #GoogleSearch #AIMode #AI #AIHype #Enshittification #AdBlock #DeceptiveDesignPattern

No, Chrome, I like those extensions because they unfuck my User Experience. Rather than unilaterally switching-off extensions such as ad-blockers, how about Google makes Chrome better, and stops being so aggressively awful to plugin developers and billions of users?

To add insult to injury, even if you tell Chrome to keep those extensions, it hits you with a deceptive design pattern. Chrome switches-off those extensions, and you need to go to chrome://extensions/ and switch them all back on again.

#Chrome #Google #AdBlocker #DeceptiveDesignPattern

Dropbox has started to give your files to OpenAI.

They claim it's only if you use their AI tools, and they claim OpenAI will use your data for only 30 days and then delete it. I think that's a terrible abuse of user rights and a security disaster waiting to happen.

Confusingly, they've rolled-out this malfeature to some users but not all (yet). My partner & me compared the "Settings" page on our Dropbox accounts — the "Third-Party AI" tab is there for one of us but not the other.

The setting is switched on by default. This is a "dark pattern" (also known as a "deceptive design pattern") that ignores user consent. If you don't know about it, you can't opt-out. Worryingly, if you're slow to opt-out then there's a chance they've scraped your data already. It's a harsh reminder of the saying "If you're not paying for the product, you are the product".

How to stop Dropbox from sharing your personal files with OpenAI
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/12/13/how-to-stop-dropbox-from-sharing-your-personal-files-with-openai.html

#Dropbox #AI #OpenAI #Security #Privacy #DarkPattern #DeceptiveDesignPattern #IfYoureNotPayingForTheProductYouAreTheProduct