Mastodawn

endolex Jul 7, 2023

The Zuck suck is in full swing. In the few short hours since I started using #Threads, #DuckDuckGo has already blocked over 200 data tracking attempts. These include things like "headphone status" and "screen density."

EDIT for clarity: The 200+ attempts *may* have been overcounted as DDG hadn't tooled their VPN for Threads yet.

#DataPrivacy #Meta #ThreadsApp

EDIT: To anyone who is using this post to bash anyone and everyone who is using Threads, please read this https://writing.exchange/@kreig/110673494921536371

Kreig Durham (@[email protected])

Since my post about the #DuckDuckGo app and #Threads is still getting lots of attention, I want to be clear about how I actually feel about #DataPrivacy. It's a lot like #recycling. Yeah it's a good thing to protect your own personal data, but if we're being honest, it's not effective on an individual scale. We need good legislation at a national level to meaningfully change the game for the benefit of us all. Until then, no matter how careful you are, you're still being negatively affected.

Writing Exchange

Kreig Jul 6, 2023

Good God this blew up. I'm turning off notifications for this post, so if I don't reply, that's why 😂

卩丂ㄚ匚ㄖ卩ㄖ山乇尺 Jul 6, 2023

@kreig imagina o APP instalado o que não iria acontecer ? 😂

William Fonseca 🌲🌲Jul 6, 2023

@Coja @kreig sw instalar o app é capaz ate dele pedir teste de virgindade

卩丂ㄚ匚ㄖ卩ㄖ山乇尺 Jul 6, 2023

@Williamfonseca @kreig kkk

Penugem Jul 8, 2023

@Coja
Mais aquilo já não é o app instalado não? Quero dizer, atualmente não tem nenhum outro jeito de usar o threads além do app pelo que eu sei
@kreig

卩丂ㄚ匚ㄖ卩ㄖ山乇尺 Jul 8, 2023

@kreig sim esta instalado. Mais se a gente olhar um lado sistemático URL rebenta o user 😂 ai entra ne uma conversa tao difícil pois nessa linha sou só #lammer

Penugem Jul 8, 2023

@Coja
Desculpa mais, eu não entendi...
@kreig

卩丂ㄚ匚ㄖ卩ㄖ山乇尺 Jul 8, 2023

@Sparks @kreig sim te entendi também não sei te explicar direito 😿 mais sei que não da de confiar muito nos aplicativos.

Penugem Jul 8, 2023

@Coja
Oh, bem, tá tudo bem!
É, apps podem ser perigosos
@kreig

卩丂ㄚ匚ㄖ卩ㄖ山乇尺 Jul 8, 2023

@Sparks @kreig 99 por cento de chance de ser perigoso aquele velho um por cento de ser amigável.

卩丂ㄚ匚ㄖ卩ㄖ山乇尺 Jul 8, 2023

@Sparks @kreig sabe um conselho tu aprender aos pouco sobre ethical hacker T.I tecnico informática você aprende outro mundo a principio assustador mais após o acostume tu passa a olhar a internet com outro olhar passa a ver ela como se fosse a vida normal com seus riscos e acertos que nela tem.

卩丂ㄚ匚ㄖ卩ㄖ山乇尺 Jul 8, 2023

@Sparks @kreig porque cada um de nos entende de uma forma das vez você entende melhor que eu e sabe expor de um jeito mais bonito no dizer

Kiss.My.Grits 🇺🇲 + 🧀 + ⚽Jul 6, 2023

@kreig I guess if we want to reach a lot of people, we have to sacrifice a lot of personal data. Not worth it.

ReefBuoy Jul 6, 2023

@AnotherDayInHell @kreig Not worth it one bit. That’s a lot of data collected. Scary

Keep Migrants, Deport MAGA Jul 6, 2023

@kreig @lisamelton Wowzers. Is that via DuckDuckGo web site or DDG app? I’ve not seen that screen

Kreig Jul 6, 2023

@nathandh @lisamelton The #DuckDuckGo app for Android. You can enable a VPN that does its best to block app tracking requests.

30YrdScreamer Jul 6, 2023

@kreig didn't know that, I've now got it working. So, thanks 👍

Roman Chapman Jul 7, 2023

@30yrdscreamer @kreig Wish there was a simple iOS solution that doesn’t require a full Mac.

Bobby Jul 6, 2023

@kreig damn they get more data on people then the FBI

Gevian Jul 6, 2023

@bobby
Sure? 😜
@kreig

Daniel Retana Jul 6, 2023

@kreig Would be shorter if it only shows which data they aren't collecting.

ilyess Jul 6, 2023

@DannyBoy That would probably result in a blank screen.

Ryan Welsh Jul 6, 2023

@kreig Damn… thanks for sharing this!

ReallyCanadianFly Jul 6, 2023

@kreig They probably get all that from my Facebook account, so there's no way I'm giving them more with that app. I'll stick with Mastodon.

Ami Angelwings Jul 6, 2023

@kreig @amydentata I misread that as "hedgehog status" at first

Charlotte 猫 Icosa Fide Jul 6, 2023

@kreig the threads launch might be the most facebook thing facebook has ever done

Jfrites Jul 6, 2023

@kreig seriously. Why would anyone join Threads?

Haven’t we all given these billionaires enough free data.

🦆Jul 6, 2023

@kreig In case anyone comes to this thread and wonders why you need to protect your hedgehog status or screen density, be sure to read to up on Browser Fingerprinting.

This sort of trackability isn’t obvious at first, as it would require so much data about so many people at once to be useful. But, yeah, they have that.

https://coveryourtracks.eff.org/about

#BrowserFingerprinting #security #privacy

Cover Your Tracks | About

See how trackers view your browser

Florian Schmidt Jul 6, 2023

@raineer
Hedgehog status?
@kreig

username Jul 6, 2023

@schmidt_fu i'm very private about my hedgehog status...

@raineer @kreig

Xilabar the Dice Goblin Jul 6, 2023

@raineer what's a hedgehog status? I mean, I'd love to have one as a pet lol😂

Michael ☕️Jul 7, 2023

@raineer @kreig
"Hedgehog status"
That's the cutest thing I've ever seen autocorrupt do.

A Wolf In Cheap Clothing Jul 6, 2023

@kreig
It's Meta, what did you expect?

Kaveinthran (no longer here)Jul 6, 2023

@kreig do use it inside the duckduckgo browser?

darkcl Jul 6, 2023

@kreig this is expected, your data and privacy is their product

DopeGhoti Jul 6, 2023

@kreig
Why in the name of the tap-dancing Flying Spaghetti Monster and Bob Dobbs would Great Value Twitter have any reason to know whether or not you have headphones connected to your mobile device? That is madness, and just reassures me that I was right to stop booking faces, gramming instas, and to not even attempt to pull a thread.

rhizome Jul 6, 2023

@DopeGhoti
Because you might change your screen name, or instance, or anything that might make you look like a different person to everyone here except them.
@kreig

Alberto Berretti Jul 6, 2023

@rhizome @DopeGhoti @kreig Even Accuweather checks headphones status. They often use third party toolkits, and I suspect that whatever the toolkit collects they take it without even considering if it is actually useful or not.

Alberto Berretti Jul 6, 2023

@rhizome @DopeGhoti @kreig Apparently on my phone Threads doesn't collect anything. Maybe because I'm in the EU, I'm not supposed to use it, and they don't collect yet here?

rhizome Jul 6, 2023

@albbrt @DopeGhoti @kreig yeah, it can't launch in EU due to privacy laws

https://techcrunch.com/2023/07/05/threads-no-eu-launch/amp/

TechCrunch is part of the Yahoo family of brands

rhizome Jul 6, 2023

@albbrt @DopeGhoti @kreig I agree

SyrupSplashin Jul 6, 2023

@kreig Most of these metrics seem important to the function of the app. Whether it be orientation for portrait/landscape modes, resolution and density for scaling, internal storage for saving videos / pictures, etc. Gender, birthday, and location beyond country (and less justifiably but not entirely, state) is a bit unnecessary though. Nonetheless, I see good reason to collect most of the information there for a good modern app experience.

ilyess Jul 6, 2023

@SyrupSplashin I disagree. How much of similar data does Mastodon collect? Close to none, despite offering a “good modern app experience”.

Also, I don’t think the justification you put forward for collecting that data is accurate. For example, the app doesn’t need to collect Device Total Memory in order to figure out media storage. The way it works is that the app asks the OS to add a file to the filesystem and, if storage is low, gets an OS error.

Henry Maddocks Jul 7, 2023

@ilyess @SyrupSplashin @kreig its device finger printing. Because they can’t use tracking cookies they try to build a fingerprint of your device by matching as many parameters as they can.

Russell Cameron Thomas Jul 6, 2023

@kreig
This is a prank, right?
It can't be serious ...

R.I.Pienaar Jul 6, 2023

@kreig This on iOS? Wasn’t aware they had this capability

R.I.Pienaar Jul 6, 2023

@kreig I mean I didn’t know Duck Duck Go could prevent an app accessing all that?

R.I.Pienaar Jul 6, 2023

@kreig ah - android only.

DasTausW Jul 6, 2023

@ripienaar @kreig Android

Stephen Ball Jul 6, 2023

@kreig @ripienaar Yes it’s the DuckDuckGo Browser app. There’s also the Orion browser iOS app from Kagi

R.I.Pienaar Jul 6, 2023

@sdball @kreig was interested in how one iOS app knows another is doing those things as the sandbox model would make that impossible - and indeed ddg only does that on android

Stephen Ball Jul 6, 2023

@ripienaar @kreig On iOS you can use the those browsers to access Facebook etc and block that kind of tracking as well.

R.I.Pienaar Jul 6, 2023

@sdball yes, that part is obvious I was specifically interested in the app blocking feature which isn’t browser based

@kreig it's not the data it tried to collect, it's what Facebook is KNOWN to collect. many of those are probably KNOWN to collect from Facebook the service's ToS, and not the actual data it tried to get from Threads.

that being said, it's still a pile of garbage that I wouldn't touch with a 6 ft Pole.

Mark Jacobs Jul 6, 2023

@kreig I, for one, welcome my Zuckian overlord. Facebook already has all my data anyway

Mynacol Jul 6, 2023

@kreig On second read this screen is misleading. DuckDuckGo just recorded connections to Facebook, which is otherwise known to send the listed data points.
This does not show what #Threads is actually transmitting! (although it could send all the listed data points)

Christiaan Janssen Jul 6, 2023

why is Threads not available in the EU?

* sees this screenshot *

ah...

tomberuk Jul 6, 2023

@kreig Цукерберг підр, не більше того...

LindsAbercraf Jul 6, 2023

@kreig is duck duck go an app that blocks data being stolen? I’m not tech savvy but interested in keeping my data secure