This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
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."
Orientation? Why would Facebook need to know if my phone is gay? Jk, I know they really want to know my phone's political orientation. Joke's on them, my phone voted for Megatron.
Damn, just straight up stealing other people's content. Very cool
Original post: https://writing.exchange/@kreig/110664764474921792
Original poster: https://writing.exchange/@kreig
You just reminded me of the random surveys that used to sometimes come in the mail for my Mum back before the internet was a thing. I flipped through a couple and it asked things like if you have a pet and what brand of cat food you gave them and all this totally random shit. I wonder what benefit to the home owner there was for filling such a bullshit survey in.
These days, Facebook would probably just use some AI to scan your photos and figure out if you have a cat and what brand of food it eats. You'd never know, and you gave away any defence the moment you uploaded the image.
That's your fault for using threads
You got a good point. I minimized my usege of Facebook to the ~~minimum~~ maximum.
It’s unbelievable that an app which collect this many data points, including voice, is legally allowed. Insane. Yes, people should not use it and should care, but come on… this is just mass surveillance and collection.
Well, that's how Cambridge Analytica scandal happened
Ross Schulman, senior fellow for decentralization at digital rights nonprofit the Electronic Frontier Foundation, notes that if Threads emerges as a massive player in the fediverse, there could be concerns about what he calls “social graph slurping." Meta will know who all of its users interact with and follow within Threads, and it will also be able to see who its users follow in the broader fediverse. And if Threads builds up anywhere near the reach of other Meta platforms, just this little slice of life would give the company a fairly expansive view of interactions beyond its borders.
https://www.wired.com/story/meta-threads-privacy-decentralization/
Thank you EU!
What I don't understand is why people wound even want to use this app...
What possible appeal could it have?
Using Threads knowing it's a product of Zuck, is like voting for Trump in 2024 cause he wore a different style suit.
If you are already eating out of a dumpster, even the worst fast food looks appetizing.
"Okay so it's basically Twitter, but with like... Facebook features..." Is literally a joke I have made about annoying app ideas people have when you tell them you're a software developer.
I have made this joke a few times, because it killed every time.
I'm stunned. Out of material, and stunned.
Had a dude tell me he wanted to 'disrupt' social media by creating a LinkedIn alternative that allowed posting videos.
He just needed a couple 'techies' like me to get it off the ground.
Haven't heard from him in a while. I hope rehab worked out for him.
People here complaining about Threads and TikTok (Chinese owned) being the defacto social network for an entire generation over there without outrage, and when it's outrage about it people just say "at least is not the US" what kind of defense is that?
I'm so tired can you re explain what you trying to say
Post complaining about Meta collecting too much data from its users but Tiktok which has much more users than Threads and almost the same as FB doesnt get the same amount of complains, and when it does people shrugged off saying "at least is not owned by an US company" implying some would rather give their data to a chinese company.
Looking at the data collection categories in the ios app store for Threads is terrifying. Similarly, mastodon collects nothing. General population doesn't seem to care though given the number of signups that Threads has received in the last few days. People are happy to give their information away.
Shit, did your phone extend a needle for a blood test?
How do I get duckduckgo to block tracking attempts?
Okay I think I have it. I just installed the duckduckgo app and enabled the tracking protection in settings. And right now I am shocked. The amount of tracking attempts in the last 30 minutes has been mind boggling. 300 attempts and counting! Is this normal?
If you block them from collecting even one of those things, they'll lock you out of your account until you show them your ID and SSN. It should be illegal for social media to spy on you THAT invasively.
Why did you download threads in the first place? Just scanned the app in exodus and the list of trackers is worse than all meta apps combined
They clicked "select all" when choosing what to gather, it's easier.
Jesus, man! Do they want my birth certificate as well?
Only if you are running for president
There's a reason it's not allowed in the EU.
Mother fucking mother fuckers
This is what I got after 5 minutes.
I understand getting location because the big companies have country specific websites that have different pricing and products but why boot time?
If they collect enough metrics and link it to a single user they can use that as an id to tell if that user does things outside of their app. So they collect all the data and build a device finger print then they offer tools to website developers for marketing (Facebook tracking pixel, like buttons, etc ...). Those developer or marketing teams or whoever add it into the other apps you use and Facebook can track you without you being logged in.
my guess is so google can use this data for analytics for their operating system since it collects OS version too
We need a third party app.
Ain’t gonna happen. This is the only reason they are releasing Threads. It is also the only reason Elon and u/spez have killed third party apps.
It is also why you can’t use Threads in a browser. (You can read other threads, but can’t post or use any of the other features.
Those infos are different for everyone. It's like your extensions in web browsers, it creates a fingerprint.
And that is actually illegal in the EU
I guess it's why Threads isn't released in EU.
Disgusting
