5 ms·

> 7. To disable telemetry (...) Why should I disable that? What does it do? My understanding is that it's only statistics on data usage, which I find useful?

by maaaats 11y ago

norea-armozel 11y ago
If you're using your laptop to look for directions to locations on their map app then it's useful. Otherwise, it's useless since it uses geo-ip to find your location.
UK-AL 11y ago
Nearly all of the windows privacy issues come from useful features. If cortana wants to automatically recommend appointments from emails? Guess what? She has to read your emails. If you want to be blocked from downloading malware? Guess what? You have to check with a central db first. etc Apple, Google devices etc have had this stuff on for ages.
- norea-armozel 11y ago
  It doesn't work if you use a third party email app like Postbox (for now). If you use Windows Mail then it works.
- pmontra 11y ago
  > If you want to be blocked from downloading malware? Guess what? You have to check with a central db first. Or it could download the db and do the checks locally. There wouldn't be privacy concerns about MS knowing which sites one's browsing.
  - UK-AL 11y ago
    But then you would have download definitions, and send new stuff onto the central db anyway.
  - Someone1234 11y ago
    You realise Chrome, Firefox, and Microsoft all use Google's database[0] for this and have for at least seven year. Why is this anti-phishing blacklist all of a sudden an issue in 2015? [0] https://developers.google.com/safe-browsing/developers_guide_v3 https://developers.google.com/safe-browsing/developers_guide...
    - drdaeman 11y ago
      As far as I know, that should be okay. Browsers don't query the database online like some RBL, but download it locally and check visited sites against a local copy. No URLs are sent to Google. Which is - as far as I know - is very different from how Windows anti-malware system works. At least I think I saw a network requests from Windows 8 machine when "untrusted" applications (.exe) were started.
- digi_owl 11y ago
  I find myself reminded of how people oh and ah over Google Now being helpful, while i am sitting here wondering how much Google must know about each person to produce those results. I am sure the technologists at both Google and Microsoft has the best of intentions with their creations, the question is what happens when a TLA or similar comes knocking.
- joesmo 11y ago
  Cortana is not an essential part of the OS. Malware databases can exist locally. You're just making excuses for MS's anti-privacy architecture.
  - UK-AL 11y ago
    Lots of apple, and google features are not essential part of the system. Shall we turn siri off by default? "Malware databases can exist locally" - You still have to download, and upload definitions. This is what windows defender does. People still complain about that. It's not that I'm not concerned about privacy. It's the hypocritical nature of people. It only becomes a big issue when Microsoft does it. Anyone else, very little complaints.
    - joesmo 11y ago
      Yes, I think Siri should be off by default. Malware databases can be updated when the user updates everything else. The reason people are complaining is that this data is being sent automatically by the OS without their permission or knowledge. It's not just a complaint against MS, but also against other OS's that do the same like Android.
    - kuschku 11y ago
      The difference is: In one case, you download the whole database. In the other case, you essentially tell the company "hey, I’m visiting website with hash 12345, is that bad?". This can be abused. Google could with it create a database of everyone who visit, say, pornhub.com, for example, by logging everyone who visits a page with the same hash as pornhub.com Same with file-based malware databases: You tell it "I have the file with hash 12345, is it bad?" And, if Google - or the NSA, CIA, FBI, whatever – want to get a list of everyone who has that file, they just ask the database provider to log everyone who checks that hash against the database, then go to the ISP to get the real name of the owner of that IP, and then SWAT the person. This is very much a possible risk.
  - Raphmedia 11y ago
    My personal computer is not a phone. I do not require the help of a spyware disguised as an AI to operate it. I have a mouse and a full keyboard. When I want to interact with the internet, I use a browser. This browser is managed by many extensions that cut down on the information that is being sent about me. I do not want my operating system to talk to the internet without asking me.
- 0x4a42 11y ago
  "She has to read your emails." cough, she = it, read = process
- mtgx 11y ago
  Apple is moving to local processing of "intelligent" stuff, actually.
- Revisor 11y ago
  > If cortana wants to automatically recommend appointments from emails? Guess what? She has to read your emails. "She"
drdaeman 11y ago
Exactly because we don't even know what does it do. (Hey, had anyone did a protocol analysis and/or telemetry binaries reverse-engineering already?) Do you want your machine to send some information, derived from your personal data, at third-party discretion - without you knowing what exactly is being sent?

> 7. To disable telemetry (...) Why should I disable that? What does it do? My understanding is that it's only statistics on data usage, which I find useful?

by maaaats 11y ago

> 7. To disable telemetry (...) Why should I disable that? What does it do? My understanding is that it's only statistics on data usage, which I find useful?

norea-armozel 11y ago

If you're using your laptop to look for directions to locations on their map app then it's useful. Otherwise, it's useless since it uses geo-ip to find your location.

UK-AL 11y ago

Nearly all of the windows privacy issues come from useful features. If cortana wants to automatically recommend appointments from emails? Guess what? She has to read your emails. If you want to be blocked from downloading malware? Guess what? You have to check with a central db first. etc Apple, Google devices etc have had this stuff on for ages.

norea-armozel 11y ago
It doesn't work if you use a third party email app like Postbox (for now). If you use Windows Mail then it works.
pmontra 11y ago
> If you want to be blocked from downloading malware? Guess what? You have to check with a central db first. Or it could download the db and do the checks locally. There wouldn't be privacy concerns about MS knowing which sites one's browsing.
- UK-AL 11y ago
  But then you would have download definitions, and send new stuff onto the central db anyway.
- Someone1234 11y ago
  You realise Chrome, Firefox, and Microsoft all use Google's database[0] for this and have for at least seven year. Why is this anti-phishing blacklist all of a sudden an issue in 2015? [0] https://developers.google.com/safe-browsing/developers_guide_v3 https://developers.google.com/safe-browsing/developers_guide...
  - drdaeman 11y ago
    As far as I know, that should be okay. Browsers don't query the database online like some RBL, but download it locally and check visited sites against a local copy. No URLs are sent to Google. Which is - as far as I know - is very different from how Windows anti-malware system works. At least I think I saw a network requests from Windows 8 machine when "untrusted" applications (.exe) were started.
digi_owl 11y ago
I find myself reminded of how people oh and ah over Google Now being helpful, while i am sitting here wondering how much Google must know about each person to produce those results. I am sure the technologists at both Google and Microsoft has the best of intentions with their creations, the question is what happens when a TLA or similar comes knocking.
joesmo 11y ago
Cortana is not an essential part of the OS. Malware databases can exist locally. You're just making excuses for MS's anti-privacy architecture.
- UK-AL 11y ago
  Lots of apple, and google features are not essential part of the system. Shall we turn siri off by default? "Malware databases can exist locally" - You still have to download, and upload definitions. This is what windows defender does. People still complain about that. It's not that I'm not concerned about privacy. It's the hypocritical nature of people. It only becomes a big issue when Microsoft does it. Anyone else, very little complaints.
  - joesmo 11y ago
    Yes, I think Siri should be off by default. Malware databases can be updated when the user updates everything else. The reason people are complaining is that this data is being sent automatically by the OS without their permission or knowledge. It's not just a complaint against MS, but also against other OS's that do the same like Android.
  - kuschku 11y ago
    The difference is: In one case, you download the whole database. In the other case, you essentially tell the company "hey, I’m visiting website with hash 12345, is that bad?". This can be abused. Google could with it create a database of everyone who visit, say, pornhub.com, for example, by logging everyone who visits a page with the same hash as pornhub.com Same with file-based malware databases: You tell it "I have the file with hash 12345, is it bad?" And, if Google - or the NSA, CIA, FBI, whatever – want to get a list of everyone who has that file, they just ask the database provider to log everyone who checks that hash against the database, then go to the ISP to get the real name of the owner of that IP, and then SWAT the person. This is very much a possible risk.
- Raphmedia 11y ago
  My personal computer is not a phone. I do not require the help of a spyware disguised as an AI to operate it. I have a mouse and a full keyboard. When I want to interact with the internet, I use a browser. This browser is managed by many extensions that cut down on the information that is being sent about me. I do not want my operating system to talk to the internet without asking me.
0x4a42 11y ago
"She has to read your emails." cough, she = it, read = process
mtgx 11y ago
Apple is moving to local processing of "intelligent" stuff, actually.
Revisor 11y ago
> If cortana wants to automatically recommend appointments from emails? Guess what? She has to read your emails. "She"

drdaeman 11y ago

Exactly because we don't even know what does it do. (Hey, had anyone did a protocol analysis and/or telemetry binaries reverse-engineering already?) Do you want your machine to send some information, derived from your personal data, at third-party discretion - without you knowing what exactly is being sent?