4 ms·

Lame feature. Take screenshot. File / forward to circumvent.

by hestefisk 9y ago

cooper12 9y ago
"Features" like these are actually worse than useless because they give users a false sense of security.
- y_molodtsov 9y ago
  I don't understand the hate. It's still a good way to send a password or some financial information, just because you know that it's going to be deleted soon and if in the future your contact's account is hacked it will be long gone. Basically, it's a secret chat for email.
  - mimsee 9y ago
    >This message will get deleted in 2 years. >Password is piedpiper123 "Oh, better I copy the password to my computer if I ever need it."
    - y_molodtsov 9y ago
      This is just a tool, some people may find it useful, others probably won't even use it.
  - DocTomoe 9y ago
    Well, i wonder how they will make other mail providers (or clients, for that matter) to honour this kind of mail headers.
    - bonesss 9y ago
      My take on the criticism here is that people are ignoring that Google has a lot of customers on GMail and a lot of corporations on GSuite. Intra-office email management is another ballgame and these kinds of features are pretty common in that space (Novell had them in the 90s even). For users outside of Googles platform the obvious solution is either not to send them or to send a managed link to the message contents via normal email. It can't be perfect thanks to the analogue hole, but it only has to be a bit better than nothing to provide utility.
    - y_molodtsov 9y ago
      Just like services like Virtru: they would just get a link for that content.
ThoAppelsin 9y ago
Exactly. It is almost a mis-feature for bringing fake sense of security to their users, since receivers actually can very well take a screenshot or even a photograph.
mimsee 9y ago
What they could do is put the contents in a video* and have the media be DRM'd. You couldn't take a screenshot, only a picture with your phone. *Or image, not really sure if that works.
- mcintyre1994 9y ago
  Can you actually DRM a video so that the OS won't let it be screenshotted? I usually use the snipping tool for Windows screenshots, does DRM stop that working somehow?
  - swiley 9y ago
    I don’t think it will on Linux, I could have sworn I’ve watched Netflix with just the EFI framebuffer. If that worked then there’s no way any sort of DRM that can be viewed on Linux would stop this.
  - mimsee 9y ago
    Try Netflix with Microsoft Edge and try to take a screenshot. Only subtitles will be visible.
    - jasonkostempski 9y ago
      Abuse of proprietary power at it's finest.
  - earenndil 9y ago
    Even if you can, it's possible to circumvent that (see: analogue loophole).
bonesss 9y ago
As long as people have cellphones with cameras anything sent to them has to be considered 'open'. At the same time, sending internal payroll information and such is something that can, and does, get accidentally forwarded. This feature is less about "perfect security" and more about making sure the dumb-dumbs who work in other departments don't shoot themselves in the foot. Awesome feature. Fire people who are blatantly mishandling confidential material.
IshKebab 9y ago
I think it is to prevent accidental data leaks. A lot of information is accidentally leaked by people forwarding email chains without checking what is in them.

Lame feature. Take screenshot. File / forward to circumvent.

cooper12 9y ago

"Features" like these are actually worse than useless because they give users a false sense of security.

y_molodtsov 9y ago
I don't understand the hate. It's still a good way to send a password or some financial information, just because you know that it's going to be deleted soon and if in the future your contact's account is hacked it will be long gone. Basically, it's a secret chat for email.
- mimsee 9y ago
  >This message will get deleted in 2 years. >Password is piedpiper123 "Oh, better I copy the password to my computer if I ever need it."
  - y_molodtsov 9y ago
    This is just a tool, some people may find it useful, others probably won't even use it.
- DocTomoe 9y ago
  Well, i wonder how they will make other mail providers (or clients, for that matter) to honour this kind of mail headers.
  - bonesss 9y ago
    My take on the criticism here is that people are ignoring that Google has a lot of customers on GMail and a lot of corporations on GSuite. Intra-office email management is another ballgame and these kinds of features are pretty common in that space (Novell had them in the 90s even). For users outside of Googles platform the obvious solution is either not to send them or to send a managed link to the message contents via normal email. It can't be perfect thanks to the analogue hole, but it only has to be a bit better than nothing to provide utility.
  - y_molodtsov 9y ago
    Just like services like Virtru: they would just get a link for that content.

ThoAppelsin 9y ago

Exactly. It is almost a mis-feature for bringing fake sense of security to their users, since receivers actually can very well take a screenshot or even a photograph.

mimsee 9y ago

What they could do is put the contents in a video* and have the media be DRM'd. You couldn't take a screenshot, only a picture with your phone. *Or image, not really sure if that works.

mcintyre1994 9y ago
Can you actually DRM a video so that the OS won't let it be screenshotted? I usually use the snipping tool for Windows screenshots, does DRM stop that working somehow?
- swiley 9y ago
  I don’t think it will on Linux, I could have sworn I’ve watched Netflix with just the EFI framebuffer. If that worked then there’s no way any sort of DRM that can be viewed on Linux would stop this.
- mimsee 9y ago
  Try Netflix with Microsoft Edge and try to take a screenshot. Only subtitles will be visible.
  - jasonkostempski 9y ago
    Abuse of proprietary power at it's finest.
- earenndil 9y ago
  Even if you can, it's possible to circumvent that (see: analogue loophole).

bonesss 9y ago

As long as people have cellphones with cameras anything sent to them has to be considered 'open'. At the same time, sending internal payroll information and such is something that can, and does, get accidentally forwarded. This feature is less about "perfect security" and more about making sure the dumb-dumbs who work in other departments don't shoot themselves in the foot. Awesome feature. Fire people who are blatantly mishandling confidential material.

IshKebab 9y ago

I think it is to prevent accidental data leaks. A lot of information is accidentally leaked by people forwarding email chains without checking what is in them.