4 ms·

It could be for example if your neighbor works for CIA or at some secret research laboratory. They can learn a lot about them by watching your funny cat videos.

vkou 6y ago
This makes zero sense. What material information will they learn about my neighbour from my phone?
- LyndsySimon 6y ago
  I'm spitballing, but here goes. A) Your neighbor's laptop is partially compromised, and part of what is obtained is a list of APs with which it has been associated. B) Your phone has TikTok installed, and part of what is obtained is your location and the available APs (while you're using the app, only). C) You use your phone to view TikTok videos in the middle of the night, at home. Because of B+C, the foreign actor now knows where you live (via location services) and the wireless APs nearby. Because of A, they know where your neighbor's laptop has associated. Taken together, they now have a reasonable level of confidence where your neighbor lives even though they have never installed TikTok.
  - vkou 6y ago
    If your neighour's machine is pwned, they could just look at the addresses on the bills he receives in his e-mail. And if they want to know where my neighbour lives, they could just consult a... Land deed registry. Or their resume. Or... Run a credit check on them. That last one will also give personal information at a level of fidelity right down to the number of nose hairs that they plucked this morning. But let's cycle back to that. How does knowing my neighbour's address compromise national security? Am I compromising national security by telling you that John Leslie lives in Apt 341 on my floor? Even if he works for the Air Force? Keep in mind - the man has to live somewhere. What relevance of note does where he lives in particular have to a nation state?
- lightgreen 6y ago
  For example match car plate numbers with locations and timestamps. By analyzing millions of videos they can build a driving pattern for a particular vehicle.
  - vkou 6y ago
    Given that ~99.999% of the time, the average cellphone user is not recording a video, and ~99.9% of the time, license plates are not visible in videos, and ~99.9% of license plates are utterly uninteresting, this is an absolutely horrible example of a non-threat. If this is the best argument that can be made, then national security is safe as houses.

vkou 6y ago

This makes zero sense. What material information will they learn about my neighbour from my phone?

LyndsySimon 6y ago
I'm spitballing, but here goes. A) Your neighbor's laptop is partially compromised, and part of what is obtained is a list of APs with which it has been associated. B) Your phone has TikTok installed, and part of what is obtained is your location and the available APs (while you're using the app, only). C) You use your phone to view TikTok videos in the middle of the night, at home. Because of B+C, the foreign actor now knows where you live (via location services) and the wireless APs nearby. Because of A, they know where your neighbor's laptop has associated. Taken together, they now have a reasonable level of confidence where your neighbor lives even though they have never installed TikTok.
- vkou 6y ago
  If your neighour's machine is pwned, they could just look at the addresses on the bills he receives in his e-mail. And if they want to know where my neighbour lives, they could just consult a... Land deed registry. Or their resume. Or... Run a credit check on them. That last one will also give personal information at a level of fidelity right down to the number of nose hairs that they plucked this morning. But let's cycle back to that. How does knowing my neighbour's address compromise national security? Am I compromising national security by telling you that John Leslie lives in Apt 341 on my floor? Even if he works for the Air Force? Keep in mind - the man has to live somewhere. What relevance of note does where he lives in particular have to a nation state?
lightgreen 6y ago
For example match car plate numbers with locations and timestamps. By analyzing millions of videos they can build a driving pattern for a particular vehicle.
- vkou 6y ago
  Given that ~99.999% of the time, the average cellphone user is not recording a video, and ~99.9% of the time, license plates are not visible in videos, and ~99.9% of license plates are utterly uninteresting, this is an absolutely horrible example of a non-threat. If this is the best argument that can be made, then national security is safe as houses.