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> They can also stop screenshots being taken of exchanges if they are using an Android phone. Does anyone else feel infuriated that apps can restrict screensho

> They can also stop screenshots being taken of exchanges if they are using an Android phone. Does anyone else feel infuriated that apps can restrict screenshots from occurring? I can use an external camera if I really wanted to save a copy of a communication, or use a personal computer with no such limitations. Why would android even allow such restrictions to be enabled in the first place?

eplanit 5y ago
Because mobile computers are the antithesis of personal computers -- you don't get to really own and control the very expensive device you bought. That people accepted this is an example of how truly powerless (or just ignorant) consumers are.
- amelius 5y ago
  Yeah and those ignorant consumers pull those in the know with them into the abyss.
- shoto_io 5y ago
  The truth is: No one cares. I mean, very few people really care. Mobile phones have been able to bring computation to the masses, including poor countries. PCs were a luxury item even in the Western World. Accessibility and standardization have been the driver of this change, not customization. After all, mobile phones are now sort of a mass product like TVs back then. No one really "owned" a TV either. You can call these masses ignorant, but I think most just want to live a good life with a handy tool that works.
  - MikeUt 5y ago
    No one cares, until they do, and it's too late. A chain does not stop being a chain just because your master hasn't yanked it yet. Apple pulls police-tracking app used by Hong Kong protesters after consulting authorities - https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/apple-pulls-police-tracking-app-used-hong-kong-protesters-after-n1064506 https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/apple-pulls-police-tracki...
    - rsa25519 5y ago
      Good thing that Android allows side-loading apps
      - al_chemist 5y ago
        > allows That word is blackli^Wblocklisted in Google developer documentation style guide. https://developers.google.com/style/word-list https://developers.google.com/style/word-list
- Arnt 5y ago
  Well, who's "you"? 20-25 years ago, "you" (whoever was able to run software, as well as whoever had momentary physical access) got to really control the expensive device "you" (the buyer) bought. That wasn't so great for the buyer, and it would have been even worse now. That naïve security model would not do well against today's sophisticated threats. IMO, the android/iphone state is a clear improvement, and we're not going to get another improvement until the people who dislike the current state stop confusing "you" and "you". Only then will we get enough clear thinking on the subject to work out another improvement.
  - frosted-flakes 5y ago
    What does that have to do with restricting the use of screenshots?
    - Arnt 5y ago
      Screenshots are made by performing an API call, or a sequence of call. Calls to that API are subject to a security model that's intended to protect the device's owner (or ordinary user) from malevolent programs or momentary users.
- missedthecue 5y ago
  its not that they're 'powerless'. It's that 99.8% of people just don't care. They want it the way it is.
thejsa 5y ago
> Why would android even allow such restrictions to be enabled in the first place? To enforce DRM in streaming apps, mostly; though other apps have ended up bodging that for their own purposes. I suppose at least in the context of secure messaging or banking apps (which also do this) it makes you think twice before snapping something, but even so I think there should be a variant of whatever API which lets the user override it / disable it globally. Only genuine security concern I can think of that it addresses is that of screen recording malware / stalkerware (assuming said malware doesn't already have root access on your device to circumvent it...), and perhaps the risk of accidentally screenshotting/capturing something sensitive like bank details while screen sharing.
- imwillofficial 5y ago
  The irony of Android stopping this, and iOS allowing it is not lost on me.
  - permo-w 5y ago
    iOS definitely stops it to an extent you can’t screen record or screenshot netflix or disney+ it doesn’t explicitly block it, but the screen just comes out black or stuck on a single frame whether that’s a feature or an exploit, I don’t know, but it doesn’t seem too unreasonable
    - nexuist 5y ago
      It is blocked on iOS but it's not the app's choice, it has to do with the video player utilizing DRM decoding hardware (Widevine-esque). That's why screenshots can be blocked on Netflix but not on Snapchat.
      - permo-w 5y ago
        I was not aware. thank you for the explanation
- thopat 5y ago
ksec 5y ago
Their are Apps that forbid screenshots on iOS as well. This isn't an Android only thing.
saurik 5y ago
> I can use an external camera if I really wanted to save a copy of a communication... To be fair, this would require the MP to have a second mobile phone. [looks at title of article] Oh. ;P

eplanit 5y ago

Because mobile computers are the antithesis of personal computers -- you don't get to really own and control the very expensive device you bought. That people accepted this is an example of how truly powerless (or just ignorant) consumers are.

amelius 5y ago
Yeah and those ignorant consumers pull those in the know with them into the abyss.
shoto_io 5y ago
The truth is: No one cares. I mean, very few people really care. Mobile phones have been able to bring computation to the masses, including poor countries. PCs were a luxury item even in the Western World. Accessibility and standardization have been the driver of this change, not customization. After all, mobile phones are now sort of a mass product like TVs back then. No one really "owned" a TV either. You can call these masses ignorant, but I think most just want to live a good life with a handy tool that works.
- MikeUt 5y ago
  No one cares, until they do, and it's too late. A chain does not stop being a chain just because your master hasn't yanked it yet. Apple pulls police-tracking app used by Hong Kong protesters after consulting authorities - https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/apple-pulls-police-tracking-app-used-hong-kong-protesters-after-n1064506 https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/apple-pulls-police-tracki...
  - rsa25519 5y ago
    Good thing that Android allows side-loading apps
    - al_chemist 5y ago
      > allows That word is blackli^Wblocklisted in Google developer documentation style guide. https://developers.google.com/style/word-list https://developers.google.com/style/word-list
Arnt 5y ago
Well, who's "you"? 20-25 years ago, "you" (whoever was able to run software, as well as whoever had momentary physical access) got to really control the expensive device "you" (the buyer) bought. That wasn't so great for the buyer, and it would have been even worse now. That naïve security model would not do well against today's sophisticated threats. IMO, the android/iphone state is a clear improvement, and we're not going to get another improvement until the people who dislike the current state stop confusing "you" and "you". Only then will we get enough clear thinking on the subject to work out another improvement.
- frosted-flakes 5y ago
  What does that have to do with restricting the use of screenshots?
  - Arnt 5y ago
    Screenshots are made by performing an API call, or a sequence of call. Calls to that API are subject to a security model that's intended to protect the device's owner (or ordinary user) from malevolent programs or momentary users.
missedthecue 5y ago
its not that they're 'powerless'. It's that 99.8% of people just don't care. They want it the way it is.

thejsa 5y ago

> Why would android even allow such restrictions to be enabled in the first place? To enforce DRM in streaming apps, mostly; though other apps have ended up bodging that for their own purposes. I suppose at least in the context of secure messaging or banking apps (which also do this) it makes you think twice before snapping something, but even so I think there should be a variant of whatever API which lets the user override it / disable it globally. Only genuine security concern I can think of that it addresses is that of screen recording malware / stalkerware (assuming said malware doesn't already have root access on your device to circumvent it...), and perhaps the risk of accidentally screenshotting/capturing something sensitive like bank details while screen sharing.

imwillofficial 5y ago
The irony of Android stopping this, and iOS allowing it is not lost on me.
- permo-w 5y ago
  iOS definitely stops it to an extent you can’t screen record or screenshot netflix or disney+ it doesn’t explicitly block it, but the screen just comes out black or stuck on a single frame whether that’s a feature or an exploit, I don’t know, but it doesn’t seem too unreasonable
  - nexuist 5y ago
    It is blocked on iOS but it's not the app's choice, it has to do with the video player utilizing DRM decoding hardware (Widevine-esque). That's why screenshots can be blocked on Netflix but not on Snapchat.
    - permo-w 5y ago
      I was not aware. thank you for the explanation
thopat 5y ago

ksec 5y ago

Their are Apps that forbid screenshots on iOS as well. This isn't an Android only thing.

saurik 5y ago

> I can use an external camera if I really wanted to save a copy of a communication... To be fair, this would require the MP to have a second mobile phone. [looks at title of article] Oh. ;P