4 ms·

Facebook spies on phone users' text messages, report says

57 points by veyron 15y ago

Turing_Machine 15y ago
I could be wrong, but as far as I know iOS doesn't allow third-party applications to access/intercept text messages, while Android does.
- mike-cardwell 15y ago
  There is an Android permission that an application can request and a user can grant which allows applications to read SMS.
  - deleted 15y ago
    [deleted]
- mdwrigh2 15y ago
  This is true [1], but part of that is because Android allows you to use whatever text messaging app you want rather than forcing you to use the one provided. And of course, this is a permission that you have to agree to [2]. [1]: https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#documentation/UserExperience/Conceptual/SystemMessaging_TopicsForIOS/Articles/SendinganSMSMessage.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40010416-SW1 https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#documentation/UserE... [2]: http://developer.android.com/reference/android/Manifest.permission.html#READ_SMS http://developer.android.com/reference/android/Manifest.perm...
mortenjorck 15y ago
Ok. We have a huge, detail-free set of accusations here, in a high-profile newspaper blogspam whose source link doesn't link to an actual story, only to the home page of the publication it's referencing. We're going to need a lot more here.
- alexobenauer 15y ago
  That's exactly what I thought. Especially, too, since you cannot do this on iOS with public API's (and I assume even with private, but I could be wrong). Even if you did find a loophole, Apple wouldn't allow it, and they'd close it. And even on Android, don't you have to enable an app's access to your SMS messages? This article had no details. It was way too short for the accusations made.
- veyron 15y ago
  What we need to see is proof that somehow the contents of the text message is sent back to facebook. There are tools like mitmproxy to see the traffic. Couldn't someone with a facebook account using the app explicitly check whether or not the contents of the messages are relayed back?
- kenrikm 15y ago
  Exactly, This reminds me of the whole Tesla battery bricking saga. The News outlets love nothing more than to find some technology company that is doing something "wrong" (even if they are not) and hang them out to dry without doing ANY fact checking. It seems many news organizations have stooped to the level of celebrity gossip magazines. I want to see proof of texts being sent back to Facebook or it did not happen.
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]
- Shank 15y ago
  Yes, they can, but the ability is used for services like DeskSMS and messaging app replacements.
Iroiso 15y ago
How far is Facebook willing to go to control the social fabric of the internet !?, Scary...
- gst 15y ago
  I don't see anything scary. Nobody forces you to use Facebook (I very very seldom use it). Most of its users don't care about their own privacy, so why should Facebook care about it's users privacy?
Shank 15y ago
I'm going to note that ZDNet got a reply from Facebook that completely denies the claim. The article in question was making the claim based on the permissions that Facebook requests on Android, and not actual evidence. http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/facebook-youtube-others-accused-of-reading-text-messages/70237 http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/facebook-youtube-others-accuse...
- lawnchair_larry 15y ago
  Although bogus, maybe this story has some benefit then. Perhaps app developers will stop asking for the kitchen sink, so permissions are remotely useful again.
artursapek 15y ago
God, I know this is pretty unrelated, but the stock photos used in news articles seem to be getting worse all the time.
fractalcat 15y ago
Seems like the only evidence they have is application permissions and an unspecified 'admission' from Facebook (who?), while according to zdnet, Facebook denies ever accessing user text messages: http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/facebook-youtube-others-accused-of-reading-text-messages/70237 http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/facebook-youtube-others-accuse...
mike-cardwell 15y ago
Just FYI, if you have a rooted Android phone and install the free application "LBE Privacy Guard", you can block apps from accessing your SMS store, even if they've been granted permissions. I believe that by default it displays an empty SMS store to such apps. It does loads of similar things.
leoedin 15y ago
I have an app (Prey) on my android phone that does have SMS access (to check for "trigger" texts to enable tracking). When I first installed the app (and every few months subsequently), I've been prompted to allow the app access to my incoming SMSs. Facebook has never caused that prompt to come up. Assuming FB aren't doing anything really weird, I think it's fair to say that the Facebook android app on my phone doesn't have access to my texts.
shirro 15y ago
Brought to you by the company that spied on peoples phone calls for years. Facebook may or may not be doing what News actually got caught red handed doing. See these piratey Internet companies are evil; buy more gossip sheets now. Find out which celebrities may or may not be doing it and why global warming is a lefty conspiracy. Read all about it!
jschuur 15y ago
One Facebook employee's rather frank denial of this: https://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=10151330596285363 https://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=10151330596285363

57 points by veyron 15y ago

I could be wrong, but as far as I know iOS doesn't allow third-party applications to access/intercept text messages, while Android does.

mike-cardwell 15y ago
There is an Android permission that an application can request and a user can grant which allows applications to read SMS.
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
mdwrigh2 15y ago
This is true [1], but part of that is because Android allows you to use whatever text messaging app you want rather than forcing you to use the one provided. And of course, this is a permission that you have to agree to [2]. [1]: https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#documentation/UserExperience/Conceptual/SystemMessaging_TopicsForIOS/Articles/SendinganSMSMessage.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/TP40010416-SW1 https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/#documentation/UserE... [2]: http://developer.android.com/reference/android/Manifest.permission.html#READ_SMS http://developer.android.com/reference/android/Manifest.perm...

mortenjorck 15y ago

Ok. We have a huge, detail-free set of accusations here, in a high-profile newspaper blogspam whose source link doesn't link to an actual story, only to the home page of the publication it's referencing. We're going to need a lot more here.

alexobenauer 15y ago
That's exactly what I thought. Especially, too, since you cannot do this on iOS with public API's (and I assume even with private, but I could be wrong). Even if you did find a loophole, Apple wouldn't allow it, and they'd close it. And even on Android, don't you have to enable an app's access to your SMS messages? This article had no details. It was way too short for the accusations made.
veyron 15y ago
What we need to see is proof that somehow the contents of the text message is sent back to facebook. There are tools like mitmproxy to see the traffic. Couldn't someone with a facebook account using the app explicitly check whether or not the contents of the messages are relayed back?
kenrikm 15y ago
Exactly, This reminds me of the whole Tesla battery bricking saga. The News outlets love nothing more than to find some technology company that is doing something "wrong" (even if they are not) and hang them out to dry without doing ANY fact checking. It seems many news organizations have stooped to the level of celebrity gossip magazines. I want to see proof of texts being sent back to Facebook or it did not happen.

deleted 15y ago

[deleted]

Shank 15y ago
Yes, they can, but the ability is used for services like DeskSMS and messaging app replacements.

Iroiso 15y ago

How far is Facebook willing to go to control the social fabric of the internet !?, Scary...

gst 15y ago
I don't see anything scary. Nobody forces you to use Facebook (I very very seldom use it). Most of its users don't care about their own privacy, so why should Facebook care about it's users privacy?

Shank 15y ago

I'm going to note that ZDNet got a reply from Facebook that completely denies the claim. The article in question was making the claim based on the permissions that Facebook requests on Android, and not actual evidence. http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/facebook-youtube-others-accused-of-reading-text-messages/70237 http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/facebook-youtube-others-accuse...

lawnchair_larry 15y ago
Although bogus, maybe this story has some benefit then. Perhaps app developers will stop asking for the kitchen sink, so permissions are remotely useful again.

artursapek 15y ago

God, I know this is pretty unrelated, but the stock photos used in news articles seem to be getting worse all the time.

fractalcat 15y ago

Seems like the only evidence they have is application permissions and an unspecified 'admission' from Facebook (who?), while according to zdnet, Facebook denies ever accessing user text messages: http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/facebook-youtube-others-accused-of-reading-text-messages/70237 http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/facebook-youtube-others-accuse...

mike-cardwell 15y ago

Just FYI, if you have a rooted Android phone and install the free application "LBE Privacy Guard", you can block apps from accessing your SMS store, even if they've been granted permissions. I believe that by default it displays an empty SMS store to such apps. It does loads of similar things.

leoedin 15y ago

I have an app (Prey) on my android phone that does have SMS access (to check for "trigger" texts to enable tracking). When I first installed the app (and every few months subsequently), I've been prompted to allow the app access to my incoming SMSs. Facebook has never caused that prompt to come up. Assuming FB aren't doing anything really weird, I think it's fair to say that the Facebook android app on my phone doesn't have access to my texts.

shirro 15y ago

Brought to you by the company that spied on peoples phone calls for years. Facebook may or may not be doing what News actually got caught red handed doing. See these piratey Internet companies are evil; buy more gossip sheets now. Find out which celebrities may or may not be doing it and why global warming is a lefty conspiracy. Read all about it!

jschuur 15y ago

One Facebook employee's rather frank denial of this: https://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=10151330596285363 https://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=10151330596285363