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I thought that the problem with Recall is that it takes screenshots (potentially of sensitive things like passwords, or private browsing sessions) and stores ne

I thought that the problem with Recall is that it takes screenshots (potentially of sensitive things like passwords, or private browsing sessions) and stores new data that you never intended to store in the first place. This Apple AI is not storing anything new, it’s just processing the data that you already stored. As long as they pay close attention to invalidation on the index when things get deleted. The cloud processing is a little concerning but presumably you will be able to turn it off, and it doesn’t seem much different to using iCloud anyway.

seec 2y ago
The screenshots are not storing anything new, it's just a visual trail of an already existing activity. It literally just makes it easier to browse the history, that's it. Someone motivated could just recompose activity from logs/histories of the various softwares. The distinction is made by people who seem hell bent on trashing Microsoft for everything and glorifying everything Apple does.
- doctor_eval 2y ago
  I strongly disagree. My expectation of what’s on my screen is that it’s ephemeral unless I take a screen shot. Here’s an example. I always use a random password when creating accounts for (eg) databases, but not every UI supports this, so I have a little shell script that generates one. I then copy and paste it from the terminal. Once I close the terminal window and copy something else, that password is stored only once. With recall, it’s now stored permanently. Someone who gets access to my screen history is a step closer to getting into my stuff. Of course there are workarounds. But the expectation I have around how my screen work informs the actions I take on it. Here’s another example. I recently clicked on a link from HN and ended up on a page containing explicit images. At work. As soon as I realised what I was looking at, I clicked away. How long until my visual history is to be interrogated, characterised, and used to find me guilty of looking at inappropriate material in the workplace? Such a system is not going to care about my intentions. Even if I’m not disciplined, I’d certainly be embarrassed.

seec 2y ago

The screenshots are not storing anything new, it's just a visual trail of an already existing activity. It literally just makes it easier to browse the history, that's it. Someone motivated could just recompose activity from logs/histories of the various softwares. The distinction is made by people who seem hell bent on trashing Microsoft for everything and glorifying everything Apple does.

doctor_eval 2y ago
I strongly disagree. My expectation of what’s on my screen is that it’s ephemeral unless I take a screen shot. Here’s an example. I always use a random password when creating accounts for (eg) databases, but not every UI supports this, so I have a little shell script that generates one. I then copy and paste it from the terminal. Once I close the terminal window and copy something else, that password is stored only once. With recall, it’s now stored permanently. Someone who gets access to my screen history is a step closer to getting into my stuff. Of course there are workarounds. But the expectation I have around how my screen work informs the actions I take on it. Here’s another example. I recently clicked on a link from HN and ended up on a page containing explicit images. At work. As soon as I realised what I was looking at, I clicked away. How long until my visual history is to be interrogated, characterised, and used to find me guilty of looking at inappropriate material in the workplace? Such a system is not going to care about my intentions. Even if I’m not disciplined, I’d certainly be embarrassed.