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I'm open to being convinced otherwise, but I feel like I'm the only one who doesn't get why opt-out telemetry is such a big deal. Sure, if it's a software libr

by wsve 2y ago

I'm open to being convinced otherwise, but I feel like I'm the only one who doesn't get why opt-out telemetry is such a big deal. Sure, if it's a software library, I don't want it doing random network calls during my runtime. That's just rude. But if it's a user application (including a compiler), I don't see what the fuss is about. Of all the myriad of ways our data is harvested every single day, telemetry seems very unhelpful to advertisers and hackers, but very helpful to the people whose job it is to make the software you use better. I'd love to help them make the software I use better

kingsleyopara 2y ago
Privacy concerns aside, I personally don't appreciate binaries making network requests unless it's strictly required for them to function.
- wsve 2y ago
  Where is that line for you? Is occasionally checking for security updates strictly necessary? Is reporting a crash to the devs so they can fix it necessary? What about sending system & usage telemetry so they can prevent future bugs?
  - Zuiii 2y ago
    For me, it's like GP said: Absolutely no unauthorized network traffic unless strictly required for the purpose of the software (e.g. curl). No security updates, crash reporting, telemetry unless you prompt the user and show the user exactly what will be sent (similar to how syncthing does it). Anything less is voyeurism.* * extreme language I know, but it's precisely how I feel about these acts.
  - justinclift 2y ago
    > Where is that line for you? None of the above is acceptable. Crash reporting can generate its output locally for people to manually send, if they choose to do so.
  - _xiaz 2y ago
    Do you know the definition of the word strictly? No, security and upstream convenience are not even remotely necessary for a tool to work
0cf8612b2e1e 2y ago
You don’t know what they are sending. Maybe today it is innocuous data. Tomorrow, they ship off your ssh keys. Better to default deny all.
- arp242 2y ago
  A program that does not connect to the network at all today can also start shipping off your ssh keys tomorrow. Anything can always be added or changed.
  - justinclift 2y ago
    Probably a higher chance of that being noticed though. ;)

by wsve 2y ago

kingsleyopara 2y ago

Privacy concerns aside, I personally don't appreciate binaries making network requests unless it's strictly required for them to function.

wsve 2y ago
Where is that line for you? Is occasionally checking for security updates strictly necessary? Is reporting a crash to the devs so they can fix it necessary? What about sending system & usage telemetry so they can prevent future bugs?
- Zuiii 2y ago
  For me, it's like GP said: Absolutely no unauthorized network traffic unless strictly required for the purpose of the software (e.g. curl). No security updates, crash reporting, telemetry unless you prompt the user and show the user exactly what will be sent (similar to how syncthing does it). Anything less is voyeurism.* * extreme language I know, but it's precisely how I feel about these acts.
- justinclift 2y ago
  > Where is that line for you? None of the above is acceptable. Crash reporting can generate its output locally for people to manually send, if they choose to do so.
- _xiaz 2y ago
  Do you know the definition of the word strictly? No, security and upstream convenience are not even remotely necessary for a tool to work

0cf8612b2e1e 2y ago

You don’t know what they are sending. Maybe today it is innocuous data. Tomorrow, they ship off your ssh keys. Better to default deny all.

arp242 2y ago
A program that does not connect to the network at all today can also start shipping off your ssh keys tomorrow. Anything can always be added or changed.
- justinclift 2y ago
  Probably a higher chance of that being noticed though. ;)