Prediction: Google will impose a time limit on camera and microphone use.

Hendrix7 · Jan 16, 2025

Google is really good at sounding benevolent while taking your freedoms away.

I believe that in future, apps which use the camera or microphone will be limited to a certain duration per day, like one hour, "to protect your privacy" of course.

To be exempt from such restrictions, app developers will have to acquire a digital signature from Google or something like that. This will heavily restrict "sideloaded" apps.

This would disable, for example, home surveillance apps where a smartphone can be repurposed as a CCTV camera. Given how much Google has locked down Android, this doesn't seem too far off.

IsHacker · Jan 16, 2025

Hendrix7 said:
Google is really good at sounding benevolent while taking your freedoms away.

Quoted from gnu.org:

Proprietary software, also called nonfree software, means software that doesn't respect users' freedom and community. A proprietary program puts its developer or owner in a position of power over its users. This power is in itself an injustice.

The point of this directory is to show by examples that the initial injustice of proprietary software often leads to further injustices: malicious functionalities.

Power corrupts; the proprietary program's developer is tempted to design the program to mistreat its users. (Software designed to function in a way that mistreats the user is called malware.) Of course, the developer usually does not do this out of malice, but rather to profit more at the users' expense. That does not make it any less nasty or more legitimate.

Yielding to that temptation has become ever more frequent; nowadays it is standard practice. Modern proprietary software is typically an opportunity to be tricked, harmed, bullied or swindled.

Not only google, but all other huge OEMs like Xiaomi, Samsung, BBK, Amazon, etc and companies like Microsoft, Meta, etc. who make non-free software. That list goes on forever, so I put "etc".

Hendrix7 said:
I believe that in future, apps which use the camera or microphone will be limited to a certain duration per day, like one hour, "to protect your privacy" of course.

To be exempt from such restrictions, app developers will have to acquire a digital signature from Google or something like that. This will heavily restrict "sideloaded" apps.

I have been relying only on FOSS since 2022, and everyone else should use FOSS too. Haven't used google or other nonfree apps since then (I use microG). Like that, I have bypassed many of these "features" (restrictions) by goolag (you should call them goolag), most notably FRP. Maybe we could bypass this "feature" in the same way, if it ever gets implemented.

jonnex44 · Jan 17, 2025

It would spark backlash from users and developers, especially those relying on sideloading or niche apps.

pharaoxzeturn · Wednesday at 10:41 PM

When I get a new Android phone I get at least 10 notifications per app which means If I have 7 apps I will spend a good hour modifying permissions. Setting time limit on camera even further. Will just make me switch to Iphone. The same with cookies. When using a web browser. You need to spend 10s extra clicking accept or no. Eventually this will be dropped is my prediction since its too time consuming. Given with how Google copies Apple. They will switch it to what I predicted. A simpler privacy center with permanent permissions(apps won't be able to ask you if you have denied the permission)

IsHacker · Wednesday at 9:27 AM

pharaoxzeturn said:
When I get a new Android phone I get at least 10 notifications per app which means If I have 7 apps I will spend a good hour modifying permissions. Setting time limit on camera even further. Will just make me switch to Iphone. The same with cookies. When using a web browser. You need to spend 10s extra clicking accept or no. Eventually this will be dropped is my prediction since its too time consuming. Given with how Google copies Apple. They will switch it to what I predicted. A simpler privacy center with permanent permissions(apps won't be able to ask you if you have denied the permission)

The Iphone is a tyrant (https://www.gnu.org/proprietary/proprietary-tyrants.html), a jail (https://www.gnu.org/proprietary/proprietary-jails.html) and also a spying device. Don't ever switch to it. You can alternarively switch to native linux phones.

Hendrix7 · 2025-01-24T00:22:42+0000

jonnex44 said:
It would spark backlash from users and developers, especially those relying on sideloading or niche apps.

Google doesn't care. They just resist all the backlash and go through with it anyway.

Or did they add back the option to turn off pull-to-refresh in Chrome after some two thousand and another five hundred people requested so?

Due to the mobile operating system duopoly, there are no consequences for Google for making bad decisions that ruin the user experience. The only widely used alternative is iOS, which is even far more locked down. You get a phone with powerful processors, but strict limits on what you can actually do with it.

Here is a video by Jody Bruchon about Windows 11 being locked down. What he says also applies to mobile operating systems.

Video: "But You HAD A CHOICE And CHOSE To Use Windows (or macOS)" - Jody Bruchon (Not embedding to prevent tracking by Google-owned YouTube. GhostArchive mirror for anyone who doesn't want to be tracked by YouTube.)

pharaoxzeturn said:
Setting time limit on camera even further. Will just make me switch to Iphone.

It hasn't happened yet, but I am guessing that it will.

But if anything, Apple is the most locked down. They will probably do it first and then Google will follow.

pharaoxzeturn said:
The same with cookies. When using a web browser. You need to spend 10s extra clicking accept or no.

This is because of the websites. It is not the phone's fault.

IsHacker said:
The Iphone is a tyrant (https://www.gnu.org/proprietary/proprietary-tyrants.html), a jail (https://www.gnu.org/proprietary/proprietary-jails.html) and also a spying device

Indeed. Apple is worse. Video: Android is more private than the iPhone! - The Hated One (GhostArchive mirror)

Topics

Topics

Prediction: Google will impose a time limit on camera and microphone use.

Hendrix7

Senior Member

IsHacker

Senior Member

jonnex44

Member

pharaoxzeturn

Member

IsHacker

Senior Member

Hendrix7

Senior Member

Similar threads

Top Liked Posts

New posts