Google is working on anti-tracking features for Android

05 February 2021
The company wants to limit cross-app tracking, similar to what Apple has announced.

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  • ?
  • Anonymous
  • NGq
  • 06 Feb 2021

Remember when Google was sued in the UK for intentionally developing and deploying a work-around to circumvent users’ *explicit* privacy settings in Safari? Or when they ‘accidentally’ mapped hotspots all over NA, then refused to delete the data? Or when they decided “Don’t be evil” was too restrictive a motto? Yeah, I trust them about as far as I can throw them.

    Google wants other companies to be limited in tracking inside Android while Goigle itself tracks everyone 24/7 without consent. That's privacy ala Google!

      • ?
      • Anonymous
      • uGW
      • 06 Feb 2021

      Google cannot be trusted to do anything like this effectively and efficiently because it is detrimental to their (financial) interests. At best it will be a half-hearted effort only under public pressure. The whole idea is to target end-users and cream income from advertising!

        • ?
        • Anonymous
        • sUS
        • 06 Feb 2021

        For a moment, I thought I was reading a The Onion article. Thanks for the laughs.

          Oh I dunno Google, I have already completely deGoogled my Android phone anyway. Now I use microG and replaced all Google products with their own FOSS alternatives. I don't miss Google Mobile Services at all now.

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • UG4
            • 06 Feb 2021

            Reason, 06 Feb 2021I've been on them for years about tracking, but it... moreIt can never be zero private information. Anti-tracking should be a balance between security, functionality and safety.

            Let me put it this way in an extreme case. If a hacker hacks your bank account via the app, no tracking was in place. You scream to your bank, demanding to find who is the culprit.. they shake their heads.. saying tooo bad.. we have no tracking.. your money is stolen by we don't know, it could even be yourself for all we know.

            Just like real world, we need to provide peacekeepers the means to track down bad guys. It's a balance, not going to be easy to balance it all.

            While I agree tracking for ads and such is kinda bad, but we are also how company learns to improve.. for example, you like product A, but the company did not know and decided to discontinue product A.. You scream at them for being dumb.. but how would they know if you like it? The more personalised the usage, the better companies can provide the service for you. So again, there have to be a balance.

              • ?
              • Anonymous
              • PUr
              • 06 Feb 2021

              I trust Google as far as I can throw them.

                • R
                • Reason
                • 7tn
                • 06 Feb 2021

                I've been on them for years about tracking, but it's one of the things in android they didn't change. I also proposed a better permissions sandbox scheme and they brought a simple version which automatically grants access to all sorts of tracking features, hiding them out of view. If you go to app permissions and look into the sub listings, you may see all sorts of stuff there you never gave permission to.

                The amount of private information they should be allowed is zero. You don't have the guy at the shop you bought bed sheets from come in to your house to watch you while you are asleep, look through your bills and steal their infirmary for the perps records. Stuff around with the plumbing in your house and fill your house with recording equipment and spare magazines. Why should you expect these people to to be allowed to do it! Time for manipulation of the law to finish, and internet companies that do these thins to go broke. We all love 'insert name here's, but if it means supoorting real douchebag, why bother!

                  ultimately this is about greed of both apple and google- they simply want to take the money being earned from using tracking information and user data gained from APIs granted to third parties in their respective operating systems; they simply can just sell it themselves to anyone interested, bypassing third parties. algorithms and ai development, which both companies work on, are both founded on the premise of serving the users better targeted information and ads. on one hand there is that benefit that there will be less entities to track and collect user information, but then on the other hand the same amount of information is still being collected from users. targeted ads and information is where content providers/creators earn from, and to serve you these they need your tracking information as well as various personal information, which they obtain from the owners of the platforms. apple fans may defend that they do not serve targeted ads, and that would be an absurd claim. free contents and games/applications you consume will always have to serve you ads in one way or another as, again, it is the only way for their creators to earn money. subscriptions and/or payments for paid services as well is subject to 30% "google tax" and "apple tax" on their respective platforms, and in return they gain tracking and user information for them to make the service or the content better. no such thing as free- in this digital world, you are actually not the user, rather the product being sold.

                    • C
                    • Carol
                    • nUI
                    • 06 Feb 2021

                    LOL, 05 Feb 2021It's like a poison trying to create an antidote to itself.Haha, well greatest discription, way better then mine.

                      • L
                      • LOL
                      • 0x%
                      • 05 Feb 2021

                      It's like a poison trying to create an antidote to itself.

                        • C
                        • Carol
                        • nUI
                        • 05 Feb 2021

                        Hah, what a joke. All they need to do is give the people the power to block/allow internet access for apps and well for them selves to stop tracking. They can't do nothing against the world wide web, and they know that... so the "efforts" they talk about is BULL''''t.

                          • ?
                          • Anonymous
                          • M0x
                          • 05 Feb 2021

                          Google can't be trusted

                            • ?
                            • Anonymous
                            • 847
                            • 05 Feb 2021

                            Anti-tracking for others. Open for Google, partners that pay for the info and obviously NSA, etc. So, at the end, you are still tracked.

                              • ?
                              • Anonymous
                              • gq3
                              • 05 Feb 2021

                              Everything out there is tracking you. Get used to it.

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • gqv
                                • 05 Feb 2021

                                Google and privacy??? Good luck with that...

                                  • ?
                                  • Anonymous
                                  • xtS
                                  • 05 Feb 2021

                                  Doubt

                                    • ?
                                    • Anonymous
                                    • vG4
                                    • 05 Feb 2021

                                    I hope battery life will improve with Android 12

                                      • ?
                                      • Anonymous
                                      • pN4
                                      • 05 Feb 2021

                                      ae86, 05 Feb 2021Facebook probably already had a talk with google with these... moreTrue. They probably won't allow blocking Google trackers.

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                                        • Gargan
                                        • a4r
                                        • 05 Feb 2021

                                        What about all the tracking that is done by Google? Or i guess that the masters at Google can do whatever they want

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