I don’t see the fuss over wireless charging

[Halcyon]

I'd like to think it is up to the user, and I'd be happy with that. But... a recent update to something has had the OS regularly telling me there are x number of apps I haven't used for a month and now their permissions are removed. WTF?!? And you can't easily find which ones it's just zapped, and if you list all the ones that have been zapped, fix one go back to the list and wait half a day for it to be populated again so you can move onto the next one. It's massively stupid and ill thought out. But you cannot disable it. All you can do is mark an app as "DON'T FUCK WITH THIS", but it's a massive drag, which shouldn't be necessary, to go through every app doing that. And then remembering next time you install an app to do it.

I believe you can disable the "Play Protect" service to turn off this behavior. I'm not going to test it as I prefer it.

[Berni]

I'd like to think it is up to the user, and I'd be happy with that. But... a recent update to something has had the OS regularly telling me there are x number of apps I haven't used for a month and now their permissions are removed. WTF?!? And you can't easily find which ones it's just zapped, and if you list all the ones that have been zapped, fix one go back to the list and wait half a day for it to be populated again so you can move onto the next one. It's massively stupid and ill thought out. But you cannot disable it. All you can do is mark an app as "DON'T FUCK WITH THIS", but it's a massive drag, which shouldn't be necessary, to go through every app doing that. And then remembering next time you install an app to do it.

You can just disable the feature, or just disable the notification for it.

The notification spam is one thing that is indeed a bit of a problem on Android. Every time i get a new phone i have to spend the first week pressing disable on the annoying notifications that i don't want. But you only have to do that one time, all the annoying ones pop up in the first few days never come up again once disabled.

As for revoking permissions on unused apps, it is a security thing. It won't do anything on any app you use regularly. As for any app that you use every few months the only difference is that you will be promoted again to allow access again when the app tries to do the thing. It won't remove the app or its data or anything. This is to prevent old obsolete forgotten apps getting hijacked with malware by pushing out an update for those apps (be it by developers or someone hacking the developers account).

The average user doesn't tend to care about security at all, so sometimes platforms add security features that are turned on by default, but can be turned off if the user really wants to.

[PlainName]

You can just disable the feature, or just disable the notification for it.

Disabling the notification just doesn't tell you its happened. Doesn't stop it happening.

If you know how to disable the protect feature I would love to know - despite a big incentive to find out (pushing the coronary back 5 years) I've not been able to discover how.

As for revoking permissions on unused apps, it is a security thing. It won't do anything on any app you use regularly.

Seems to me that if something is malicious it's going to be bad pretty quickly, like before you uninstall it as being rubbish. There are apps I really don't use for 6 months or so, and then I do use them and don't want to dick around figuring out why they no longer work. For instance, Glimpse I use when the onboard tracker on a bike is having problems so I can be tracked in real-time, but since the trackers are pretty reliable it doesn't get fired up much. Fing I use when there's a network issue I am tracking down but, as these things tend to go, things work fine for months so I don't fire it up. In both examples, when I need to use the app it is an instant need - it is meant to Just Work and after bloody Protect has borked them they don't.

[Berni]

You can disable PlayProtect entirely under the settings for "Biometrics and security" on my phone, so i don't see the problem. Just turn it off if you don't want it.

The malicious part is pushing an update out that sneaks malicious functionality into a formerly popular app. By default apps automatically receive updates, so the app developers can push out new software patch to millions of phones at the press of a button. The developer themselves could have malicious intent for a cashgab in the form of selling information, or the developers login credentials might have gotten into the wrong hands, allowing a malicous entity to push out an update in there name. So removing permissions of apps causes these apps to be once again sandboxed into where they can't do any harm, this reduces the potential attack surface by a little bit.

Go try using an iPhone where you don't even get to see the filesystem.

[Simon]

If you get it for free you can only complain to your lawmakers.

[PlainName]

Arse about face, I think. If it's free there's no contract so law (and it's makers) aren't involved. Pay money and you have an actual lever to sort things (which, realistically, would be to stop paying and go somewhere else).

[PlainName]

You can disable PlayProtect entirely under the settings for "Biometrics and security" on my phone, so i don't see the problem. Just turn it off if you don't want it.

Not on my phone. A bit of research today shows that it can be turned off under Play store settings, which I have done.

So thanks for the nudge. When I looked before (when it first started happening) there was no indication that it could be turned off so either the ability to do so is more recent than that or I just couldn't find the right search terms (or not enough people had been annoyed about it to make waves on the interwebs).

[PlainName]

You can disable PlayProtect entirely under the settings for "Biometrics and security" on my phone, so i don't see the problem. Just turn it off if you don't want it.

Not on my phone. A bit of research today shows that it can be turned off under Play store settings, which I have done.

So thanks for the nudge. When I looked before (when it first started happening) there was no indication that it could be turned off so either the ability to do so is more recent than that or I just couldn't find the right search terms (or not enough people had been annoyed about it to make waves on the interwebs).

Wrong wrong wrong wrong 

Disabling Play Protect merely stops the malware scanning. It doesn't stop the completely ridiculous removal of permissions - the damn thing did it again last night. Location permission removed from GPS app, microphone permission removed from sound meter app. Obviously not used often, but when I do want to use them I want them to bloody well work and not spend time trying to figure out when they won't.

[Halcyon]

Can't you just disable it from happening on a per-app basis? It seems that a few minutes of your time could have resolved this?

The principle of least privilege is a pretty standard security measure in computing and whilst I get there are some edge-cases, that's why the option to allow/disallow it for certain applications exists. It's really no different to application whitelisting/blacklisting on your PC.

At least you have the option to customise it. If you were an Apple user, it would be their way or no way.

[David Hess]

Wireless charging is convenient, and removes the unreliability of mechanical connectors.

[PlainName]

Can't you just disable it from happening on a per-app basis?

In theory, yes. But it takes half a minute or so to do that for each app that's in the list, and eventually you lose the will to live. Plus that app you installed 4 months ago and haven't used much gets stiffed - I couldn't see a way to mark an app as ignore other than by letting it be caught and then removing it.

Once or twice is a surprise. Five or ten times is annoying. When it's potentially a couple of hundred times you want to shoot someone.

Edit: it's like spam. When it's not happening to you, you don't see the fuss. Get regular unstoppable spam and you'll soon be seeking retribution, though.

[Halcyon]

Can't you just disable it from happening on a per-app basis?

In theory, yes. But it takes half a minute or so to do that for each app that's in the list, and eventually you lose the will to live.

This is my point, even this should be limited to a small number of applications for 99.9% of users and something you only need to do once.

[eti]

I guess I just believe in taking personal responsibility. Seems to be a rare thing these days.

May I ask if there is a specific reason why you use that ghastly, unreadable typeface?

[eti]

As with almost everything else these days, the progressive, creeping removal of peoples' control over their own lives and belongings is mind-boggling and seems to be getting worse at an alarming pace.

Yes, Android is doing more and more stuff behind your back with fewer and fewer user options to enable/disable those features or even adjust them to your preferences.
Same with most commercial OSs these days.
Same with pretty much anything.

Be happy they are just annoying you with Android settings, for tomorrow they'll tell you how, when and where to pee, and you'll obey.

At some point someone will paste in the oft-claimed (and selectively misunderstood) “bbbbbut it’s open sauce and customisable” (both of which take great liberties with fact and imagination 🤣)

Android is a ubiquitous OS which has precisely the value and worth attributed to it by Google when they give it away to any old schmuck. iOS is locked down and ACTUALLY SECURE, and when one knows how to use one iPhone, one knows how to use all of them.

The product manufacturer is put in the position of making the best decision for the user (iOS) vs the “¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I dunno - try it and see - not our problem!” Of Google.

[PlainName]

iOS is locked down and ACTUALLY SECURE

https://www.cvedetails.com/vulnerability-list/vendor_id-49/product_id-15556/Apple-Iphone-Os.html

"Total number of vulnerabilities : 2820"

For instance (with my emphasis):

An out-of-bounds write issue was addressed with improved bounds checking. This issue is fixed in iOS 15.7.1 and iPadOS 15.7.1, iOS 16.1 and iPadOS 16. An application may be able to execute arbitrary code with kernel privileges. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited

[Berni]

There is no point in debating if Android or iOS is better.

Every user has there own preferences on how they want there device to work. So for some kinds of people Android is better suited and for some iOS is better suited. Just use what you think works better for you.

Each has its own strengths and flaws. My own preference is Android, but i can see why some people would prefer iOS.

[PlainName]

i can see why some people would prefer iOS

Indeed, there is no problem with people preferring one or the other - whatever floats your boat. The reason I posted the link was because eti doesn't have a simple preference, per se, but is what you would call a fanboy, delights in rubbishing anything that isn't Apple, and making out that Apple kit has no faults (sorry, can't be bothered with the caps) and should be desired by any thinking user.

[David Chamberlain]

[Halcyon]

Android is a ubiquitous OS which has precisely the value and worth attributed to it by Google when they give it away to any old schmuck. iOS is locked down and ACTUALLY SECURE, and when one knows how to use one iPhone, one knows how to use all of them.

It depends on how you define "secure", what tools someone uses etc...

Both iOS and Android are exceptionally secure for the average user, provided you use a strong passcode/PIN and don't install anything dodgy (and yes, malicious software exists on Apple devices too).

If you're using a 4-digit PIN, expect that to be cracked or bypassed immediately, if not, within minutes on both Apple and Android* devices. There are caveats however. Some of the more obscure Android devices are extremely difficult to break into, even with an insecure passcode. The later versions of the Google Pixel's are also not very well supported from a security researcher's standpoint.

There is no point in debating if Android or iOS is better.

Every user has there own preferences on how they want there device to work. So for some kinds of people Android is better suited and for some iOS is better suited. Just use what you think works better for you.

Each has its own strengths and flaws. My own preference is Android, but i can see why some people would prefer iOS.

Exactly. Neither is "better", they are just suited for different use-cases. It's like arguing whether Linux is "better" than Windows... it just depends.

Personally, there are things I just can't do on Apple devices, so that rules them out entirely for me.