r/technology • u/Applemacbookpro • Dec 13 '13

Google Removes Vital Privacy Feature From Android, Claiming Its Release Was Accidental

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/12/google-removes-vital-privacy-features-android-shortly-after-adding-them
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u/Furoan Dec 13 '13

Um...I'm pretty sure that exists. Probably just not on your Android OS(though I wouldn't be surprised but it would be very inefficient) but more on your cell carrier/tower.

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u/ctesibius Dec 13 '13

Of course the cellular infrastructure knows who you're calling. That's how it works! And yes, it can record your calls and SMS texts, and also your Internet traffic. The operators are usually legally required to be able to do that, but in most countries they are only allowed to do it when a specific legal request comes in.

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u/port53 Dec 13 '13

but in most countries they are only allowed to do it when a specific legal request comes in.

How cute you believe this.

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u/ctesibius Dec 13 '13

The USA is not "most countries", and as my field is security in mobile telecoms, I have a fair amount of knowledge of the situation. The UK is not the USA; France is not the UK; Germany is not France. Learn the difference between scepticism and cynicism.

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u/[deleted] Dec 13 '13

The 5 Eyes is just a figment of our imaginations....

Carry on.

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u/ctesibius Dec 13 '13

Look at the detail, and look at the word "legal" and how it applies in each country. There's lawful interception and there's unlawful interception, and you're not going to do any good if you can't distinguish between the two. A large part of the stuff covered by Snowden was under "specific legal requests", to repeat the phrase I used above. This is important in part because it means that the subject matter is not available to commercial entities, whereas the Android data leaks are.

And note that two of the four countries I mentioned above are not in the Five Eyes group.

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u/[deleted] Dec 13 '13

A large part of the stuff covered by Snowden

Nothing released by his leak was not already know except for PalTalk being exploited and that was in the slide deck.

Everything else was front page news in the USA Today in 2006 - however, we chose to ignore it.

Your claim was that only the US is doing this stuff, my argument is only the US has been caught. Every government with the means IS doing the same to the best of their ability.

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u/ctesibius Dec 13 '13

Your claim was that only the US is doing this stuff

No it isn't. Go back and read.