Google apps continue to track users even if location services are disabled

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 51

    gatorguy said:
    Curious, if I have location set to “While Using” on my iPhone, does it still track? And if it’s set to “Never” what then?
    I think this is similar to Google Maps still noting your location even if "Location" is turned off:
    https://www.pcmag.com/article/362437/how-to-turn-off-location-services-on-ios-devices

    Things are quite purposefully left unclear in some cases IMO.  That's not the way it should be. Google is plainly wrong in the way they've set this up if not downright deceptive.
    Ah, ‘plainly wrong.’

    Thanks. 
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 22 of 51
    kevin keekevin kee Posts: 1,289member
    With Google, even if we don't trust them, they still can get away with a claim 'we are offering a better option, take it or leave it.' Sadly, getting caught being deceptive will not change how Google does things.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 23 of 51
    rhoninrhonin Posts: 60member
    I have tracking stuff turned off in Google and off in iOS.  When I look at my Google stuff, is off and not recorded.  
    edited August 2018
  • Reply 24 of 51
    kevin keekevin kee Posts: 1,289member
    rhonin said:
    I have tracking stuff turned off in Google and off in iOS.  When I look at my Google stuff, is off and not recorded.  
    Did you check 'My activity'? They are not exactly stored in Location history.
    magman1979watto_cobra
  • Reply 25 of 51
    lewklewk Posts: 25member
    Uh… "The investigation by the Associated Press, working with researchers from Princeton, discovered some services will keep track of a user's location despite said user disabling features that are meant to stop the tracking from happening." As I understand the English language, if the user disables the features that are meant to STOP the tracking from happening, that means that it WILL track you. Shouldn't that be "despite said user enabling features that are meant to stop the tracking from happening."? But hey, that's actually a fairly good example of why the average user gets so confused by computers!
    edited August 2018 watto_cobra
  • Reply 26 of 51
    claire1claire1 Posts: 510unconfirmed, member
    gatorguy said:
    lkrupp said:
    We need @gatorguy to explain why this is not really true and how Google remains the poster boy for truth, justice, and the American Way. 
    I already posted about this earlier today, calling it borderline deceptive

    I also took the time to explain how to fix it. You shouldn't have to, companies should be more clear and group similar menu options together. But they don't. And that's wrong
    "Borderline deceptive".

    Wow Google ALMOST did something evil!
    pscooter63watto_cobra
  • Reply 27 of 51
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    gatorguy said:
    I also took the time to explain how to fix it.
    HAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAH Yeah, right. We’re going to believe that?

    To fix it, you stop using all Google services, Google-related services, Google subsidiary companies, and block all access to your devices from Google-owned IP addresses. And then you class action sue the shit out of these fucking lunatics.
    Curious, if I have location set to “While Using” on my iPhone, does it still track? And if it’s set to “Never” what then?
    Well, given that Safari still winds up collecting cookies when you set it to “never”, I’d say that Google manages to get around a user setting quite easily. Hell, Microsoft COMPLETELY IGNORES ALL YOUR SETTINGS IN WINDOWS 10, so you have to bypass the entire OS to make yourself secure.
    edited August 2018 magman1979anton zuykovp-dogpscooter63watto_cobra
  • Reply 28 of 51
    EsquireCatsEsquireCats Posts: 1,268member
    markbyrn said:
    wood1208 said:
    You know the drill. Congress needs to open inquiry and ask Google executives to come explain to congressional committee.
    they'll also send an inquiry to Apple since that will give them more publicity.  Presumably if you disable location services in iOS privacy settings for Google Maps, Google won't be able to override it?
    Disabling location services for apps, such as Google's, prevents those apps from obtaining a precise location. However there are other means to obtain the vague location of the user and this is still used to track you (since understanding where you are in the world is relevant to advertising).

    For example this is why a computer with no GPS or Wi-fi features can still have their general location tracked. (E.g. Your IP reveals your location to some degree.)

    In short, if you do not want to feed Google, you need to find alternatives - and I highly encourage you to install tools which prevent Google's tracking/ghost tracking of you. Duckduckgo has a good list of resources for maintaining your online privacy.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 29 of 51
    Rayz2016Rayz2016 Posts: 6,957member
    claire1 said:
    gatorguy said:
    lkrupp said:
    We need @gatorguy to explain why this is not really true and how Google remains the poster boy for truth, justice, and the American Way. 
    I already posted about this earlier today, calling it borderline deceptive

    I also took the time to explain how to fix it. You shouldn't have to, companies should be more clear and group similar menu options together. But they don't. And that's wrong
    "Borderline deceptive".

    Wow Google ALMOST did something evil!
    🤣🤣
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 30 of 51
    adybadyb Posts: 205member
    Google's services will attempt to monitor the movements of a user's device even if the user disables location services, with some Android and iOS apps produced by the search giant allegedly recording location data without the user's knowledge, an investigation into the feature claims.


    "We provide clear descriptions of these tools, and robust controls so people can turn them on or off, and delete their histories at any time," Google said.

    It was found that another setting other than Location History would need to be turned off to stop the recordings from happening.

    Leaves me happy that I have no Google Apps installed on any of my devices and once work moved away from Android devices due to security concerns and the cost to support, I was also able to delete my Google account.

    watto_cobra
  • Reply 31 of 51
    Google and Android, the biggest cesspools of bovine excrement this planet has ever seen, along with the brain-damaged trolls who profess their loyalty to it...
    But.... (they'll say) Apple does the same in order to help improve Apple Maps.

    I really don't know how true that is or not but I've basically stopped using any google service that I can. Sadly a lot of web sites need some google ****** to be enabled in order for them to work.

    Google and despite the glossy FB ads about respecting privacy are just in business to sell you (as in your life, friends and likes etc) to advertisers. Just say NO to them all.

    watto_cobra
  • Reply 32 of 51
    Oh silly Alphabet; Vestager is going to have another field day in a couple of months. The only question is: How much this time?
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 33 of 51

    I really don't know how true that is or not but I've basically stopped using any google service that I can. Sadly a lot of web sites need some google ****** to be enabled in order for them to work.


    I don't think it's enough. In order you you to be Google free, all your friends, aamily, contacts have to be Google free. You'd also have to avoid every site using Google trackers or at least always use an Ad-blocker. That's pretty much impossible.

    They somehow always find the way to get to the data we generate and it's getting tiresome trying to avoid it.

    Some politicians in France are trying to push a law or at least working on it: as soon as a citizen turns 18, he/she/they gets 50.000€ from Google/Facebook.

    watto_cobra
  • Reply 34 of 51
    I thought I had turned off all tracking stuff on my google account ages ago. just checked this "My Activity" section and was pretty shocked to see it listed every google search, google image search, every time I used maps and where I looked for, among other things. On search, I tell it NOT to remember my searches, and I turned off location tracking on maps but obviously it's b*llsh*t. Delete Activity By > All Dates / All Products > Delete. Incidentally, all my google searches are clearly the times my wife has used my phone judging by the content lol. 
  • Reply 35 of 51
    Well, that's every Google app removed from my phone. Now to decide if I can live with Bing as my search engine.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 36 of 51
    There is no point of trying to "hide" your details, I feel like since the day I am connected to the internet mostly every piece of info is somewhere floating. 
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 37 of 51
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    Google and Android, the biggest cesspools of bovine excrement this planet has ever seen, along with the brain-damaged trolls who profess their loyalty to it...
    But.... (they'll say) Apple does the same in order to help improve Apple Maps.

    I really don't know how true that is or not but I've basically stopped using any google service that I can. Sadly a lot of web sites need some google ****** to be enabled in order for them to work.

    Google and despite the glossy FB ads about respecting privacy are just in business to sell you (as in your life, friends and likes etc) to advertisers. Just say NO to them all.

    AFAIK at least in the past on iOS turning off "location" didn't mean your location wasn't being logged. In a way similar to Google Maps iOS would continue logging under "Frequent Locations" which was a separate setting under System Services.

    But it doesn't matter if anyone else does the same, it's still serves to (intended to?) confuse users and shouldn't be. I dislike it when companies do this kind of stuff. "It just works" should apply to ALL of 'em. 

    BTW for those who might have missed the explanation for making sure location off is really off. It's the very first setting under Activity Control, a single toggle setting, tho less than entirely clear IMO: Web and App Activity
    https://www.tomsguide.com/us/how-to-stop-google-tracking,news-27792.html
    edited August 2018 muthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 38 of 51
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member
    Well, that's every Google app removed from my phone. Now to decide if I can live with Bing as my search engine.
    Pay attention to ALL the apps you install. Neither Google nor Apple audits for compliance so just because a developer says they only use such and such for this or that it does not mean that's the end of it. You as the app user have no assurance that the developer whose app you installed is not intentionally or inadvertently sharing what they learn about you, and perhaps for additional profit. Apple can't protect you from it even if the common claim says otherwise. Pay attention.
    https://www.fastcompany.com/40407424/smartphone-apps-are-tracking-you-and-heres-how-to-monitor-what-they-know

    I would hope that changes sooner rather than later. Data aggregators are getting detailed information about you and your family from somewhere.

    EDIT... and then this story appears on my feed. Apps are using the way you tap your screen, the speed you type, the angle you hold your phone, or the swipes you typically use to better identify who is who, even recognizing changes in health??
    https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/13/business/behavioral-biometrics-banks-security.html
    edited August 2018 muthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 39 of 51
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Well, that's every Google app removed from my phone. Now to decide if I can live with Bing as my search engine.
    You can’t. It refuses to search for strings of text. Also, Microsoft engineers have admitted to using Google to search Microsoft’s own internal knowledge database because Bing can’t do it.

    Try Searx.me
    gatorguy said:
    EDIT... and then this story appears on my feed. Apps are using the way you tap your screen, the speed you type, the angle you hold your phone, or the swipes you typically use to better identify who is who, even recognizing changes in health??

    Oh, that’s old hat. I had a client many years back who couldn’t bank on his iPad because the bank’s website required Flash (!!!!!!!!!!!!!). Ignoring how odd that was, I installed one of those “flash-supporting” browsers and got the login to show up, but he still couldn’t log in because the site RECORDED THE SPEED AT WHICH HE TYPED IN HIS USERNAME AND PASSWORD and rejected his input. I hope to hell that his bank has fixed that shit by now, but who knows.
    edited August 2018 muthuk_vanalingamwatto_cobra
  • Reply 40 of 51
    gatorguy said:
    lkrupp said:
    We need @gatorguy to explain why this is not really true and how Google remains the poster boy for truth, justice, and the American Way. 
    I already posted about this earlier today, calling it borderline deceptive

    I also took the time to explain how to fix it. You shouldn't have to, companies should be more clear and group similar menu options together. But they don't. And that's wrong
    ‘Borderline?’ Seriously?
    williamlondontallest skilwatto_cobra
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