ranson

rob53 said:

I want, no DEMAND, that this Developer Mode setting include a way for the iPhone operator/owner to lock out the ability for it to be changed by anyone except the iPhone user as defined in iCloud settings. Further, I want to make sure the iCloud settings require either a password, passkey or something no person other than the logged in user has access to. I CHOOSE to only use the Apple App Store and since it's my device with my personal information on it, I have a right to protect that information, especially from non-governmental people, like developers. I CHOOSE what goes on my OS devices, not developers or governments. A "bad actor" has several ways to get past any iOS setting but it's more difficult when there aren't settings that would easily allow the beginning of opening an iOS device. This mode is a semi-locked door when it currently is a wall with no way to get through. 

I don't quite understand this rant. The setting is part of the phone OS and thus will be protected by your passcode/biometrics? A bad actor would be required to have physical access to your unlocked phone, then enable this setting, reboot, etc. It's not like anyone can just do it remotely. So nothing about this setting violates any of your freedoms to choose what software you put on your phone or from where it comes, etc.

Sure, let's suggest the user be required to re-authenticate their AppleID as well if it will make you sleep better at night. But that is completely aside from any rant about limiting your choice. This setting actually gives everyone more choice.

I do understand and agree with posts wanting tight controls around this setting for kids' phones. I'm sure that is part of the final solution if not already there.

sflocal said:

Nonsense.  People like you, wannabe developers, will literally make stuff up to further your agenda.  Whiners like you are not Apple's customers.  WE are Apple's customers, not developers, not you.  

You want the Wild West, go to Android and be done with it.

Wow, is it really necessary to attack people and call them names like wannabe and whiner?

lkrupp said:

If you want something cheaper then don’t consider Apple gear to begin with. There’s a plethora of cheaper options available to you that will satisfy your need for low cost. Get a PC and a monitor for a third the price and quit agonizing over overpriced Apple gear. It’s really simple

You are really saucy all over the forums today, aren't ya?     Maybe try not so hard to wrongly assume so much about others. Did the Author of this piece (or the only other poster before you) say anything about agonizing over Apple gear? Didn't think so.

The piece is great - both informative and accurate. Even if someone "wants something cheaper" it is always prudent to compare specs and understand exactly what your money is paying for in relation to other options. I have a Studio Display w/ nanotexture, but I might not opt for a second one, so this piece can inform me about whether the Alogic would be a good compliment as a secondary screen. I certainly would not get on the forums and start wagging my finger at the air over it.

rob53 said:

I don't care about Android especially because nobody really comments on all the issues Android has. Google could care less, especially since their only reason for being in business is to steal user information to sell ads. 

IF Apple is forced to provide side-loading, as @OutdoorAppDeveloper states, Apple would have to provide and install the api's necessary to use side-loading. Once the capability is there, a good developer/hacker can easily exploit it even if the user has turned it off. It might be as simple as installing a common, free app that everyone uses (Facebook???) and the install changes the side-loading setting after a few uses (so the App Store testers don't catch it fight off). I'm not a developer but I'm sure this could easily be configured, just like the official Olympic app that forces certain monitoring of athletes. There's no other option for the athletes. That's why I used the US government as an example. Submit your taxes via the IRS app and the FBI/NSA force the side-loading setting to be turned on then immediately include a backdoor. This isn't from a movie, it's common sense. If you don't think the FBI/NSA can already break into almost every version of Android you're in denial. 

This is a really hot take - to suggest that an app in the Apple App Store (Facebook) would be able to change a hypothetical OS-level setting to enable side-loading without the user's consent or knowledge. I hate FB as much as anyone, but surely you know this would not happen. During the review process, each API call required by the app is audited directly from its source code and the manifest is verified against the developer's api entitlement list. So if those API's were being used and abused, Apple would have no excuse for it going uncaught, given how highly they tout the security of their App Store platform. If it did go uncaught, security researchers would find it quite quickly, given a simple import table dump of the app binary would expose the api call.

Now let's talk about that Olympics Bubble app. That app IS in the App Store. It DID go through Apple's review process. And Apple approved it!!(!?!?!?) Now, even with the public awareness about its spyware characteristics, it's STILL in the Apple App Store. All the while, Apple tells us that apps in their store are secure and we can feel safe about them. The Olympics app is nothing but the latest example of how hypocritical that stance is.

And no, is it not common sense to think that the FBI would attempt to install a backdoor via an App Store-provided app like an IRS Taxes app. For the same reasons as w/ the Facebook example, an App Store app would not be able to just flip random OS switches, and if they did slip through, security researchers would find it rather quickly - come to think of it, just like they did with the Olympics app. Go figure!

So are we done fear mongering now? If you don't want to sideload, then don't. Nothing you install inside of the walled garden is going to be able to force side loading on you against your will.

What a ridiculous, misinformed, clickbait article. Nobody's thermostats are being tampered with. They opted into a program that allows this, and in exchange they receive financial perks on their power bill (including the power company providing the smart thermostats to them for free). This article needs a major overhaul, or to be retracted completely.

I have been reading AI for over 20 years, but if you keep churning out trash like this, you will quickly fall off of my bookmarks. There are plenty of other reputable sites covering Apple that post the same news as you do, just as timely. Clearly they are more informed about the topics they are reporting.

Engadget similarly posted a trash story about smart thermostats a few years back (here), and I promptly removed them from my news feed and have not been back.