Category: Apps

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Spotify is Listening to You

African Woman Sadness Listening Music Tearing Photo

Spotify has patented technology that will allow it to analyse your voice and suggest songs based on your “emotional state, gender, age, or accent”.

The patent, which was filed in 2018 and granted on 12 January, would allow the streaming giant to “make observations” about a user’s environment and emotions using speech recognition technology.

https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-55839655

It is common for applications to be personalize for a given user. When you open up a music app you want to see songs and artists that reflect your preferences. When new music is available you want to have it suggested so that you can enjoy new music. However, monitoring a users emotional state based on their voice patterns seems like an invasion of privacy. Any information gathered on users, such as this, is considered meta data and can be used for many different purposes. The inclusion of this new feature brings up four very common threat assessment questions.

First, how is it getting the information, and is there a notification when active? Only commonly used apps such as “Phone” should access the mic. If any other app accesses the mic or camera there should be some explicit notification given. Some users may appreciate the intelligence and personalization of this new Spotify innovation. However, many others find this feature an unwanted invasion of privacy.

Second, how is the meta data used? Obviously, Spotify intends on using this meta data to personalize the music selection on its app in order to enhance its service. As an enhancement and innovation this should drive more users to their platform so that they can generate more revenue through subscriptions and advertising. This information can be used in other ways as well such as targeted advertising when spoken keywords are identified. There are many other ways that this meta data can be used. If you intend on using Spotify be diligent to read their terms regarding service and continue to monitor any changes. It isn’t always stated the intended use and the terms can be amended later to incorporate further infringement.

Third, where is the meta data stored? The data can be stored on the device, outside of the device, or both. Spotify is a streaming music service that is constantly communicating via the internet to Spotify servers to send and receive data. It is reasonable to assume that some of this meta data will be stored remotely. If it is stored remotely then there is a clear concern for data privacy and ownership. Recently, GDPR was enacted in the EU which gives clear legal information on the rights of users concerning their data. In the US, we do not have this type of data protection so our best option is to be diligent to protect our data.

Fourth, is the meta data used for any other purpose. Once a company has your data it is not uncommon for them to share or sell the meta data to other companies and governments. The meta data is used to manipulate people, which can occur in many different ways the most common is through targeted advertising. However, there are many other users for your data. If Spotify does incorporate this feature in the future there should be clear indication of exactly how this data will be used.

If it isn’t clear from our website thus far, Patriots have a duty to protect their freedoms. As such we must be informed of violations and take the appropriate steps to protect and fight. One of the best things you can do when big tech companies, like Spotify, infringe on our rights is stop using them. There are other alternatives out there, such as Deezer, that can provide streaming music service.

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Privacy Matters, Leave Facebook

One of the most prolific applications used today is Facebook. Although it is often looked down upon by younger generations it has continued to hold fast to its market share. There aren’t many people you can find that don’t have a Facebook account and use it daily. Facebook is a big part of people’s lives today, which is why it is important to evaluate security concerns. There are four many security reasons that this article will cover.

Facebook Tracks You

Facebooks tracks everything you do on its platforms. These platforms include Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram as well as website tracking. In fact, Facebook tracks you even if you don’t have an account (https://www.newsweek.com/facebook-tracking-you-even-if-you-dont-have-account-888699). The amount of data that Facebook collects on people is scary. Once they have this information it can be used in a number of ways; most notably for sale to other companies and governments.

IT WON’T COME as much of a surprise that Facebook tracks you on its platform—that’s why it can resurface your birthday photos from five years ago—but you might not yet realize the scope and the depth of its tracking all across the internet. Facebook’s tentacles stretch out across other websites and services, into the various apps you’re using on your phone, and to the places you physically visit in the real world—especially if you decide to check in on Facebook while you’re there.

https://www.wired.com/story/ways-facebook-tracks-you-limit-it/

What kind of information does Facebook track (https://joindeleteme.com/blog/does-facebook-sell-your-data/). Here are some of the many ways:

  • When you log in and from where (including your IP address)
  • How long you spend scrolling
  • People, accounts, pages, groups, and hashtags you connect with
  • Places you check in to
  • Pages you follow
  • How you use Facebook’s camera
  • Metadata of content you share (like the location of a photo)
  • Contact information (if uploaded from a device)
  • Who you talk to on Messenger and for how long
  • Items you buy through Facebook
  • Information other people share about you

Facebook Speads Misinformation and Fails to Acknowledge Bias

There are many articles online that talk about the use of Facebook to spread misinformation. It isn’t that Facebook the company is spreading misinformation purposefully. Actually, they are working hard to try and stop the spread of misinformation. However, their platform is being used for this activity and there isn’t a clear way to stop it.

In the wake of mainstream media shifting increasingly to the left, those on the right have looked for new platforms to get and share information. Social media was the logical choice as it became the logical alternative. This started happening a number of years ago during the rise of the intellectual dark web and has continued to progress. Facebook was built to be a social platform and has grown as a result of its success in this area. However, it is not built to distribute news. As such it has yet to develop a method to prevent the spread of misinformation by its users (https://www.unite.ai/how-facebooks-ai-spreads-misinformation-and-threatens-democracy/). To make matters worse, companies and governments have also used Facebook to spread misinformation (https://principia-scientific.com/facebook-admits-it-promotes-state-sponsored-misinformation/).

As Facebook has tried to stop the spread of misinformation they have implemented a system to verify information shared. They use both automated tools and human fact checkers to validate information. However, as with anything written or validated by humans it is impaired by personal bias. Facebook has faced criticism from both sides for bias and has only increased in frequency since 2016 (https://gizmodo.com/former-facebook-workers-we-routinely-suppressed-conser-1775461006).

Unlike the Bible which transforms culture, Facebook is transformed by culture. The changing political landscape is only one of many factors that is shaping the future of Facebook. Regardless of political views it is clear that the spread of misinformation and clear bias is of great concern.

Facebook Lacks Suficient Data Privacy

In 2019 alone over 1 billion user records were leaked, which equals half of all of Facebook users.

https://selfkey.org/facebooks-data-breaches-a-timeline/

Since 2013 Facebook, and its platforms, have been hacked at least nine times. The latest hack in April affected another 500 million accounts. What is even more surprising then the frequency and number of accounts affected is the lack of concern. People continue using Facebook without much regard to the data loss unless they are unable to access their account. Maybe this is the result of the nature of Facebook as it is intended for connection and sharing. Regardless, there is an increasing awakening to the need for data privacy and a users ownership over their data.

Facebook Shares User Data

Facebook claims that it doesn’t sell its users’ personal information. However, that doesn’t mean that your private data is 100% safe. According to Facebook’s Data Policy, the company may share information about you with third-party apps, advertisers, other partners (like vendors and service providers), and any companies that it owns. 

https://joindeleteme.com/blog/does-facebook-sell-your-data/

Even though Facebook doesn’t sell your information they do share your information and sell targeted advertising. It’s a subtle distinction between selling data and sharing data/selling targeted advertising as either is used to accomplish the same goal; manipulating people. By using Facebook you are agreeing to their use of your data in this fashion.

If you are interested in learning more about Facebook and how to delete your account properly check out the following video.

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Setup a NextCloud Account

NextCloud Home Page

One of the most important elements of a useable device is its integration with a cloud environment for storage. iPhone and Android devices both have integration with their parent company that allows for remote storage, email, stored contacts, migration of data and apps, and many other things. However, the downside is that these companies then have all of your data. You are not in control of your data and therefore lack privacy. It’s eye opening to realize how beholden you are to these companies until you try and cut the cord. Can you see the endless sheeple moaning and crying about not having the latest features or apps that they didn’t know existing five minutes ago?

“Nextcloud puts your data at your fingertips, under your control. Store your documents, calendar, contacts and photos on a server at home, at one of our providers or in a data center you trust.”

https://nextcloud.com/athome/

NextCloud is a server application that allows you to store your data online and then access that data via a browser or phone application. You manage where the NextCloud server and data are located; either in your home, in a data center, or through a provider. At the time of this writing, we recommend using one of the many providers as it is FREE and simple to setup. One of these days we may offer NextCloud as a provider as well, let us know if this is a service you would like offered.

Setting up a free NextCloud account with a provider is simple. NextCloud.com has a “Simple sign up” page that lists a number of providers that offer free service. Enter your email address and select your preferred provider. Unless you want a provider in another country, it is recommended that you select a provider in your country.

NextCloud Simple Sign Up page

Once you have entered your email address, agreed to the Terms of Service, and selected a provider your account will be setup. After the account is created you will be redirected to a new page to enter a password. Make sure to choose a secure password and verify your account. To verify your account open your email account and locate the email sent from the NextCloud provider. It will usually say something like, “Verify your cloudamo.com account” in the email header. Open the email message and click on the “Click here to verify your email address” button.

Now that you have the NextCloud account setup make sure to save your password somewhere safe. You will be redirected to your account. Feel free to look around. You can make changes to your account and data here as well as in the NextCloud app. You can download the NextCloud app via F-Droid. If you haven’t installed F-Droid yet check out the article on installing F-Droid.

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Sync Contacts – DAXV5 and NextCloud

One of the first things that I had to do once I setup my secure phone was figure out how to sync my contacts. Most of my contacts were stored in my Google Mail account. I wanted to find a similar solution where I could store my contacts on the cloud and sync them with my phone. Google and Android make this a simple task. Doing without Google and Android is more difficult but not impossible and there are some good options for accomplishing this. I’ll present my solution this isn’t the only solution.

I use DAVx⁵ and a NextCloud hosting company, called cloudamo.com, to accomplish storage and sync my contacts. DAVx⁵’s purpose is to synchronize your DAVx⁵ account on the Android device with your CalDAV/CardDAV server. The contact data is stored on cloudamo.com in the cloud and synced to my phone via DAVx⁵. On a side note, not only can you store your contacts in your cloudamo.com account but also photos, passwords, and other random information. I just keep finding more stuff to put there… It’s great!

Step 1: Export Contacts from Google

  1. Go to Google Contacts.
  2. Select one of the following:
    • A single contact: Check the box next to the contact name.
    • Multiple contacts: Check the boxes next to all the contacts you want to export.
    • All contacts: Check the box next to any contact and in the top left, click Selection Actions and then All.
  3. In the top left, click More actions and then Export.
  4. To back up your contacts, select Google CSV.
  5. To save your file, click Export.

Once I have contact data in CSV format then I imported the contacts into cloudamo.com. Here is a great video that goes through the details of how to import contacts into NextCloud.

Step 2: Import Contacts into NextCloud

Once the setup is completed then the contact on your phone will automatically sync with the cloudamo.com account. Any changes to either will pass through to contacts on both the phone and cloudamo.com. You can make contact additions or updates on either your phone or the cloudamo.com portal. I find it convenient to have access to my data on both my phone and the cloudamo.com portal.

Step 3: Verify Contact Sync

Try adding a new contact on your phone and see if it shows up on your NextCloud account. Login to https://cloudamo.com/login and go to Contacts. Wait for a few minutes to allow the new contact to sync then go to Contacts to search for the new contact.

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Secure Messages – Signal

Google Play Store - Signal

Let me get on my soap box for a minute. I can’t understand why Google hasn’t addressed the issue with iMessage Tapbacks. What are iMessage Tapbacks? Here is a short explanation that once you’ve read will bring much clarity.

“Tapbacks were created, one assumes, to make texting more convenient. It’s true that they’re nearly effortless to employ: Simply press on a message until you’re presented with the Tapback options — a heart, a thumbs up, a thumbs down, a HAHA, a double exclamation point, and a question mark — and pick the one you want.” https://www.imore.com/how-use-emoji-and-tapbacks-imessage

As an Android use Tapbacks are extremely irritating especially when communicating in a group chat. iPhone users see a nice little emoji under the message. Android users see a duplicate message with some text in front such as, “Liked Johnny just graduated kindergarden”. As much as I celebrate Johnny’s graduation I hate getting 50 messages with “Liked Johnny just graduated kindergarden”.

What if I told you there is a magic application that will provide a solution for this to Android users and could provide additional protection for both Android and iPhone users. Signal is a messaging app that can take the place of the standard SMS/MMS app. It has a nice user interface, can handle the Tapback emojis and will provide additional security when both the sender and receiver have Signal. When both sender and receiver have Signal the messages go through the Signal network securely instead of sending the SMS/MMS unsecured.

Use the direct link to download and install the app from the Signal website; you’ll find the link further down the page under Danger Zone.