🚨 Ever spoken about something and the next minute you're getting an advert about it on your smartphone? Almost like your phone is listening..

Well, evidence claims that Meta, Microsoft, Google and Amazon could all be listening!

For more details 👉 👉404media.co/heres-the-pitch-de…

#Meta #Amazon #Microsoft #Google #CMG #CMGpitch #Bigtech #Activelistening

A much more detailed post about TalkBack's new Image description feature using #AI #Gemini

android-developers.googleblog.…

#Google #Android #accessibility #blind

Can someone please recommend me a #search #engine that is not
* #Google (Ew google)
* #Duckduckgo (Keeps saying there were no results for my searches despite having the little information box to the right for the exact search)
* #Bing (I'd use bing if it wasn't crammed to death with CoPiLoT)
* #Brave (Ew, brave)
* #Ecosia (Its alright, but its just... slow. And gives kinda crap results)
* #Startpage (I just don't like it)
* #SearxNG (Slow, ugly, and useless)

I will probably update this list as I remember/am reminded about search engines that I've already tried and don't like.

cheers

According to the "Terminator" film franchise, TODAY is the day that Skynet became self-aware, took over, and started its campaign to destroy humanity. The good news is that instead we have garbage like #Google Gemini that can't even answer questions like "When was Kamala Harris born?"

So we're probably safe from Skynet for now.

🪦The Dying Web | Matthias Endler

｢ the world's largest websites are owned by the same company, which also owns the world's most popular browser and search engine. Coincidentally, they are also the world's largest advertising company. And people are wondering why they can't block ads on YouTube anymore ｣

endler.dev/2024/the-dying-web/
#google #monopoly #firefox #chromium

The Dying Web | Matthias Endler

I look left and right, and I'm the only one who…

^endler.dev

Google is headed to trial after allegedly misleading Chrome users on data collection. 🧑‍⚖️

This is the most recent in a growing list of court proceedings.
📣 tuta.com/blog/google-incognito…
📣 tuta.com/blog/google-search-mo…

What was your most startling discovery about Google's data collection? Let us know below!

#google #encryption #privacy #data

Mr @icing found a HTTP/2 bug in the #Google frontend webserver.

github.com/curl/curl/issues/14…

curl 8.9.1 reports HTTP/2 stream was not closed cleanly: PROTOCOL_ERROR for 416 · Issue #14620 · curl/curl

I did this $ curl -vvvS --fail-early -Lo go1.23.0.src.tar.gz https://go.dev/dl/go1.23.0.src.tar.gz # whoops, I didn't see if that finished. try again to be sure $ curl -vvvS --fail-early -Lo go1.23...

^GitHub

When you search for "identita občana" (Citizen Identity, ID for the Czech e-government), the first link #Google gives you (as an ad) is to a malicious website.

I wonder if companies like Google will ever be held accountable for spreading dangerous scams and getting paid for it.

#CyberSecurity #Search

Okay, so I just have to rant a little. So Apple has been doing some pretty shitty stuff regarding developers and money lately. They act like they're above the law. And sure, they'll gladly follow it for Russia and other places where they're asked to take apps like VPN's off the App Store. But in the EU where they're being asked to open some stuff up and give developers and users freedom? They just continue to kick and scream all the way. And I sit here, with a Pixel 8, one of the newest, supposedly best phones there is, and I hate using it. I love my years old iPhone SE 2020, much more than a year old slightly high end phone. And yep, it's all about accessibility for me. And y'all know I'll change my mind when I'm presented with something better. I mean, I sit at work all day and use Linux and barely even notice anymore. But give me an Android, and TalkBack drives me crazy.

Like, we have Braille Screen Input on Android. We even have reading and selection commands on the TalkBack Braille Keyboard. But when you go to use it, you always have to turn the phone to where the USB C port is facing left. Now, I know, that's not terrible, but it's something that turns me off a lot. And I've told Google accessibility, and I've talked about it ever since it came out, but it's still how things work. And it just slows me down. It's pointless, and they could easily just flip it around.

Now, there is an option to flip the *dots* of the Braille Keyboard, but that doesn't flip the commands. So, when you swipe right for a space, it actually backspaces.

Now, I do need to give Commentary Screen reader more of a chance, and see if they have an extention that'll send a screenshot to AI to be described. And if they don't, I'm sure there's an HPPT client for LUA, so one can be scripted I'm sure. But Commentary doesn't even *have* Braille support.

Meh, everything is a mess. And here I am about to give Apple yet more money in a month, because I do want a new phone, and I don't feel like getting a new Samsung, just to be disappointed. Again. With Android.

#apple #iOS #Android #Google #accessibility #blind

Reason might be simpler then you could possible imagine, in my humble subjective opinion: Google PlayStore is explicitly for tracking the user and with in-app purchases to squeeze every little money out of there is.

Your own App don't do anything of the above mentioned malicious capitalism and anti user friendly behavior. 😉

#Google #PlayStore
@IzzyOnDroid

Google pulls the plug on uBlock Origin

Solution: Firefox + uBlock Origin 😉🤟

tuta.com/blog/best-private-bro…

Here's the latest news: windowscentral.com/software-ap…

#Chrome #Google #Firefox #uBlock #Browsers

Takže, v paralelnom vesmírne Erica Schmidta, môže za zaostávanie Googlu na poli AI rozhodnutie, že ľudia môžu pracovať z domu.

Takéto vyhlásenia sú zlé na tak veľa úrovniach, ako to je len možné a vedia ma dostať do vývrtky. Áno, než som toto napísal, musel som si napočítať do desať, opakovane, ináč by som sa znížil iba k jednoslovnému vulgarizmu.

Pracujem z domu viac než dekádu, coachoval som viacero kolegov a známych, ktorí behom toho obdobia (už aj pred pandémiou) postupne prechádzali na remote work. Sám som za tú dobu vystriedal množstvo interných pozícii smerom hore, či dokonca prešiel úžasným (externým) kariérnym skokom, takže smelo predpokladám, že som biznisu odovzdával nadpriemernú hodnotu.
Taktiež môžem povedať, že som týmto veľa získal v osobnom živote - týždenne ušetrené hodiny času, môcť vidieť, v priamom prenose, svoje deti vyrastať, flexibilita na starosti denného života... Je to na nezaplatenie a je to win-win.

Iste, nie je to pre každého, iste, sú aj ľudia, ktorí budú mať tendenciu takúto príležitosť zneužívať, alebo ju iba jednoducho a ľudsky nezvládnu. Adresovať tieto nástrahy je však úlohou managementu. A kto vedie management? Leadership!

Takže, ak Eric tvrdí niečo takéto, treba pozorne počúvať. Síce to znie ako, boli sme ňuňu dobrí na ľudí, a preto zaostávame, ale v skutočnosti tým hovorí - sme naprd leadri, s mizerným managementom, ktorí nezvládli svoju základnú úlohu - efektívne riadiť ľudí.

Ono, je tu však ešte tretia, najpravdepodobnejšie (uvidíme) možnosť: nedarí sa, spálilo sa mrte prachov bez adekvátneho vysledku, treba nájsť vinníka a ideálne zmienku ako zoštíhliť firmu, teda vyhodiť pár ľudí... ale keďže sme už ňuňu dobrí, my nikoho vyhadzovať nebudeme, my iba všetkým prikážeme návrat do office a oni odídu dobrovoľne... Rád by som sa mýlil, ale za posledný rok som takýchto pribehov videl už niekoľko.
Je tu však háčik - takýmto spôsobom sa firma zbaví predovšetkým tých šikovnejších, tých ktorí sú si vedomí svojich schopností aj pridanej hodnoty, bez toho aby strávili život v openspace... A viete čo - dobre im tak!

#ustrelilomidekel #somsaopustil #homeoffice #ericschmidt #google #alphabet

From: @zachklipp
androiddev.social/@zachklipp/1…

That's not the point, though: if we don't want to use them, why do we have to confirm the TOS? And if there are app updates, where do they come from if we didn't connect any Google account? Actually, I even had most of the Google Apps disabled, including PlayStore. Which btw already consumed 20 MB storage (cache and data) without having been used at all.

Well, I DO know why I've cut my ties to that eco-system about 10 years ago…

#Google #Android #privacy

I've just had to setup a brand new device shipping with #Android 14. Model doesn't matter, nor for whom it was. It's bee long ago I had to set up a Google-Android device – so I didn't remember what I've "missed" </s>.

For #privacy: "Without #Google, please!" – Yes, fine. But even if you have a matching CustomROM (Calyx, Divest, LOS, whichever) available: in order to flash that, you first have to "OEM unlock". For that, we have to start up Google-Android at least once.

(1/3)

“Google is a monopolist, and it has acted as one to maintain its monopoly,” - says US judge.

#Google paid billions to keep its #monopoly, but must stop now! 💰

Learn more 👉tuta.com/blog/google-search-mo…

#Antitrust #searchengine

BBC news: bbc.com/news/articles/c0k44x6m…

"Google snažil uzavřít dohody s mobilními operátory, aby získal silné výchozí pozice ve smartphonech a ovládl v nich vyhledávání. Tvrdí také, že #Google platil deset miliard dolarů ročně bezdrátovým společnostem, jako je AT&T, výrobcům zařízení, jako je Apple, a výrobcům prohlížečů, jako je #mozilla aby se zbavil konkurentů a udržel si podíl na trhu s vyhledávači."

Jestli to projedou tak to možná bude poslední hřebíček do rakve pro #firefox :D

Tip for #android users:

If you search for simple utility apps on #google's play store it will almost always give you a bunch of options that contain ads or ask for unnecessary permissions.

F-Droid is an alternative app store for android devices which exclusively lists apps published under the AGPL (a #copyleft / free-software / open-source license). It's possible to install F-Droid on a normal Android OS via its APK, but that can be intimidating.

Most of the apps on F-Droid are *also* available on the play store. So, even if you aren't ready to fully switch out of Google's ecosystem, you can still use F-Droid's search as a better way to find options that are (in my experience) free of ads and surveillance.

Each app features a page which links to their source code, which usually has a README file, which usually points to their page on the play store.

f-droid.org/

F-Droid - Free and Open Source Android App Repository

F-Droid is an installable catalogue of FOSS (Free and Open Source Software) applications for the Android platform. The client makes it easy to browse, install, and keep track of updates on your device.

^f-droid.org

I wish there was a decent Google maps replacement. Not just for navigation--that's fairly simple--but rather for local SEARCH. How else are you supposed to search for stuff nearby? Yelp is the only alternative I even know of and it's terrible. Nextdoor is arguably a contender but it's even worse. Nothing community driven whatsoever that I'm aware of...

#Google #degoogle #maps

#Google #customer reviews are also increasingly being screwed up by #LLM. At a pharmacy: 5 stars for "nice and cosy living."
Why go on holiday far away when your local pharmacy rents a bed in the tablet depot?! 🥳

#holidays #FiveStarHotels #hotels #enshittification

Reply to Google Now Defaults to Not Indexing Your Content by Vincent Schmalbach

Selectivity is long overdue. Marginalia, Stract, and Teclis feel like a breath of fresh air for broad short-tail queries because they downrank or skip pages full of ads, trackers, scripts, and even SEO. However, Google’s selectivity can’t penalise such criteria as that would conflict with its ad business.

Google has a bias against new sites. This makes sense, given their spam potential. I disagree with your argument that a bias against new sites is a pivot away from Experience, Expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (EEAT): it takes time for a website to become an authority and earn trust. If delayed indexing of new sites is wrong, then the problem lies with EEAT. I argue that EEAT is a good framework for an answer-focused engine, but a bad framework for a discovery- or surfing-focused engine like Marginalia or Wiby, respectively.

Originally posted on seirdy.one: See Original (POSSE). #Google #SearchEngines

Google Now Defaults to Not Indexing Your Content - Vincent Schmalbach

Picture this: It’s ten years ago, and you’ve just launched a new WordPress blog. Within hours, sometimes even minutes, your content is indexed by Google.

^{Vincent Schmalbach}

Leute, wenn ihr eure Privatsphäre wenigstens ein bisschen schützen wollt, dann benutzt Werbe- und Trackingblocker [3]. Gegen solche Szenarien wie »Databroker Files« [2] kann man sich schon relativ einfach schützen. [1] 👇

[1] kuketz-blog.de/android-werbung…
[2] netzpolitik.org/2024/databroke…
[3] kuketz-blog.de/empfehlungsecke…

#tracking #dsgvo #advertisingid #google #apple #android #ios

Databroker Files: Firma verschleudert 3,6 Milliarden Standorte von Menschen in Deutschland

Datenhändler verbreiten die Standorte von Menschen in Deutschland – teils sogar kostenlos, wie Recherchen von netzpolitik.org und BR zeigen.

^{netzpolitik.org}

»Firma verschleudert 3,6 Milliarden Standorte von Menschen in Deutschland«. Seit Jahren erwähne ich in fast jedem Artikel, in dem es um Tracking und Android-Apps geht, dass die Google Advertising-ID ein personenbeziehbares Datum ist. Dies wurde nun erneut eindrucksvoll bewiesen. 👇

Weg aus der Misere: Verwendet googlefreie Systeme wie #GrapheneOS und nutzt Werbe- und Trackingblocker.

netzpolitik.org/2024/databroke…

kuketz-blog.de/empfehlungsecke…

#tracking #dsgvo #advertisingid #google #apple #android #ios

Databroker Files: Firma verschleudert 3,6 Milliarden Standorte von Menschen in Deutschland

Datenhändler verbreiten die Standorte von Menschen in Deutschland – teils sogar kostenlos, wie Recherchen von netzpolitik.org und BR zeigen.

^{netzpolitik.org}

Computer hardware maker #Zotac exposed customers' RMA info on Google Search

Misconfiguration of permissions folders holding customer info related to RMAs have been indexed by search engines like #Google. As a result, it has shown up on SERPs.

Information leaked includes invoices, addresses, and contact information.

Fun fact: Security Misconfiguration is number 6 on the OWASP Top 10 Web app Security Risks.

#databreach #security #cybersecurity

bleepingcomputer.com/news/secu…

🔥🚨 #AI energy consumption keeps rising so #Google drops claims of being carbon neutral.

At Tuta we are committed to making the web better, more #sustainable and more #private! 💪

👉 tuta.com/sustainability

👉 Read full story here: bloomberg.com/news/articles/20…

One of the selling points of Google’s flagship generative AI models, Gemini 1.5 Pro and 1.5 Flash, is the amount of data they can supposedly process and analyze. But new research suggests that the models aren’t, in fact, very good at those things. “While models like Gemini 1.5 Pro can technically process long contexts, we have seen many cases indicating that the models don’t actually ‘understand’ the content,” Marzena Karpinska, a postdoc at UMass Amherst. TechCrunch has more: flip.it/wW5pRm
#Tech #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #Google #Gemini

Follow @Techcrunch for more breaking tech news and analysis.

Sparito da #Google, il Caso #Tutamail e il Potere Invisibile dei Grandi e il DMA #1274 - YouTube youtube.com/watch?v=_MbK03f0XZ…

#Tuta #Tutanota @Tutanota

Sparito da Google: il Caso Tutamail e il Potere Invisibile dei Grandi e il DMA #1274

Un servizio di posta elettronica criptata, Tutamail, sparisce improvvisamente dai risultati di ricerca di Google per due mesi. Come è possibile che una singo...

^YouTube

Ready to break #Google's monopoly?

#Chrome Manifest V3 is here to stop you from blocking ads.

Here are great alternatives:

✅ #Firefox
✅ #Duckduckgo
✅ @torproject
✅ More options: tuta.com/blog/best-private-bro…

Which one did you pick?

Best Private Browsers 2024 | Top 10 To Stop Trackers

When it comes to most secure browsers Firefox is the best alternative to Chrome - and, no, incognito mode doesn't cut it.

^Tutanota

On this day five years ago, I learned about the #Google #libcurl fork named libcrurl (!).

daniel.haxx.se/blog/2019/06/19…

(old blog post)

It was subsequently cancelled and never got anywhere.

🚨 BREAKING 🚨

Tuta Mail's #Google Ranking Mysteriously Restored After Announcement to Take Legal Actions

Read more:
👉 tuta.com/blog/unchecked-power-…

YouTube makes #ads unskippable!

#Google is planning to start merging ads into #YouTube before they leave the server 🙈

Is it even possible to enjoy YouTube without ads? Check out our wrap-up here 👉 tuta.com/blog/youtube-adblock-…

#adblocker #annoyingads #privacymatters

It really feels like companies like #Google will do anything to "not get behind in the #AI game" no matter if it hurts their image, spreads mis-information or even suggests dangerous things

Most companies developing AI don't even fully understand it's process, how do we ever expect to explain this to lawmakers, not even talking about the time it takes for them to take action

Did you know that #XScreenSaver (yes, the collection of screensavers for X11) is available on Android?

And that #Google requires it to have a privacy policy in order to be available in the Play Store?

And that the maintainer chose to crowd-source a privacy policy where every item starts with "Unlike Google"?

It's become a great list of all the privacy violations Google did and still does. And I thought that it's gonna be long, but it's even longer than I imagined.

jwz.org/xscreensaver/google.ht…

"Google’s DMA compliance plan is a sham. […] If Apple’s proposal was a slap in the face, Google’s is a middle finger — both to the European Commission and to you."

proton.me/blog/google-bundling…

#Google #DMA #monopoly #gatekeeper

Google’s DMA compliance plan is a sham

Google is defying the EU Commission and refusing to give people more control over how they use their Android phones.

^{Andy Yen (Proton)}

The fastest non-Google controlled web rendering engine Servo is trying to compete with only $1.6k funding a month:
phoronix.com/news/Servo-Engine…

Yes, they did have an NLNet grant, but that ran out.

If we want an alternative to Blink/Chrome, we need to fund it. This is a project where even a tiny regular amount could yield oversize returns:

servo.org/

#Servo #Rust #Blink #Google #Chrome

Servo, the embeddable, independent, memory-safe, modular, parallel web rendering engine

Servo is a web rendering engine written in Rust, with WebGL and WebGPU support, and adaptable to desktop, mobile, and embedded applications.

^Servo