I downloaded the app and joined in just so I can get my $6 settlement check 5 years from now!! Woohoo!
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Bose Wireless Headphones Spy on Listeners, Lawsuit Alleges
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While not completely surprising by itself, given the industry and the times, the more substantive reveal for those not following the Wireless Headlhone forum section on Bose's website may be the growing controversy in the belief by an increasing number of users that the iOS/android update app forces a firmware upgrade which many argue "breaks" the top class QC35 ANC feature. Bose has done a creditable job on the forum keeping users informed over the past two months of efforts to study the reported damage. Two days ago the company posted a proclamation (apparently in the user forum only) that admitting no negligence or confirmation of an app-related problem an unconditional refund of the ($350) cost no questions asked is offered to buyers from any source, provided it is done before June 1. Since one's forum user handle is required information in initiating the request it is unclear whether the company is being selective in advertising the issue and its remedy, or if the refund is limited to forum subscribers. Nor is it yet clear whether a non-disclosure agreement will be required. It is also officially closing the door on further research on the matter. Subscribers to the forum have been posting mostly unhappy reactions in a continuous stream since the announcement three days ago. Many report a reluctance to abandon the product and efforts to continue search for a fix. The subsequent announcement of the class action lawsuit yesterday adds "context" to the controversy. (Certainly not "motive" for the unconditional refund.) The silence (which lawsuits tend to bring) suggests other sources may be needed to achieve a state of caveat emptor. Hence this post.
They are listening to your conversations through the headphones and your listening habits. Which gives them data on what to expose you to in order to either bring you to a product or service you may have otherwise never felt like you needed. Who knows... they may have already started playing subliminal frequencies to emotionally convince you to buy products lol.
Um the app does nothing without....the headphones.
So, it's the headphone mic.
Everyone hates lawyers until they need one.
If this turns out to be true, and there's really no reason to believe it is yet, then I'm going to be pretty pissed. What a sleazy thing to do. Even if it's in the click-throughs somewhere (and it sounds like it isn't), the user has no reason to expect their headphones are profiling them.
I hope this turns out to be a fishing expedition. This law firm specializes in suing tech companies for privacy violations, which is a noble pursuit if done correctly, but Bose is a $3.5B target and there's plenty of unethical legal practices out there.
I hope this turns out to be a fishing expedition. This law firm specializes in suing tech companies for privacy violations, which is a noble pursuit if done correctly, but Bose is a $3.5B target and there's plenty of unethical legal practices out there.
"Everybody does it" has never been a valid justification for any behavior.
From the article: "Dore, a partner at Edelson PC, said customers do not see the Bose app's user service and privacy agreements when signing up, and the privacy agreement says nothing about data collection."
Yes. I would absolutely not use Bose products if this turns out to be true.
I've got the app installed because it provides firmware updates and its the only way to shut the thing up when they're disconnecting and reconnecting to some device at the edge of range.
I really doubt that the mic is involved-- that's just to much work for information they can probably query through the music playback APIs.
So you don't know what is really going on yet you are ok with it anyway...
So I just read the very long EULA continued in the app and there isn't a thing in there about Bose providing 3rd parties with your information.
There is also a privacy policy which I actually read. I suggest you do the same and especially the section "what information we collect about you". Nothing about selling the data to advertisers.
I would assume the lawyer for this guy looked that up prior to filing a lawsuit. Seems pretty obvious.
Interesting about the Bose apologists. I guess someone has to look out for big corporations stealing our data...
The Facebook comments are especially silly.
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It certainly would for me.
No I don't use Facebook for the same reason. Shocking isn't it...
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Meaning what. What about the lawyers. You would refuse to use one?
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Troll
. But I wonder how many people got that.[doublepost=1492711283][/doublepost]
Pretty well known that you need it for firmware updates and there have been at least 3 to mine including one to fix problems a previous firmware update caused.
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Just because your life is so empty you don't care about your privacy, that doesn't mean anyone who does is a "terrorist".
Then you're a fool. Imagine if everyone was listened to without impunity... They could be punished in different ways for having certain political views, opinions, steal your personal info... all things that would stay on record forever and could be used against you at any time by unscrupulous governments or corporations. I can assure you it's not just terrorists who will have a problem with this. You obviously didn't think things through, which shows in your foolish answer.
This is really disappointing. My Bose Soundlink AE2 are the most comfortable Bluetooth headphones I have ever owned. I had been looking for Bluetooth headphones forever when I finally found these super comfy headphones. And now the company is spying on me.
Why is it impossible to find anything in the world that is not crap?
I deleted the app, but it's the principle that counts. If this turns out to be true I doubt I will be buying Bose in the future.
Why is it impossible to find anything in the world that is not crap?
I deleted the app, but it's the principle that counts. If this turns out to be true I doubt I will be buying Bose in the future.
Is this a real question? Assuming it is, I’ll bite. There are a lot of areas of law where the lawyers “practicing” give the profession a bad name. Class action. Patent trolls. Personal injury. I use attorneys all the time. But the areas where I employ them are ones where the attorneys get paid an honest wage for honest work. Not get rich quick schemes that many of these others employ. One can pretend all they want that attorneys are magnanimous individuals helping the downtrodden, but the fact is, there are lenty of bottom feeders looking to line their own pockets under the guise of being Robin Hood. (Disclaimer: Some. Not all, most, or even many. blah blah blah.)
I'm sure there are similar lawyers everywhere, even in the US
, but here's my story: I was involved in a very bad car accident in 2007, one where I'm lucky to be alive (and if I'd had rear-seat passengers they would have been decapitated). This accident happened three months into my wife's pregnancy. I found an attorney (from a large firm, downtown, four top floors of their building, etc.) on contingency whose rate was 25%, but two-and-a-half years later, he rounded down on the settlement and took only about 15%, then did the same for my insurance benefits settlement. I will be forever grateful.Different system and societal attitude regarding lawsuits between here and the US, or just a good person? Maybe some of both.
The app is recording and sending out the metadata of your songs relayed from the headphones, like the way your iPhone sends the track and album name to a Bluetooth car stereo.
It's not receiving any data from the microphone. Doing so would A) lower the quality of the music because current Bluetooth profiles cannot do high quality audio and voice at the same time and B) create such a battery drain on both devices that users would definitely notice and they probably wouldn't get the 30 hours of playback that Bose advertises.
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Curious if you could send me the link to the forum. I found it a while back when I noticed my ANC was no longer as good after a firmware update. Their downgrade solution also would not work on my headphones, although it worked on a friend's pair. I considered returning them as I had just got them in the hopes of receiving one with the previous firmware, but never got around to it, deciding I would just live with the sub-par ANC. I've only had mine for a month and they're just too useful one way or the other.
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Here is the top of the topic, starting with the official summary and proclamation of the company which was updated a few days ago. The subsequent user reaction posts go on for 83 pages. https://community.bose.com/t5/Wireless-Headphones/bd-p/wireless-headphones.
There is a link to the procedure for requesting refund or replacement https://community.bose.com/t5/Wirel...sfaction-Program-FAQ/m-p/48541/thread-id/5953. The offer is good until 1 June.
Do you use Facebook or any other social media? Google? Gmail? Amazon Video? Netflix? Spotify?
They all sell "anonymized" user data, it is a sad face of the digital media era, and very hard to avoid
You still don't get it?
If you signup for any of those FREE services you know what you are getting. You are the product.
If you pay 350$ for some headphones you should not. Specially when it's not in the terms you agree with.
How hard is to get this?
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