Facebook to Shut Down Controversial iOS Market Research App as Apple Revokes Certificate [Updated]

[brian3uk]

I did this too for a short time last year. This program has been going on for quite awhile. I'm surprised it took so long for someone to write about it. The VPN was so slow and the fact it broke many apps because it routed traffic through Ireland made me quit after like a week. Not worth $20 to lose use of my only phone. I know many people installed it on a spare phone that they just used around the house on wifi. Also, I'm 37 so the age range was not very strict. This was all run through the Betabound program so they have all your demographic information. FB knows how old you are.

 

[AlliFlowers]

Did you tell them you were under 35, or is Facebook fudging the truth as to who they were paying?

Nope. I suspect they left out a few words in describing the study, because it was open to everyone - not just people between a certain age range. It was later opened to our children/grandchildren if we wanted. So they were well aware of the ages of the participants.

 

[lyricthejoe]

I deleted my Facebook a little over a year ago. For me personally, I found it very difficult to stay in touch with people or to keep up family and friends that are long distance. I ended up opening a new account, and have not linked my FB log-in to any outside services. I also refuse to keep their app on my phone, and use the Safari version instead. Truthfully I love the idea of being able to get rid of it, but the trade-off was too great for me.

 

[Morgenland]

Apple Revokes Certificate
Thank you Apple. Put an end to the spook!

 

[kruegdude]

Facebook is just trying to do what Google is doing but on a smaller scale. They want what’s left of the user tracking pie.

 

[BillyBobBongo]

My employer asked me this week to install WhatsApp on my telephone, it's my personal phone, and was shocked when I refused. It boggles my mind that people still use products associated with Facebook.

It'll be a cold day in hell before I let any of their services near/on my devices.

 

[trparky]

I found it very difficult to stay in touch with people or to keep up family and friends that are long distance.

No offense but I don't understand why it was difficult for you. There's this little thing called a phone number where people call them, people have voice-based conversations which are far more personal than just a text message. And OK, I understand that not everyone can call especially if there's time zone differences but you can send text messages instead. And if these people are in foreign countries there's always iMessage which is free to use across borders.

Facebook is a plague, it's a disease. It needs to eradicated. All of humanity will be better for it if Facebook were to die tomorrow.

 

[Defthand]

I am curious what the point of the program was...

One explanation I read: they were using the app to observe what data other apps are collecting. In other words, they are surveilling the surveillers; determining what metrics others are collecting. Why? Maybe to evaluate their own efforts. Maybe to construct a defense and illustrate that less-conspicuous collectors are a bigger concern than Facebook. Maybe to identify and follow the entities who exploit Facebook to spread propaganda.

 

[G5isAlive]

No offense but I don't understand why it was difficult for you. There's this little thing called a phone number where people call them, people have voice-based conversations which are far more personal than just a text message. And OK, I understand that not everyone can call especially if there's time zone differences but you can send text messages instead. And if these people are in foreign countries there's always iMessage which is free to use across borders.

Facebook is a plague, it's a disease. It needs to eradicated. All of humanity will be better for it if Facebook were to die tomorrow.

This is a tad harsh. But... there is this little thing called pictures? Sure... you can call and ask and they can send, and then rinse repeat with the next person that wants, but sometimes its just easier to pop them up to a place friends and family are looking at. While I strongly agree that Facebook in practice does questionable things, don't crap on the concept of online sharing. I would even bet that pulling together families on facebook even prompts more telephone calls than replaces as people see whats going on. People can not reach out to all friends and all family at the same time, time just doesn't permit. This concept is an excellent communication tool.

Don't throw out the baby out with the bathwater. Facebook the company may be questionable, the concept is not.

 

[justperry]

No offense but I don't understand why it was difficult for you. There's this little thing called a phone number where people call them, people have voice-based conversations which are far more personal than just a text message. And OK, I understand that not everyone can call especially if there's time zone differences but you can send text messages instead. And if these people are in foreign countries there's always iMessage which is free to use across borders.

Facebook is a plague, it's a disease. It needs to eradicated. All of humanity will be better for it if Facebook were to die tomorrow.

Google too please....

 

[WatchFromAfar]

I am curious what the point of the program was... a lot of people are vilifying Facebook, but no one has said what the app did with all that data, why it was being collected, and what the eventual goal was. Clearly at $20/month Facebook had a lot of interest in this area and I dont think it was to sell soap. Genuinely curious. Did Facebook explain to you WHY they were doing this?

I believe, along with your data, you got paid paid to refer new users to Facebook.

 

[d0minick]

You can still go get those pictures. There's really no way to actually get rid of Facebook. They hold onto your profile forever, and they just "deactivate" it to hide it, but it still exists.

How? I did the actual delete procedure, not the deactivate. But if There* is a way to grab those pics, i'd love to.

 

[Labeno]

For many years my co-workers have been mocking me for wearing the "tin foil hat" when it comes to all these social networks. Over the last year, they've become quiet.

Although, they still think I'm crazy when I say other people's phone are still tracking you by voice. The Shazam concept has been around for more than a decade proving it's easy to get a voice print from just about everyone, which means someone else's microphone can listen to you and then start advertising on your phone, laptop, etc.

 

[TTTedP]

I think the writing is on the wall for Facebook, I can't seem them being around in a few years.

They're well diversified. The Facebook app maybe but Facebook the company isn't going anywhere. People would have to stop using Spotify, Instagram, WhatsApp.

 

[mdriftmeyer]

They're well diversified. The Facebook app maybe but Facebook the company isn't going anywhere. People would have to stop using Spotify, Instagram, WhatsApp.

Spotify? No. They'll eventually cancel the Facebook tie in. Instagram and WhatsApp are FB properties under the same scrutiny for violating ToS whether from Apple, Amazon or Google.

In five years or less Facebook will have a new CEO, Zuckerberg will be out of the tech industry and like Yahoo will be slowly sold off and set up for a take over.

 

[brian3uk]

I believe, along with your data, you got paid paid to refer new users to Facebook.

you got paid to recruit new people to the data sharing program, not to simply use facebook.

 

[Canyoncliffs]

I participated in this research project for a few months. You could apply on the website betabound.com. It was absolute garbage running as a VPN, but I also suspect it was scraping any details it could get from my device. Data usage for this app was off the charts. The VPN constantly bounced around to foreign registered IP addresses. Many services became unusable because the app routed traffic through other countries. Payment was in the form of Amazon gift cards. I wasn't the only one with complaints. It got so bad, they put up a privacy FAQ.

 

[caskin8a]

I deleted my Facebook a little over a year ago. For me personally, I found it very difficult to stay in touch with people or to keep up family and friends that are long distance. I ended up opening a new account, and have not linked my FB log-in to any outside services. I also refuse to keep their app on my phone, and use the Safari version instead. Truthfully I love the idea of being able to get rid of it, but the trade-off was too great for me.

This is really the key issue. Facebook's market penetration is so great that avoiding is almost synonymous to giving up a key and integral social utility - like becoming a social outcast and giving up using a telephone. It's clear tech companies can't write their own regulation, legislators need to step up in drafting some meaningful rules to curb this sort of business.

 

[brian3uk]

I am curious what the point of the program was... a lot of people are vilifying Facebook, but no one has said what the app did with all that data, why it was being collected, and what the eventual goal was. Clearly at $20/month Facebook had a lot of interest in this area and I dont think it was to sell soap. Genuinely curious. Did Facebook explain to you WHY they were doing this?

They want to see what other apps you have on your phone, what websites you go to, and how long you utilize each app or part of your phone. They used to monitor that with their Onavo VPN app until Apple stopped them. So they had to find another way to do it. They do this so they can find out what apps or websites are popular with different age groups. Then they either buy the company that is up and coming, or they incorporate the same feature into one their apps to keep people in the age group (typically kids) using a Facebook owned product instead of a competitors. They did that with quite a few apps including WhatsApp, and most recently the tbh app.

 

[G5isAlive]

They want to see what other apps you have on your phone, what websites you go to, and how long you utilize each app or part of your phone. They used to monitor that with their Onavo VPN app until Apple stopped them. So they had to find another way to do it. They do this so they can find out what apps or websites are popular with different age groups. Then they either buy the company that is up and coming, or they incorporate the same feature into one their apps to keep people in the age group (typically kids) using a Facebook owned product instead of a competitors. They did that with quite a few apps including WhatsApp, and most recently the tbh app.

Thank you. I guess this goes along with Google collecting your information to give you a more 'tailored ad experience'... that some people claim to like. I know its too effective with me lol.

The problem with all these programs is they may sound good in theory, but its often hard to determine where that line is between helpful to you, and privacy invasion. Part of the problem is people differ in where they draw the line.

Whether the Ap was harmful or not, Facebook had to know that they were going to get around Apple's rules for only a certain time.

 

[Mick-Mac]

So FaceBook got their certificate revoked - BFD. If that's the only penalty you get then those scumbags will come up with something else just as bad in the future. There's just no meaningful downside to them for doing stuff like this.

 

[LukeWorm]

Will the revocation of that certificate also stop Facebook's internal distribution of beta versions?

Did they do the same on Android also; what will Google do?

 

[fribhey]

Will the revocation of that certificate also stop Facebook's internal distribution of beta versions?

yes it did:
https://www.theverge.com/2019/1/30/18203551/apple-facebook-blocked-internal-ios-apps

A person familiar with the situation tells The Verge that early versions of Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and other pre-release “dogfood” (beta) apps have stopped working, as have other employee apps, like one for transportation. Facebook is treating this as a critical problem internally, we’re told, as the affected apps simply don’t launch on employees’ phones anymore.

 

[trparky]

But... there is this little thing called pictures? Sure... you can call and ask and they can send, and then rinse repeat with the next person that wants, but sometimes its just easier to pop them up to a place friends and family are looking at.

Get some cheap web hosting, throw up a simple WordPress site with a gallery plugin and do the picture sharing yourself.

While I strongly agree that Facebook in practice does questionable things, don't crap on the concept of online sharing.

I'm not crapping on the concept of online sharing, I'm crapping on the very idea of Facebook itself.

Have you ever stopped to think about why Facebook is free despite the fact that Facebook stores so much data? Think about how much computer hardware Facebook requires to run their little empire not only in terms of Internet connectivity but also processing power and raw storage capacity. How can they give Facebook service away for free? Simple... When a service is free, YOU are the product!

Don't throw out the baby out with the bathwater. Facebook the company may be questionable, the concept is not.

Facebook as it is today is nothing more than a data collection warehouse, Google is too. It's funny... people in the intelligence community (think three-letter government agencies) wish that they had the data collection capabilities of both Google and Facebook. Think about that... AND BE SCARED!!! Facebook is evil.

In the book 1984 people worried about the government putting listening devices into people's homes, today we welcome them into our homes and even pay for them. The companies that provide these services are laughing all the way to the bank.

 

[Analog Kid]

No offense but I don't understand why it was difficult for you. There's this little thing called a phone number where people call them, people have voice-based conversations which are far more personal than just a text message. And OK, I understand that not everyone can call especially if there's time zone differences but you can send text messages instead. And if these people are in foreign countries there's always iMessage which is free to use across borders.

Facebook is a plague, it's a disease. It needs to eradicated. All of humanity will be better for it if Facebook were to die tomorrow.

I've had this conversation with countless people... It seems to me that I can get by just fine with a phone number and an email address. Everything else seems redundant to me.

I think a lot of the allure of these systems is maintaining the illusion of connectedness without the messiness of actual relationships. They can monitor without interacting. The number of people I know who only talk with family by text message is horrifying to me, and the fraction of those who think emoji substitute for emotions makes me .

When a service is free, YOU are the product!

Truth be told, this is the one positive I see of the approach here-- they were paying users for their personal data. I doubt it was the full market value of that data, and I doubt people fully understand what they're sacrificing for that $20, but it is finally giving that data a price.
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Sad that the media hate on companies with these bullsh!t stories.

This was an open and above board research app that under 18’s had to get parental permission to use.

And no teenager has ever forged parental approval when beer money was on the line...

We've already seen two comments in the last 50 showing that Facebook accepted users outside the age range they gave-- so either they have no problem lying or they aren't paying very close attention...