Idle Android Devices Send Data to Google Nearly 10 Times More Often Than iOS Devices do to Apple, Research Finds

[I7guy]

I thought android was open source. That means , to me, someone should be able to go into the depths of the code and figure out what google is sending.

 

[FFR]

You're being tracked by cell signal, or any wifi spots you connect to, your activity is tracked by IP address, you're tracked by your credit/debit card usage, there are cameras that take pictures of your tag, etc... I'm just saying, whatever people are afraid of by being tracked...you're being tracked one way or another.

I really don't care either...all they'll find about me is I live a boring life and love technology.

But your not paying any of those companies 1000 dollars to track you or mine your data.

Kind of the difference.

 

[CarpalMac]

Say “not as much as you may think” to someone who is injured in real life because physical location was tracked.

You are kind of backing up my point for me there. Thanks.

https://www.quora.com/Can-a-skilled-hacker-find-out-the-home-address-of-a-forum-user

Or are you claiming that Google employees use the data available to them to hunt down and attack people? In which case, please, feel free to back that claim up...

 

[Abazigal]

You're being tracked by cell signal, or any wifi spots you connect to, your activity is tracked by IP address, you're tracked by your credit/debit card usage, there are cameras that take pictures of your tag, etc... I'm just saying, whatever people are afraid of by being tracked...you're being tracked one way or another.

I really don't care either...all they'll find about me is I live a boring life and love technology.

That Google is able and willing to offer their services free of charge shows just how valuable your data is to them, even if you don't personally think anything of it.

 

[Cloudane]

I thought android was open source. That means , to me, someone should be able to go into the depths of the code and figure out what google is sending.

The base OS is open source (and pretty useless on its own IMO), but not the Google services to my knowledge

 

[wigby]

You're being tracked by cell signal, or any wifi spots you connect to, your activity is tracked by IP address, you're tracked by your credit/debit card usage, there are cameras that take pictures of your tag, etc... I'm just saying, whatever people are afraid of by being tracked...you're being tracked one way or another.

I really don't care either...all they'll find about me is I live a boring life and love technology.

Just because we know we are being tracked by multiple entities does not mean they are not obligated to inform us. Google recently got "caught" tracking users even when the location data was turned off. This was partially explained by Google but similar to EULAs, the bigger problem is that many tech companies are not upfront and clear about the terms of use and our rights. This opaqueness and confusion leads to ignorance and indifference on the part of the users. From there, tech companies and laws (i.e., net neutrality) begin to manipulate society in an unbalanced manner just as religion and political ideology have already done so.

 

[tdar]

Is anyone surprised. It can not be said enough, Apple sells products. At Google YOU are the product.

 

[NT1440]

Not tech savy like Craig Federighi? He says not to bother closing your apps, and that doing so and reopening them can actually drain your battery more. https://www.macrumors.com/2016/03/10/force-quitting-apps-doesnt-help-battery/

Great. I hate to break it to you but iOS and Android are two different OS’s that are engineered differently. I know this may be news to some.

 

[Tapiture]

Google collects so much data it’s insane. They read your GMail and target ads accordingly. Go to http://myactivity.google.com to see how much they really know about you.

 

[Cryates]

I don’t support credit card companies, cell companies, etc taking info without permission either but the data they have on you is minimal compared to Goog.

and you know this...how?
[doublepost=1534944922][/doublepost]

But your not paying any of those companies 1000 dollars to track you or mine your data.

Kind of the difference.

So tracking and mining my data when I pay them nothing...makes it okay?

 

[dernhelm]

Never owned an Android phone, but it seems like this amount of reporting would kill battery life. I'm impressed that most Android users I know don't report this as a huge problem.

 

[deeddawg]

... and folks are surprised at this?

 

[Haswell]

Google does need to make money. They do have employees that need to paid.

 

[MacBebe]

This is not surprising, is it?

 

[Cloudane]

Never owned an Android phone, but it seems like this amount of reporting would kill battery life. I'm impressed that most Android users I know don't report this as a huge problem.

I have an Android phone right now (I've switched back and forth numerous times over the years) and can say categorically that battery life most definitely is a huge problem and has always been its achilees heel (though it's not solely because of communication, it's lots of little things and fundamental differences in how the OS works).

Getting sick of micromanaging the battery is what usually drives me back to iPhones. Conversely, having various things I'm "not allowed to do" because of the tight control over the battery or privacy stuff is what sends me the other way, in a bit of a tick/tock pattern.

Less bothered at the moment as I'm always carrying around a battery pack for Pokemon Go.

 

[DNichter]

Never owned an Android phone, but it seems like this amount of reporting would kill battery life. I'm impressed that most Android users I know don't report this as a huge problem.

The background processes add up over time and battery life slowly gets worse and worse. Android is not nearly as optimized as iOS in this regard, they obviously need background processes to collect data also.

 

[mike.101]

I've read a bit and I still don't know how do they differentiate "good" and "bad" communication?

How do they know that the background activity of my phone and connections to Apple are not the good one? Updates for Find My iPhone, Updates for HomeKit to run scenes when you arrive/leave, updates to check for App Store updates at night, connections triggered by other members of the family in Find My Friends or in Messages. Maybe someone new was adding my number to his iMessage chat or contacts and Apple connected with my device to see if there is a response and it can show that other person that "I'm a blue bubble" and it's working. What about iCloud Photo Library, it's no secret that it's not just a RAW transfer of files, there are CRONs ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cron ), job schedulers to check whether there are some changes to the library, whether metadata is ok, whether new face was recognized on a different device and it needs to update them.

I guess measuring traffic may get complicated. The fact that I'm connecting or uploading some files to Apple servers doesn't mean it's a privacy breach.

To some extent this applies to Google, if someone has Google Photos backup turned on, location services and location sharing with friends, etc.

This is not about user app activity in the background, it's about collecting information about the user in the background.
It's not hard to understand that Google makes money off of ads and makes even more money when users click on adds.
So the more they can entice people with ads that are of interest to them, the more money they make.

 

[Ruggy]

It’s kinda crazy what all of our devices do in the background and behind the scenes that we don’t see / know about.

Not just from an information collecting standpoint, but it’s fascinating what goes on beneath it all.

I was listening to an expert on the radio and he said something that really stopped me in my tracks.
He was explaining all the things we usually think about like they track where you've been, credit card usage, search history etc, but then he said, 'And of course then can tell when, for example you sit on a park bench next to someone, who that someone is and if you have a health app can monitor your heart beat and tell if you are attracted to them and vice versa'.
Freeow!!!

 

[Glideslope]

.....and this is an unknown to whom? Oh, yea, those living under the rocks. Sell your soul with Android. Alphabet is becoming very Orwellian.

 

[McTool]

Why would you have Chrome open in the background anyway, when you are not using your phone?
Don't most just close running apps when they have finished doing something?
I do always.

I never close apps. Not necessary on iOS.

 

[FFR]

and you know this...how?
[doublepost=1534944922][/doublepost]
So tracking and mining my data when I pay them nothing...makes it okay?

No, but paying 1000 dollars for an android device and expecting privacy is rather foolish.

I recently switched to duck duck go for search, downloaded Microsoft translator instead of google translate and closed all my gmail accounts.

I use Icloud on my iPhone, so pretty much google/google services free.

 

[MacBH928]

1-How is it even legal that Google track you across devices and over the web, and how no one is stopping them? I understand they track what I do on the YouTube app since its their product, but to install cookies in my device and look at all my other apps and everywhere I browse and everywhere I go... how is this legal? If Android is OpenSource why no one creates a non-Google tracking android version?

2-Apple collecting 1 piece of data for every 10 pieces of data Google collects is not necessarily a good thing. Its still collecting data.

Society are being shaped into believing that this is the norm to be tracked and exposed. They must understand... you are being abused and your privacy rights are breached. Imagine if people were forced to build transparent glass homes and have a camera and microphone stuck over their heads all the time sending feed back to a main gov. HQ.

 

[dontwalkhand]

So not only do you have to deal with privacy issues but also cruddy battery life.

 

[janitor3]

I am using an Android phone at the moment,(OnePlus 5),which I have been using for the past year. It's been ok it was a lot cheaper than a new iPhone, but thinking of trying iPhone again. I used to use (still have) a iPhone 6. Might dig it out again and swap the Sim.

 

[FFR]

Never owned an Android phone, but it seems like this amount of reporting would kill battery life. I'm impressed that most Android users I know don't report this as a huge problem.

They don’t like to talk about it but battery life on android isn’t very optimal on android.

Bear in mind the iPhone X has the smallest battery.

The background processes add up over time and battery life slowly gets worse and worse. Android is not nearly as optimized as iOS in this regard, they obviously need background processes to collect data also.

It makes sense.