On 09/04/12 09:24, Bill Baker wrote:
This has appeared on Linux Today site:
"Should you be worried about Ubuntu Desktop's privacy settings?"
"LinuxBSDos: I hope that I am wrong, but your new Ubuntu system could be
used to spy on you."
http://www.linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2012-04-09-002-41-SC-UB
Should someone [in a position to do be authoritative on the reply]
actually respond or reply to the article I wonder?
That whole article appears to be a journalist saying "I have no idea
what this stuff is". This is a bit sad as the journalist in question
could have actually done some finding out, and then explained to the
readership what it was rather than publishing a content free article.
Ubuntu has something in it called zeitgeist. This tracks lots of stuff
you do with the objective of making the computer better able to
anticipate what you are going to do next and be more helpful about it.
Quite a lot of applications in the file menu show recently used files.
This is tracking you, but most rational people don't see it that way.
The privacy control now allows you to control this kind of thing - and
opt out. You should not be worried that there are privacy controls
available. You should be worried about operating systems and devices
that *don't* have privacy controls built in.
In terms of stuff submitted to Canonical, this is crash traces that get
automatically added to bugs (Windows has a submit to Microsoft button
when things crash - but in that case it vanishes inside Redmond never to
be seen again rather than on a public bug report you can view yourself)
Alan
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