- Joined
- Sep 12, 2004
- Location
- Up$hitCreek
Outdated URL (Invalid)
Google Play: Beware Android Adware Infestation
- Thread starter Mousey
- Start date
- Joined
- Jan 20, 2004
- Location
- Pictland
I'm a big Android fan -- there are three Android devices in our home, soon to be four -- so I'm obviously a bit bias but I think there's more than a little alarmism in that article. Basically any app that delivers ads would trip their "adware" alarm but as they later say:
Personally I avoid "free" apps whenever possible -- if you're serious about battery management you have no choice -- but I think it's only fair to expect that low-level adware be differentiated from invasive and user-hostile spyware which is a distinction that this article isn't making.
Personally I avoid "free" apps whenever possible -- if you're serious about battery management you have no choice -- but I think it's only fair to expect that low-level adware be differentiated from invasive and user-hostile spyware which is a distinction that this article isn't making.
- Joined
- Jan 20, 2004
- Location
- Pictland
I thought I might add a footnote to the above: in the most recent Android update, 4.3, it (finally!) became possible for users to control individual app access to hardware and software services on the device. It's still a bit of "work in progress" in that a full GUI isn't yet available in the stock 4.3 release but that gap has already been bridged by third-party developers with Permission Manager (Free and Pro). It's good and it works. This is a HUGE step forward for Android users -- like me! -- who hate the idea that they can't control what their apps are doing.
If I may venture into "tinfoil hat" territory for a moment I've been itching to point out that there is a very real disinformation war going on between Apple and the Android community. Both sides publish "factual" articles that are (a) intended to smear the other side's reputation and (b) make it seem as if their camp is the right one to be in. In other words it's a shit-storm of small truths mixed with liberal amounts of BS and heaps of outright propaganda. Both sides are guilty in this and it does neither side credit but it is what it is.
That said there are billions of consumer dollars to be lost and won here so I suppose the war of words is pretty much to be expected. The bottom line is that all watchers of the smartphone/tablet scene should view whatever they read with a healthy dose of scepticism. Ask yourself what the source is, do they have a known bias, what proof is on offer, who benefits from such claims? It can be a bit of effort to always be on your guard this way but these days the smartphone consumer has no real choice if they want to make informed choices.
I'm not claiming to be an expert in this by any means, I'm just another average consumer really. But I do know that I've read a lot of crap being spouted by both pro-Apple and pro-Android people and that neither camp can be trusted to play fair, at least not these days. In this game even being slightly less than totally clueless can save you money and disappointment, hence my caution.
FWIW my approach with most smartphone "news" is to ask "why should I believe this?" That does tend to kill the techy buzz a bit but it'll save you a lot of time not being led down the many, MANY garden paths on offer.
If I may venture into "tinfoil hat" territory for a moment I've been itching to point out that there is a very real disinformation war going on between Apple and the Android community. Both sides publish "factual" articles that are (a) intended to smear the other side's reputation and (b) make it seem as if their camp is the right one to be in. In other words it's a shit-storm of small truths mixed with liberal amounts of BS and heaps of outright propaganda. Both sides are guilty in this and it does neither side credit but it is what it is.
That said there are billions of consumer dollars to be lost and won here so I suppose the war of words is pretty much to be expected. The bottom line is that all watchers of the smartphone/tablet scene should view whatever they read with a healthy dose of scepticism. Ask yourself what the source is, do they have a known bias, what proof is on offer, who benefits from such claims? It can be a bit of effort to always be on your guard this way but these days the smartphone consumer has no real choice if they want to make informed choices.
I'm not claiming to be an expert in this by any means, I'm just another average consumer really. But I do know that I've read a lot of crap being spouted by both pro-Apple and pro-Android people and that neither camp can be trusted to play fair, at least not these days. In this game even being slightly less than totally clueless can save you money and disappointment, hence my caution.
FWIW my approach with most smartphone "news" is to ask "why should I believe this?" That does tend to kill the techy buzz a bit but it'll save you a lot of time not being led down the many, MANY garden paths on offer.
Last edited:
Similar threads
