- cross-posted to:
- google@lemdro.id
- privacy@lemmy.ml
- degoogle@lemmy.ml
While WEI is thankfully cancelled, it’s not entirely cancelled… They’re planning on making it available still in WebViews with the intention that websites can check if a malicious Android app is trying to do a phishing scheme.
Seems like such a niche “security” feature… what are they really trying to accomplish here? Something seems fishy to me
- fsniper ( @fsniper@kbin.social ) 132•1 year ago
this is not cancellation. This is Google taking a step back, and regroup to attack back.
- 𝘋𝘪𝘳𝘬 ( @Dirk@lemmy.ml ) 43•1 year ago
Its a common practice to do exactly that. Just demand something very absurd and let people rage about it, then “step back” to “please the masses” while in reality your “step back” idea is the thing you actually wanted to do from the beginning on. But now people are happy about it.
- Ænima ( @mjhelto@lemm.ee ) 4•1 year ago
I learned that as a negotiation tactic. Pick the number you want to get, then ask for more. The counter will likely be around what you wanted!
- catboss ( @catboss@feddit.de ) 28•1 year ago
They care about one thing only: Money.
Obviously this is more of a strategic retreat and nothing else. It’s also a very common tactic to push for something crass, pull back, wait a bit and repeat. Most commonly resistance gets weaker each time, because people are people.
Now if anyone thinks they made money with a retreat and won’t try again, because it’s obviously much more lucrative, which stone exactly are you living under?
You are 100% correct. Nothing is won till you make it impossible for Google to push forward or destroy their motivation for trying again later.
- JokeDeity ( @JokeDeity@lemm.ee ) 22•1 year ago
Ah yes, the old Unity Trick™.
- thingsiplay ( @thingsiplay@kbin.social ) 7•1 year ago
If they can’t storm the front door, then try to sneak in through the back door I guess.
- interolivary ( @interolivary@beehaw.org ) 33•1 year ago
Ha, I didn’t know there’s a name for that, but it’s definitely what I assume they’re going to do. My initial reaction was to wonder what they’ll now present as the “reasonable” option to WEI.
Considering they’re rolling it out in Android, maybe they’ll just wait a moment and then integrate it into desktop Chrome as well, just without any of the fanfare?
- 4dpuzzle ( @tesseract@beehaw.org ) English10•1 year ago
It’s a good thing that people are calling out their deception.
- Tau ( @Tau@sopuli.xyz ) 9•1 year ago
I would never agree with what Google proposes, though
- DrownedAxolotl ( @DrownedAxolotl@feddit.de ) 4•1 year ago
You may not, but you’d be surprised with how many people didn’t even care about WEI, let alone whatever the reasonable option will be
- ChaoticNeutralCzech ( @ChaoticNeutralCzech@feddit.de ) 52•1 year ago
They grew thanks to the open internet where everyone let them scrape their website’s content. They can’t let anyone do that again.
- Scary le Poo ( @Scary_le_Poo@beehaw.org ) 16•1 year ago
Sure it isn’t. * Wink wink nudge nudge*
It’ll be back. With a different name and modified messaging.
- JillyB ( @JillyB@beehaw.org ) 4•1 year ago
That probably would’ve been true even if they did follow through.
- Macleod Sawyer ( @macleod@infosec.exchange ) 13•1 year ago
- 4censord ( @4censord@unfug.social ) 8•1 year ago
@macleod @dean @rysiek they already started, they want to put it in android now: https://android-developers.googleblog.com/2023/11/increasing-trust-for-embedded-media.html?m=1
- Macleod Sawyer ( @macleod@infosec.exchange ) 6•1 year ago
- beefcat ( @beefcat@beehaw.org ) 4•1 year ago
They want to put it on the default webview in android, which doesn’t seem like a huge deal to me. It would basically let apps that use webview for things like logging in beef up their security.
It’s not like the entire concept of this API was bad, it’s just that with Google’s proposed implementation companies would abuse the fuck out of it to do bad things. Not having it in browsers pretty much eliminates that while still letting things like banking apps enjoy some of the benefits.
- gentooer ( @gentooer@programming.dev ) 12•1 year ago
We did it!
- Vincent ( @Vincent@kbin.social ) 55•1 year ago
Specifically, everyone who’s not using Chrome and its derivates did it. Use Firefox, people.
- thingsiplay ( @thingsiplay@kbin.social ) 41•1 year ago
That’s what Google want you to believe, forget about and step back. It’s not over yet. We just stopped the first wave and it will get harder with each wave.
- Kevin Hayes ( @kevinbhayes@mastodon.social ) 11•1 year ago
@dean @lisamelton One of the reasons I don’t use Chrome. Here, they’ve revealed what they are working towards. They’ll try again.
- Lisa Melton ( @lisamelton@mastodon.social ) 4•1 year ago
@kevinbhayes @dean You are correct. They will try again. 💯
- Big P ( @peter@feddit.uk ) English9•1 year ago
People here really can’t just accept a win
- 4dpuzzle ( @tesseract@beehaw.org ) English10•1 year ago
A win is when we have forced them to abandon the wretched plan. Them taking it elsewhere with a different name, only to be brought back in the future isn’t a win - it’s more or less the folly the Trojans committed with the Greek wooden horse.
- Big P ( @peter@feddit.uk ) English1•1 year ago
It’s a much less broad, though. That’s a win right?
- 4dpuzzle ( @tesseract@beehaw.org ) English2•1 year ago
I don’t trust Google’s word that they will keep it that way. Besides, would you have accepted this proposal if WEI wasn’t proposed first? It’s a form of manipulation.
- Big P ( @peter@feddit.uk ) English1•1 year ago
Sites inside webviews can already communicate with the app running them, I don’t see how this proposal in this form causes any additional problems
- 4dpuzzle ( @tesseract@beehaw.org ) English1•1 year ago
The same can be said about WEI on browsers. Just wait till it becomes a problem - only problem is that you won’t be able to escape it at that point.
- Big P ( @peter@feddit.uk ) English1•1 year ago
Except websites can’t just communicate directly with the OS like they can in webviews
- beefcat ( @beefcat@beehaw.org ) 8•1 year ago
I’m convinced people on Lemmy just want to be miserable all the time.
- java ( @java@beehaw.org ) 9•1 year ago
We have won the battle, but the war is not over. If one is tired, he or she could employ escapism. But don’t blame or poke those, who don’t do that.
- Pantherina ( @Pantherina@feddit.de ) 7•1 year ago
Damn? Really?
- 4dpuzzle ( @tesseract@beehaw.org ) English24•1 year ago
Nope. It’s getting integrated into Android WebView.
- Pantherina ( @Pantherina@feddit.de ) 12•1 year ago
Daaamn poor GrapheneOS devs…
- Onii-Chan ( @Onii-Chan@kbin.social ) 5•1 year ago
As someone who uses GrapheneOS but knows very little about the technical side of things, what implications does this have for the OS? I’ll actually just not use a smartphone anymore if I’m going to be forced back onto the privacy nightmare that is stock Android.
- Pantherina ( @Pantherina@feddit.de ) 2•1 year ago
They will strip out the DRM part, maybe. GrapheneOS, other than even Firefox or any Linux Distro, has many DRM packages installed. Widevine and lots of others.
So it may be that they dont even remove it from the Vanadium Webview. But if they do, Apps may break as the Developers looove the extra control. And then GrapheneOS needs to do annoying work again, to for example have a sandboxed Webview-DRM app that can be enabled per-App.
- redw0rm ( @redw0rm@kerala.party ) 3•1 year ago
I don’t know about graphene, but doesn’t some android roms allow to use custom ( more private Webview implementations) instead of default ?
- Pantherina ( @Pantherina@feddit.de ) 1•1 year ago
Yes, they provide these Webviews, meaning they get a shitload of work probably, to remove that DRM BS. Until random apps (like all those Playstore apps) stop working on non-DRM webview… yay!
Like, there are already services that just work with apps. If these apps dont work anymore, well…
- Ghoelian ( @Ghoelian@lemmy.dbzer0.com ) 1•1 year ago
Even on “stock” android (at least the Pixel version) the option is there in the developer settings.
- Pantherina ( @Pantherina@feddit.de ) 1•1 year ago
Like, you can switch some, but idk how you install a second one
- shym3q ( @shym3q@programming.dev ) 2•1 year ago
if you root, you can install open webview module.
currently using mulch webview and updating it in f-droid
- Pantherina ( @Pantherina@feddit.de ) 2•1 year ago
Yeah I did that too. Mulch or Vanadium, I would recommend Vanadium. Bromite is dead. Cromite maybe, but really just use Vanadium its the most degoogled and secure one.
But apart from that, the developer options make no sense if there is no way to actually install one without root.
Also, openwebview replaces the installed one, doesnt it?
- Ghoelian ( @Ghoelian@lemmy.dbzer0.com ) 1•1 year ago
Chromium comes with a webview APK, but I couldn’t find one for Firefox / gecko
- Pantherina ( @Pantherina@feddit.de ) 2•1 year ago
Firefox doesnt provide a webview for some reason.
Its really shitty, because it could be a better standard for webapps on Linux too. But now we have electron, which is basically compatible with firefox as its web technology
- katy ✨ ( @cupcakezealot@lemmy.blahaj.zone ) 2•1 year ago
the concept is good in theory; the reasoning was not.
- YⓄ乙 ( @yoz@aussie.zone ) English1•1 year ago
Give Sundar a raise ? Finally he made a good decision.