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1704 points ardit33 | 3 comments | | HN request time: 0.02s | source
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xondono ◴[] No.24156107[source]
I’ve seen a lot of comments similar to “I don’t understand how users can be in favor of this”. I’m not just in favor, I love that they do that.

Yes, for the small percentage of the population that knows what’s doing (which nicely overlaps with HN), having freedom to install whatever you choose is great.

For >90% of the population it isn’t. Even with all of the improvements Windows has seen, for me it’s still a regular situation to feel like I won’t put one of my pen drives into the average Joe’s computer.

The freedom to install anything is the biggest security hole in most personal computers.

By not allowing it I can trust my parents and the rest of my family with phones knowing that they won’t do crazy stuff with the same device they use to log into their bank accounts and manage their authentication.

What inflames the 0.1% is a blessing for >90%.

replies(1): >>24157022 #
romanoderoma ◴[] No.24157022[source]
That's not true.

Being limited in what you can do with your properties is never a blessing.

Hammers are dangerous yet they are sold in supermarkets.

Hell, in US even guns are sold in supermarkets so that kids can kill other kids at school and nobody stops them and we are arguing about installing apps on a phone?

Apple could make it clear that it's risky and that would be it.

The rhetoric of the "old parents that can't help themselves" is wrong and most of all agist.

There's no risk of them installing dodgy apps, because they usually don't install new apps.

My mom doesn't even know how to change time on her phone but she's smart enough to not break what's working.

I installed WhatsApp on her phone and that's all she needed, there's no way she could install something bad by chance and she's on Android, according to the Apple fanboys she should be running around with a virus bomb in her purse.

Guess what?

She's completely fine.

Another important point is that Apple is not competing with Android, Apple is competing with other smartphone producers.

Apple is a monopolyst because it locks users in, you can't change OS on your phone, you can't install iOs on other brands, you can't move your apps and data from iOs to Android, while the contrary is pretty straightforward.

You can't even use the web freely, because alternative browsers are forbidden on Apple Store.

Apple is not competing in a free market, Apple is making impossible to switch to competitors and thanks to this lock they can charge any amount they want.

I'm old enough to remember MS being bashed for proposing the TwC (trustworthy computing) in 2002 and now I have to watch people kneeling in front of the richest company around just because they don't want to help their parents?

That must be a new low for our society.

replies(1): >>24163134 #
xondono ◴[] No.24163134[source]
> Hell, in US even guns are sold in supermarkets so that kids can kill other kids at school and nobody stops them

How well is that working for you?

> The rhetoric of the "old parents that can't help themselves" is wrong and most of all agist.

A lot of the family I was referring to is not only younger than me, they’re digital natives. Guess what, most computers from 15yo are full to the brim of malware. Even supposedly techie kids fall for things like Byte Defender (as opposed to Bit defender).

My car auto-brakes when it detects a static object ahead. You could say my car limits my freedom to drive at 80km/h towards a wall. It’s a welcome limit.

replies(1): >>24163852 #
1. romanoderoma ◴[] No.24163852[source]
> How well is that working for you?

I'm Italian, so it's working quite good thanks, we don't sell guns to kids.

And we are very careful when we sell them to adults.

That's why we have an homicide rate ten times lower than the US 0.6/100k VS 6/100k

Prevention and correct education do miracles, even in absence of a helicopter father - Apple, if it wasn't clear - that prevents you from doing anything, out of fear you could have too much freedom.

Gunning in US is a cultural problem, not a technical one.

DO you think the solution is controlling the market or making guns safer?

Apple tells you that their guns are safer (without any real proof), but they won't stop selling them.

It's hypocrisy at its best.

To be fair, Apple devices are considered more secure only because the Android market is so large and fragmented that they can compare the numbers of exploit targeting the last couple versions of iOS with the entire Android ecosystem which includes older versions and a large number of users that skipped OS updates

But that's a feature if you ask me, you are not forced to update to keep using the device.

If you compare Apple devices with equivalent Android devices (for example high end Samsungs) you will notice little or no difference.

Of course a 50$ device is much more at risk of being compromised.

The only counterproof would be installing iOS on those devices and see how it reacts.

But we will never know...

> most computers from 15yo are full to the brim of malware.

That's a very moot point, I guess you never had a light car accident or slipped on a wet floor.

Should we lock you in your room strapped to the bed so that you don't harm yourself?

> My car auto-brakes when it detects a static object ahead

Maybe you shouldn't drive if you can't brake when you see an obstacle.

> You could say my car limits my freedom to drive at 80km/h towards a wall

It does, in a way.

But

1) you can disable it, there is __always__ an off switch for those kind of aids. Always! Can I disable Apple "protections"?

2) You are allowed to drive a car without self breaking technologies and the car have to work even if self-breaking stops working or you disable it or you completely remove it. It's you right, nobody will take the car away from you and the car will keep working without it. It__has to__ by the law.

3) as much as I love hyperboles, installing an app is hardly a life-threatening activity.

4) thank god cars have to pass very strict safety requirements, so a Tesla might be better in terms of performance than a Renault Zoe, but in terms of safety and interoperability they have to be equivalent. Apple is like a car manufacturer that uses a non standard charger, forces clients to charge their cars using Apple approved charging stations, the charging stations have to pay for the chargers and give a 30% cut on any charge to Apple, while Apple says it's best for customers because their electric current is safer.

replies(1): >>24167523 #
2. xondono ◴[] No.24167523[source]
1) I can’t, that’s the point of a protection. When protections can be sidestepped, users are at risk. The warnings from Windows about risky software protect mostly no one, since most users learn that by clicking “Accept”, they get what they want, even if they are unaware of the price.

Why computers full of malware are a moot point? You can’t expect everyone to have good knowledge about computers. Guardrails for those people are great.

In any case, I’m guessing you are a great italian farmer, because boy, that was a beautiful straw man there!

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3. romanoderoma ◴[] No.24173257[source]
Security Is not a one way only street

When you are in danger an ambulance can drive faster than the speed limits, because safety of people depends on their ability to act fast.

Firefighters can break safety rules, because they have to sometimes.

An on/off switch is only natural when you think about safety, if Apple believe that the only security is the one Apple decided, Apple is wrong.

I'm Italian, but I am a computer scientist.

My grandparents were farmers, and I am very proud of were I come from.

We don't know strawmans, we only know hard work and honesty.

But good stereotypes on your side, I'm impressed!

I had the impression that using ad hominems was prohibited on HN, but I am used to miseducation of Americans...

Anyway, Apple is not building guardrails, they are making bicicles with training wheels, charging a lot of money for them and calling it "security"

If you are happy with it, I'm happy for you, but I'm an adult, I am able to make choices and can, sometimes, learn new things.