Most active commenters
  • switch007(3)

←back to thread

286 points joegibbs | 23 comments | | HN request time: 0.838s | source | bottom
1. noident ◴[] No.42143494[source]
This "novel" feature is already supported by GrapheneOS and set to trigger after 18 hours by default, with the option for the user to adjust it to their preference. There is no good reason to force the choice of 72 hours on everybody. That's a user-hostile design decision.
replies(7): >>42143499 #>>42143613 #>>42143615 #>>42143626 #>>42143707 #>>42143726 #>>42143864 #
2. mouse_ ◴[] No.42143613[source]
I remember the first time I ever saw the camera flash used as a flashlight was a feature in Cyanogenmod 7. Wifi hotspot from your phone started as a Cydia app, when legitimate apps weren't particularly useful yet.

Hacks have always brought the coolest features to phones, but OEMs have made them less accessible than ever :(

3. casper14 ◴[] No.42143615[source]
How is Graphene working for you?
replies(4): >>42143620 #>>42143779 #>>42144278 #>>42145018 #
4. AzzyHN ◴[] No.42143620[source]
Not OP, but very well!! The only things that don't work for me are Google Pay and Android Auto, which is a shame but I can live without both of those.
replies(5): >>42143701 #>>42143721 #>>42143770 #>>42144117 #>>42145035 #
5. Twisell ◴[] No.42143626[source]
It's probably more of a tradeoff.

This longer delay won't prompt hectic headlines about users angry about random reboot, it is long enought so federal agencies won't publicly react and plea Trump for their backdoor again, and it is a low profile update that won't necessarily be noticed beside tech circles thus "small fry" bad actors won't know how to correctly cover their back.

A user hostile design would have been to never implement it in the first place. It's basically Apple's signature to choose generic default value and don't bother the user (for the better and sometimes the worse).

6. cubesnooper ◴[] No.42143701{3}[source]
GrapheneOS supports Android Auto now! I use it every day.
7. chatmasta ◴[] No.42143707[source]
Back in my day, this was a non-issue because our phone batteries didn't last more than 6 hours.

(Although I guess this change applies also to powered-on phones? Which is cool... this is why I choose Apple products.)

8. hmottestad ◴[] No.42143721{3}[source]
That kinda sucks. I don’t carry cash or a credit card anymore. I just pay with my phone.
9. karlgkk ◴[] No.42143726[source]
> There is no good reason to force the choice of 72 hours on everybody. That's a user-hostile design decision.

It apparently only triggers if the phone hasn't been successfully unlocked for three days. So, it really isn't something most users will notice.

10. rcMgD2BwE72F ◴[] No.42143770{3}[source]
Upgrade. Auto is supported now.
11. rcMgD2BwE72F ◴[] No.42143779[source]
GrapheneOS is great. I’m on iOS 18 for now (until I get a new Pixel after I got one stolen days ago) and I can’t wait to go back to GrapheneOS.
12. summermusic ◴[] No.42143864[source]
This is an essential feature for my personal GrapheneOS phone. I only tend to use it once or twice a day most days, which means it is usually freshly rebooted every time I go to use it.

I remember reading somewhere that many new exploits in the mobile space only exist in memory and are thwarted by a simple reboot, including the infamous Pegasus spyware.

replies(2): >>42144722 #>>42145477 #
13. jacoblambda ◴[] No.42144117{3}[source]
Android Auto works well for me on Graphene (Pixel 9 Pro) but I obv can't make GPay work given that it relies on the OS having Google's blessing and they are actively hostile to GOS as a project.
14. AlgebraFox ◴[] No.42144278[source]
Not OP. But I am using GrapheneOS for almost 4 months now. It is a breath of fresh air. Network Permission, Contact Scope, Duress PIN, Hardened Malloc, JIT tuning, Sandboxed Google Play etc.. are some key privacy and security features in Graphene. Will never go back to Apple's or Google's surveillance platforms.
replies(1): >>42144660 #
15. checkyoursudo ◴[] No.42144660{3}[source]
I have been meaning to try it. Is it best to get a new phone, or will any old model work fine?
replies(1): >>42144991 #
16. ruthmarx ◴[] No.42144722[source]
Graphene might be great, but the Google specific hardware that is the only thing it will run on might not be as trustworthy.
replies(1): >>42145243 #
17. switch007 ◴[] No.42144991{4}[source]
You absolutely want a somewhat modern Pixel

https://grapheneos.org/faq#device-support

18. switch007 ◴[] No.42145018[source]
Not OP either. It's quite "buggy" (honestly too many to list, mostly UI issues, app issues that can either be attributed to the OS or the app)...but overall I'm happy because of all the great features.
19. switch007 ◴[] No.42145035{3}[source]
Auto absolutely works these days but Google Pay definitely doesn't and probably won't ever
20. bohdanqq ◴[] No.42145243{3}[source]
Graphene is not limited to Google hardware, it's just that Google hardware meets their hardware requirements... (https://grapheneos.org/faq#future-devices).

AFAIK (from observing GOS comm channels) verified boot (alternative OSes but even the mechanism itself since some OEMs customize quite a bit), hardware rate limiting and timely security patches (which include modem firmware, preloaders - i.e. hardware) are the main reasons other devices are not supported.

replies(1): >>42145359 #
21. Malidir ◴[] No.42145359{4}[source]
It is limited at moment to just pixel!
22. saagarjha ◴[] No.42145477[source]
I am curious why you feel this is an "essential" feature. If you only use your phone once or twice a day, why would a hypothetical attacker bother targeting it?
replies(1): >>42150611 #
23. consteval ◴[] No.42150611{3}[source]
If your phone contains sensitive information, perhaps pictures, financial information, texts, etc, and it gets stolen - this data could be extracted. But typically, when a phone is rebooted, the drive is encrypted. So you're good to go. Phone theft is quite common, and probably the thief won't bother trying to extract data, but they might.