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Google

edited December 4 in Off-Topic
Geeezzz …..

I recently switched from Hulu / Disney live streaming to UTube TV for a cost savings and smoother interface as well. There are plus and minus factors for both - but plan to stay with UTube TV (separate from the online UTube video site you are no doubt more familiar with). Happy with the product. However, I began receiving promotional emails and Ads from Google / UTube in my mailbox. Obviously, I welcome legitimate account information should they need to contact me, but can do without the garbage arriving daily..

So … I scroll down the latest promotional email and hit the “unsubscribe” tab at the bottom. That should fix everything. No? No. Clicking “unsubscribe” led me to an account login page. I then had to enter my email, my Google password, and also had to solve a word puzzle to prove who I am and then had to receive a text message by phone and enter the code. Should solve things? No? No.

A page opened up with virtually every eavesdropping methodology known to man, but nowhere did I see an option to halt the unwanted emails. What was interesting is that by default they had enabled options to share my TV viewing history, my Google search history on every topic and any UTube videos watched - and the right to sell all this to whomever they wanted.

I disabled as much of the garbage as I could - but you can never be 100% certain. Then I reluctantly blocked their messages from arriving in my email account and relegated them to “junk” status. Hopefully, genuine account correspondence will still make it through.

As an aside, I’ve only recently realized that allowing geolocation to remain active on a device is not smart. Talk about their ability to hone in on a target ! The one exception where I need to enable it is when placing small wagers on DraftKings since there are state specific gaming regulations and DK is required to verify my location before I can play.

All this got me to wondering who the Patsy at the poker table was?

Comments

  • edited December 12
    Many years ago I saw Google for what it was becoming. I allow absolutely nothing associated with Google on my computers other than Google Earth, for which there is no substitute that I'm aware of.
  • edited December 11
    X or Y or Z wants to know your location. ..... NO EFFING WAY. Google will steal your teeth.
  • Remember when the Google catchphrase was "Don't Be Evil"?
  • edited December 12
    Crash said:

    X or Y or Z wants to know your location. ..... NO EFFING WAY. Google will steal your teeth.

    I suspect the cat is already out of the bag for most of us. If you’ve ever activated “location services” (perhaps by default) on any device, even once, it’s highly likely Google has that information linked to you in some manner. Location service is often used for maps & navigation. Also for locating lost items using Apple “AirTags” which I find essential for finding lost keys, a lost remote or a misplaced iphone.

    I was looking for an authenticator app for better security when accessing financial sites yesterday. These apps are believed to be superior to phone based 2-factor authentication. (There’s been some discussion of this in other threads. But the question might make a good thread in itself.) Several good sources recommended Google’s authenticator app, although I shied away and chose another.

    Google is a highly rated provider of internet based TV. It’s called U-Tube TV and competes with Hulu and all the other big players. You wouldn’t be able to watch your local channels with any internet based TV provider w/o enabling the location finder. If you’re scratching your head over that, realize that some of us are in geographical areas that make receiving over-the-air TV signals difficult to impossible. (low lying / coastal terrain with nearby tall hills, sand dunes or mountains in between you and the TV transmitter).
  • Some of the sites I use have txt 2FA, Google Authenticator, or Symantec VIP; some combination may apply too.

    It may be difficult to use an authenticator not preferred by a site.

    All have weaknesses. txt 2FA doesn't use encryption. Symantec VIP app resides on your phone. Google Authenticator access is via Google account/login. Any of these can be misused or hacked.

    What do you do when you are locked out of the house? You call a locksmith. This happened once to me. The locksmith guy came, looked at my Driver License (when I called, he said that he will check IDs), and unlocked the door in 30 sec. If locksmiths can do this, crooks can do too.

    It's becoming more like this for online stuff. Take reasonable precautions and don't attract the attention of professional hackers/crooks.
  • edited December 12
    Good stuff Yogi. I also run Norton anti-virus on my devices. And subscribe to Identity Guard who actually notified me once that my password had been changed on my Fidelity credit card profile (after I’d done so myself). Probably overkill - but our brokerage accounts represent years of hard work to earn the money and careful investing practice. AI is incredibly powerful. Financial institutions are recognizing the security dangers presented. I actually received a polite “prompt” at Fidelity when examining my profile settings to start using an authenticator. But you can never do “enough”.
  • Yep- the bad guys are going to have a frigging ball with AI. The rest of us are going to be sitting there like sheep, wondering how we got sheared. This could easily mean the end of electronic commerce as we now know it.

    Really glad that I'm as old as I am...
  • edited December 12
    For several years I've used Symantec VIP for 2FA at Fidelity.
    I also started using Symantec VIP at Schwab several months ago.
    The app works as expected and I haven't experienced any problems¹.


    ¹ I use the desktop app exclusively and have no experience with the mobile version.
  • edited December 13
    I attempted to get Symantec (installed on my IPad) to work at Fido for about 2 hours and finally gave up. Tried every way known to man to “scan” the necessary barcode provided by Fidelity. Finally gave in and installed highly regarded Duo Mobile. It allowed me to cut and paste a series of numbers instead of scanning a bar code. Working like a charm. But I have no idea how I would move the embedded ”token” on my current device (for lack of a better word) to another device if ever necessary. Unlike Symantec, Duo doesn’t appear to have a migration tool. Will cross that bridge when I come to it. (Might have to hire a locksmith.)
  • Old_Joe said:


    Really glad that I'm as old as I am...

    I've had that thought often lately.

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