
Facebook Will Shut Down Its Spyware VPN App Onavo - LogicRiver
https://techcrunch.com/2019/02/21/facebook-removes-onavo/
======
newscracker
Quotes from the article, with my emphasis in italics:

> Facebook will end its unpaid market research programs and _proactively_ take
> its Onavo VPN app off the Google Play store in the wake of backlash
> following TechCrunch’s investigation about Onavo code being used in a
> Facebook Research app the sucked up data about teens.

> Facebook has also _ceased to recruit new users_ for the Facebook Research
> app that still runs on Android but was forced off of iOS by Apple after we
> reported on how it violated Apple’s Enterprise Certificate program for
> employee-only apps. Existing Facebook Research app studies will continue to
> run, though.

> To preempt any more scandals around Onavo and the Facebook Research app and
> _avoid Google stepping in to forcibly block the apps,_ Facebook is now
> taking Onavo off the Play Store and stopping recruitment of Research
> testers.

It’s a very weird use of “proactively” in this context. Facebook doesn’t seem
to be acting quick either. Given that Google hasn’t yet done anything on this
app on the Play Store (after all this while), that’s not a serious threat.

Facebook is just being Facebook here, doing some minimal changes to fend off
criticism while it continues with its dubious practices wherever it hasn’t
been caught and shamed multiple times yet.

------
cobbzilla
> A Facebook spokesperson claimed in a statement that “there was nothing
> ‘secret’ about this”, yet it had threatened legal action if users publicly
> discussed the Research program.

Will wonders never cease?

~~~
bredren
The cavalier attitude says to me that this company is still a start up at
heart. Early-stage companies often break a lot of rules that’s how you get
big. Facebook is just still doing it.

~~~
skrebbel
This "it's ok to act immorally and illegally when you're a startup" attitude
has to die in a fire.

~~~
dannyr
Problem is governments never really acted aside from the US congressional
hearings. While this is happening, Facebook's profits are up.

There's really nothing compelling Zuck and Facebook to act morally and
legally.

~~~
zaarn
The EU had a hearing as well. The UK had one after that and Zucc didn't show.
I guess the other EU members are satisfied to know that FB doesn't give enough
of a shit to actually show up when asked to show up.

------
duxup
They supposedly shutdown Onavo on the iPhone.... only to just resubmit it
under another name.

Accordingly I'm a bit skeptical about how much of a shutdown happens here.

~~~
mehrdadn
I thought that fell under "unpaid market research programs" which is also
shutting down.

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jarym
It’s a shame because I used Onavo before it was acquired and back in the days
of limited mobile data plans it really reduced my bills. I didn’t trust FB so
ditched it right after they got bought (feeling validated!).

However it got me thinking. What if FB and others went to the popular VPN
services (like ExpressVPN) and said ‘here’s $xxx million - could you share
aggregate data about visits to our competitors’. How many would go for it?

~~~
AznHisoka
A lot of these VPN services already sell their data to 3rd parties.

~~~
LifeLiverTransp
Including governments- who sometimes own them via secret service blackfunds.

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Haga
Postponed for PR, renamed for the internal use, soon standard for all
products.

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dastx
Isn't this the second time they've done this whole vpn thing? What's stopping
them from rebranding it again and reselling it under a different name only to
be caught again so they then say "we're gonna stop" and then rinse and repeat.

------
dannyr
I'm disappointed that Google was fine with Onavo being in the Play Store and
it took Facebook (!) itself to actually remove the app.

~~~
Mirioron
I would much rather Google allow this and let users decide than the opposite.

~~~
lozenge
It's trivial to install Google-unlisted software, so users can decide either
way.

~~~
Mirioron
It isn't trivial. I don't think my parents will ever be able to install
software that Google doesn't like on their phone.

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shemtovo
Don't believe a word they are saying.

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aasasd
The circus with the relaunches under different names reminds of how _the
agencies_ similarly scramble to split and rename their, ahem, initiatives
whenever the public gets too noisy. Or how the very same thing happens to
unpopular bills.

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HelloNurse
So, what are they going to call this spyware going forward?

