Auto update is basically a root backdoor, it's especially troublesome when you are not the customer, you are the product!
replyYes, which is why I use paid-for OSes and browsers, instead of free ones like Linux or Firefox. I don't want to be the product.
replyI think with Windows you probably are the customer and the product
replyCory Doctorow had an essay about that years ago, except he didn't artificially limit it to Windows:
reply"Even if you're paying for the product, you're still the product: Incentives matter, but impunity matters more."
https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/14/luxury-surveillance/#liar...
This is exactly how it works on Debian. Can recommend.
replyGuess what runs my PC. Tech companies just don't understand consent.
replyIt is almost the standard:
reply Q: Does <company> understand consent?
A: No / Maybe Later
Q: Does <company> understand consent?
A: No / Maybe Later / we did it anyway, you'll need to search to find out how to turn it off, maybe ask the new AI model we've just back-door installed?I think they do. They just don’t care. We’re the fleetingly small percentage of nerds in the corner who will notice and complain. Were useful to them for other reasons but we’re not really the concern here.
replyIt’s probably a business misplay to tell the other 99% of users about something they weren’t going to think about. But if by chance it goes awry and there’s outcry, just apologize and commit to do better.
> ... don't understand consent.
replyThe word you're looking for is "respect". They understand consent, the same as JBS* understands animal rights.
For anyone else wondering why that link doesn't work, the hacker news formatting is dropping the final period. Add it back in and the link works.
replyDo you understand consent?
reply1. Yes
2. Ask me later