I completely agree, I guess what they call "privacy win" is that this feature can now work without storing data on Google (highlighted by me):
Based on Google's email, it seems the company will allow Gemini to access messages, WhatsApp, and control device system settings without requiring that you enable the Gemini Apps Activity setting for your account. This setting saves your Gemini history to your Google account, potentially allowing for better personalization.
Previously, if you had this setting disabled for your Google account, you weren't able to use the Messages, Phone, Utilities, or WhatsApp extensions in Gemini (via 9to5Google). Once this change rolls out to your account, you will be able to access these features without having to save your Gemini history on Google's servers.
When they say
potentially allowing for better personalization
they sound like the companies trying to sell you these features without mentioning the privacy implications of said features. :/
In #1 when you say the monitor displays the DE, is the Dock visible? If not, it could be that you're trying to interact with the DE but the dock and application launcher is on the laptop display.
I didn't have to change any config values and it works. The only other thing I can think of is that I have Gnome Tweaks installed and the 'Suspend when laptop lid is closed' is disabled in the 'General' tab.
Another thing to try is to see what Pop!_OS outputs in the /var/log/syslog file when this happens. What I would suggest you do is:
open the terminal app
type sudo /var/log/syslog -f (this will start writing all sorts of messages to the screen)
do your step #1 (when it becomes unresponsive)
open the lid again so the system becomes reponsive
press Ctrl + c to stop outputting the contents of the systog file.
Scroll up and see if there's any error, warning or something to that affect in the log related to power management, displays or the desktop environment.
And one more thing which is probably obvious: make sure your system is up do date (both the operating system and the BIOS).
I blocked Microsoft in WhatsApp and they reverted back to sending SMS messages. However, this won't help if you (like me) I refuse to install Microsoft apps on your phone.
I think it depends on which community (instance) you're trying to post. Some instances are blocking VPNs, e.g. lemmy.world. I assume you've already tried but try switching to a different VPN server.
It's not a backdoor, it just enabled Firefox's remote debugging tool by default
Just? I'm sorry but that's just a terrible mistake to make, especially for a browser that people use to surf the world wild web. I don't know if you've ever used a remote debugger (I do), but depending on the debugger, it can be a very powerful tool, you can do a lot of things with it. I don't think calling it a backdoor is a massive exaggeration. I don't doubt the developer's good intention, but this issue shouldn't be dismissed as an insignificant issue.
To add insult to the injury, it didn't even prompt the user for it.
The developer's comment reveals that it has been there since the inception of the project. And there are even more privacy / security issues mentioned in the comments.
Unfortunately Zen browser gets a big fat no from me. 🫤
Exactly. Also, there was a post a few days ago about google secretly installing an app on Android phones, something to do with automatically blurring nsfw images in messages. Who knows what else it is capable of, or if there's software on our phones that won't show up anywhere (list of apps, running processes, etc.).
I agree with using open source software, but the source code of said chat apps is just one part of the equation.
AFAIK cryptography implementation relies on the operating system / firmware the app is running on (they tend to be closed source). Most implementations rely on random generators provided be the operating system. Doesn't really matter how good the encryption implementation is in the chat app if the software it relies on is compromised - see book I recommended above (The hacker and the state).
I suspect it's the latter one. The book titled "The Hacker and the State" goes into detail about how it can be done (or may have been done in the past). A fascinating read for anyone interested in the subject.
you can use an android firewall to block Internet access from the app
True, however, AFAIK if your phone is not rooted, you can't have a firewall and VPN running at the same time (the firewalls I've seen must be configured as VPN).
not the privileges that obsidian has
Also true, although Obsidian has access to that shared storage, and therefore, Obsidian being closed source, you have no way of knowing what they do with the files other apps create in that storage directory. I'm not saying they are acting maliciously, but I don't like this approach (software vulnerabilities, supply chain attacks, etc.). The devs recognized the issue in another thread, but there's no solution to the problem as of yet.
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