ubuntu-privacy team mailing list archive

[luke <lukefromdc@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I've alwys suspected the sort of thing the Snowden documents on PRISM,
etc prove. That's why I removed Unity when this issue came up. It was
replaced in my backup DE list with a Cairo-dock/Compiz session. For my
main DE I use Cinnamon, but Unity with all scopes removed MIGHT be safe.
Trouble is, for the sort of folks I distribute computers to I cannot
take a chance and cannot distribute an OS known to put local activity of
ANY type on a network.

I consider all online scopes to be a threat, as combining local with
online searches could enable the NSA over time to figure out  the
content of your filesystem. Also, if ever the NSA finds and exploits a
vulnerability in a scope, that would be an obvious target for
exploitation, as the dock already talks to the network, and already
lists files. Therefore, it is in the same category as installing a
webserver in a machine that will never be used as a webserver: unused
exploitable software that talks to the network. This does not require
any malicious intent by Canonical, only malicious intent by the NSA or
any other attacker.

Therefore, I now do not distribute Ubuntu's main distro. 12.04 and
earlier are safe but getting old fast-and if someone updates 12.04 to a
new version and does so with Ubuntu-Desktop installed I don't know if
they get the scopes. As of now, if not distributing my own private fork,
I give out either Mint or UbuntuStudio, the former with Cinnamon or
MATE, the latter with XFCE.

-- 
You received this bug notification because you are a member of Ubuntu
Privacy Team, which is subscribed to the bug report.
https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1054776

Title:
  Don't include remote searches in the home lens

Status in Unity Shopping Lens:
  New
Status in “unity-lens-shopping” package in Ubuntu:
  Triaged

Bug description:
  Recent news (http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2012/09/online-shopping-
  features-arrive-in-ubuntu-12-10) indicates that the home lens will, by
  default, search Amazon for products to put in the 'More suggestions'
  section. This means that regular searches for local applications and
  files are transmitted to a remote server, which I believe breaks an
  expectation of privacy. It also seems somewhat tasteless for my
  operating system to be advertising things I might want to buy.
  Finally, the idea that Ubuntu is now ad-supported has brought
  considerable negative PR on tech news sites like Slashdot and Hacker
  News.

  All of these problems could be easily avoided if the shopping lens
  were separate, rather than showing results in the home lens.  The
  shopping results would still be very convenient when the user wanted
  to see them - they could opt in with a single click, as we currently
  can with the video lens, for example.

  To anticipate one likely response: I understand that this feature can
  be removed by uninstalling the package. I believe it should be opt-in,
  not opt-out, and I also think the feature is useful, so I don't want
  to remove it completely from my system.

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