cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/2546109
Read why “Web Environment Integrity” is terrible, and why we must vocally oppose it now. Google’s latest maneuver, if we don’t act to stop it, threatens our freedom to explore the Internet with browsers of our choice.
There’s something no one seems to be talking about
this isn’t limited to your browser
It runs at the highest ring of security on your processor. It could mean it locks you to OEM Android, iOS, or Windows. It could be extended to look at your app list, dns settings, potentially even tell if the device is using a vpn
it could be paired with kosa to use biometrics to verify identity
And it would be shocking if cloudflare didn’t implement this - it would save them a ton of processing. It’s likely it would be a default setting - this would apply to large swaths of the Internet, not just Google services
So sick of “just use Firefox” as if everyone has forgotten how the last company to bend the web to it’s will using a browser didn’t kill the very thing Firefox was born out of. Either google doesn’t do this or it doesn’t matter if you use Firefox, your browser will either comply or die like Netscape Navigator.
Do you think Google will fully implement this in the end?
Unless they get a break up the company lawsuit before they do, yes.
Why is everyone making noise about Google’s implementation while barely anyone is making noise about Apple’s, which is already in use? https://httptoolkit.com/blog/apple-private-access-tokens-attestation/
My guess is that Apple just rolled it out silently, while Google goes through a standards process with a public RFC. (edit: Also, Safari isn’t as commonly used).
Apple doesn’t have the power to kill the internet, but Google does.
" it will be used by Google to deny access to their services unless you are using a browser that gels with their profit margin"
Cool. So people using a different browser will move elsewhere. Maybe they’ll even stop youtube addiction. Cant’ really see a downside.
“It is not far-fetched to imagine a future in which sites simply refuse to serve pages to users running free browsers or free operating systems.”
Same here. Sites doing this wouldn’t probably worth to be looked at anyway.
lemm.ee was talking about using cloudflare (i can’t remember whether he went through with it), which will almost certainly implement this. lemmy.world already does. there is no good outcome from this going through where this only blocks google sites from firefox.
even if there was, that still means you can’t open any gdrive links you find on the internet, use a youtube tutorial to fix something, use the play store to buy any apps (because if they integrate this into chrome, they will integrate it into the play store), etc.
edit 2023-08-10:
hey guess what engywuck, lemm.ee uses cloudflare now:
good luck accessing lemm.ee from non-chromium if this goes through
in fact view you probably won’t be able to view any embedded youtube videos at all. people would have to go back to hosting their own videos which would push hosting costs up, which would raise the barrier of entry to people making their own sites. which is something we want to encourage
sites doing this probably wouldn’t be worth using anyways
what about when your bank adds this? have you tried using a safetynet enforcing app on a rooted android phone? this has bigger implications than you’re seeing
