Bose headphones are spying on you?

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maoriboy

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Topic # 213946 20-Apr-2017 12:09

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Interesting article in NZ Herald (and yes I know it's not the best place to be getting this information from).

I wonder if there's any substance to this claim.

Bose headphones spying on you

Satch

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Reply # 1767854 20-Apr-2017 12:16

Another of these stories jumping on the bandwagon of Corporates etc spying on everything you do. What is the big deal if Bose knows what music you are listening to, if in fact they really care or this is even true?

joker97

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Reply # 1768565 21-Apr-2017 19:28

I'm more worried about Apple Google and Facebook spying on me not to mention a whole host of cloud based software and backup services.

Brumfondl

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Reply # 1768616 21-Apr-2017 21:14

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Satch:

Another of these stories jumping on the bandwagon of Corporates etc spying on everything you do. What is the big deal if Bose knows what music you are listening to, if in fact they really care or this is even true?

I think the point is not that they know but they are collecting and selling the data without anyone's permission. Companies like Google are at least up front about what they do.

JimmyH

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Reply # 1768753 22-Apr-2017 10:10

Typical sloppy click-bait Herald reporting.

The headphones aren't sending back *any* information.

An app that Bose has released apparently is. This is an issue, and would be enough to stopp me buying the product. But you have to install it and (I gather) agree to the TOS, and it isn't remotely the same thing as plugging in a pair of headphones and having them mysteriously spy on everything you do.

A more realistic headline would be "Bose App reports your usage information", but I guess that isn't as "exciting", and wouldn't sucker as many people into clicking through?

alasta

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Reply # 1768803 22-Apr-2017 12:00

At this stage it remains nothing more than an allegation.

PaulBags

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Reply # 1768810 22-Apr-2017 12:28

So they admit they collect information, they don't specify it's information they've gathered consent for, and "by name" falls short of "personally identifiable". Also there's a number of reasons they could give your information to a third party without selling it, e.g. they could pay a third party to process the information, or they could be selling aggregate information.

Sounds like an admission of guilt to me.

Goosey

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Reply # 1768852 22-Apr-2017 13:19

PaulBags: So they admit they collect information, they don't specify it's information they've gathered consent for, and "by name" falls short of "personally identifiable". Also there's a number of reasons they could give your information to a third party without selling it, e.g. they could pay a third party to process the information, or they could be selling aggregate information.

Sounds like an admission of guilt to me.

No, sounds like they are just like any other company...they collect some info to provide statistics to enable them to develop the next best thing.

How many apps do you use that you can honestly say dont do the same?

It is no different to the 'old days' when people would simply get "manual surveys" on how they use their products or those tick boxes you saw when filling out warranty cards (asking for info such as "what are you going to use this for").

Given its bose, I would say they are interested in more about the format and quality of the 'files' you listen to in order for them to develop their sound processing.

PaulBags

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Reply # 1768861 22-Apr-2017 13:50

I disagree, there's a big difference between manual survey and automated gathering without consent.

The apps I use? AdAway blocks ads, Lightening wall blocks any app I don't need accessing the internet, and for the most part I only install apps that have appropriate permission requirements. I also disable anything that syncs anything to anywhere for any reason, I keep everything local to the device. I can't say for certain there's nothing untoward going on, because I don't have the tools or motivation to packet sniff my phone. But I certainly wouldn't be installing any app that says 'we gather some information' and then proceeds to weasel their way into doing whatever they want with the kind of language Bose has been quoted with above.

Argh, this reminds me I have to find a non-root firewall for my new phone, that's if PB Tech ever sends it (it's been over a week, and it's been in stock the whole time...)

Stu

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Reply # 1768937 22-Apr-2017 15:14

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No different from most other apps. Seems nothing more than a storm in a teacup, as always.

Keep calm, and carry on posting.

dafman

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Reply # 1768993 22-Apr-2017 18:07

Stu: No different from most other apps. Seems nothing more than a storm in a teacup, as always.

Most other apps that do it are up front about it. Google, for example - and, after open acknowledgement of this, in return, I don't have to hand any cash over to use their services.

Bose, on the other hand, charge like wounded bulls for their products, and never disclosed to consumers that their app was silently watching and reporting back to base.

So Bose go on the list, directly after VW, of companies that won't get any of my cash.

michaelmurfy

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Reply # 1779846 11-May-2017 19:51

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Got a notification today on my phone from the Bose app saying:

Nothing is more imporetant than your trust.

We work tiressly to earn and keep it, and have for over 50 years. That's never changed, and never will.

Bose Connect collects diagnostic and usage data to improve our products and services and troubleshoot errors. If you do not want us to collect this data, you can opt out in the Privacy settings within the app.

Now, the music service I use (Google Play Music) is a little more creepy if we're talking about tracking:

Note the "It looks like you're at home" and the "You listened to this at home"? - We've got to get used to everything tracking us.

Michael Murphy | https://murfy.nz
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