Exercise apps track you after you stop exercising Three exercise-tracking apps keeps tracking you long after you stop exercising, according to Norwegian Consumer Council, a consumer advocacy group. The council engaged an independent research outfit called SINTEF to examine what apps do when you stop running, and whether those activities comply with the apps' privacy policies …
There does seem to be a trend to this.. We keep your data. We own everything on your phone. We're always watching. We will "share" (let's be honest and change that to "we will sell") your data. And we'll change the EULA anytime we feel like it an never tell you.
I keep hoping that users will start getting a clue and just say "no, we're not going to use this since you're spying on us". Maybe if enough users would, the companies would get a clue and change their ways before they go bankrupt.
Not until the cloud concept is dead and buried. The companies need the data pimping revenue stream to keep the servers running.
In reality they get canned quickly anyway, as every product has a sales lifespan, and data always seems to deprecate over time, for a given level of intrusiveness. Gadgets are pump and dump.
Oh and people are stupid. Anyone who buys a fitness tracker doesn't understand that resistance training (picking up heavy shit), not cardio is the core of actual fitness, which doesn't need tracking so long as you can count up to 10.
Anyone who buys a fitness tracker doesn't understand that resistance training (picking up heavy shit), not cardio is the core of actual fitness, which doesn't need tracking so long as you can count up to 10.
Everyone is different. Some people, like yourself, like picking up heavy shit. Some people, however, like cardio work (Running, cycling, swimming, etc) and would like to keep track of their workouts.
Doesn't matter what you like.
I took up running back when I didn't have a clue. I got really really good at running, but hit the wall in terms of returns. I still run, but only for enjoyment and on interesting terrain.
Resistance work is the 24oz steak. Cardio is the cracked pepper-corn and balsamic glaze.
Cardio versus resistance depends on what results you're looking for and what you're doing that requires training for.
While I like resistance training, and it's pretty good for all round stuff, if you're planning to be doing something endurance based then you need a fair bit of cardio too.
It's also very easy to do resistance training "wrong", where you fail to isolate muscle groups, or do too few reps on too high a weight. Or sticking to machines for stuff that really needs free weights. Cardio is (for the exercise benefits) hard to fuck up, and has a different class of poseurs.
For me, I needed to count to 25 for the reps, and to 4-5 for the sets. But I was seeking conditioning and staying flexible rather than just adding power. Also means that I keep my lean (slow twitch) muscle for years afterwards, whereas the big showy fast twitch muscle falls off after about 3-6 months of not doing regular gym work.
I ran mainly because the sport I was playing involved lots of running. So to train for running around for a couple of hours the only real practice is running. Did like swimming for cardio and resistance when my knees where giving me grief.
It depends entirely on what you mean by 'fitness'. Cardio workouts are (surprise surprise) better for cardiac fitness, whilst lifting heavy things is good for building muscle bulk. If you want to run marathons, muscle bulk is not actually something you want, if you want to enter "World's Strongest Man", that muscle bulk is required. If you don't want to have a stent fitted, cardio fitness is probably a good idea, as is a healthy diet.
So, in summary, don't be a lifting bore.
Bah, I stopped visiting weight lifting forums because of bunk like the above post. When all you have is a hammer everything looks like a nail. Weight lifters (at least vocal ones) all seem to have it in their head that lifting heavy shit is the only form of exercise out there and everything else is useless.
Different forms of exercise are merely tools to get different results.
You want to get strong? Lift heavy weights for low reps.
You want to get swole? Lift less heavy weights for mid reps
You want to waste a few hours? Lift light weights for absurd reps.
Likewise you want to run a marathon, you run.
You want to swim the channel? You swim.
If you want to be athletic you crosstrain (not to be confused with the cross trainer cardio machine which is imo the most useless piece of cardio kit at the gym, nor to be confused with crossfit)
> resistance training (picking up heavy shit), not cardio, is the core of actual fitness
No, resistance training is a method to build strength, not fitness - they are different things, after all. Picking up heavy shit is fine if what you want are biceps that are bigger than your brain.
"hoping that users will start getting a clue and just say no"
Agree!
But the problem is the rest of the world doesn't realize or doesn't care or just doesn't want to know.... I suppose you can always try writing to the email below... But what has government done for the little people lately...???
http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/1/2016/05/11/us_govt_extends_iot_comment_period/
The way your Dad looked at it, that iPhone was your birthright. He'd be damned if any slopes were gonna put their greasy yella hands on his boy's birthright. So he hid it in the one place he knew he could hide something. His ass. Five long years, he wore this iPhone up his ass. Then he died of dysentery, he gave me the iPhone.
I hid this comfortable hunk of polished aluminium and plastic up my ass two years. Then, after seven years, I was sent home to my family. And now, little man, I give the iPhone to you.
To my understanding the reason runkeeper continues to snoop on you is because it keeps its map tracking running. When you connect the GPS works out your location so when you start jogging it can go from where you are. Even when the workout is complete, data is still sent to track your current location for when the run starts because the app is stupid.
Just do what I do, finish your run, turn GPS off.
I don't understand all the negativity with apps of this type, they are brill. I can go and either swim, bike or run... post it on Strava and then everything is brill because all of my friends can see how cool I am at "fitness" and I can get loads of likes and stuff and everything is brill.
Brill!!!!
All Android permissions should by default *not* be granted when the app isn't running in the foreground.
So no background app should be able to access the camera without specific extra permission. They shouldn't be able to access the microphone or camera, even if they have camera permissions and mic permissions when the user isn't running their app (even if their service is running in the background).
When the screen is turned off by the user (as opposed to temporarily turned off when the phone is taken to the ear), the camera should be turned off too, microphone should be off also. If an app needs it otherwise, there should be an explicit rare permission needed that is flagged as dangerous to grant.
Google's own spyware should not be granted these permissions by default. Google Play Services has no business accessing the camera, microphone, and its habit of turning on Wifi when the phone is off to sniff the surrounding wifi SSIDs is unacceptable.
"All Android permissions should by default *not* be granted when the app isn't running in the foreground...."
I don't disagree, particularly for the camera and microphone cases you cite (though even there a user on a video call may quite reasonably want to check information in another app while on a call) but in practice Runkeeper et al. will be running in the background in a significant proportion of cases, and with the screen switched off almost universally.
The problem is whether the app tracks the user when not actively (by user action) monitoring an activity (after the user has pressed "stop" or whatever), and what is done with that information. I don't think either can easily be dealt with by Android permissions.
Maybe the solution is for Android to have a way of monitoring what permissions an app is using, and when through an easy-to-use dashboard (maybe on the lock screen in some way). Then when your exercise app that you turned off half an hour ago is still accessing your GPS, you can start to ask why.
Unfortunately, legislation for crap like this doesn't exist.
I don't mind the fact most politicians are ignorant when it comes to technology, but their job is to protect us. So they should at least hire some tech experts and advisors.
When it comes to anything dealing with technology, they are way behind and only do something after a large number of people have been badly affected in some way.
Try to keep this in mind the next time you vote. :)
"Try to keep this in mind the next time you vote. :)"
To quote W.O.P.R, "the only way to win is not to play the game"
Unfortunately, this also mean the only way to vote for a politician who actively supports and protects his/her constituents is not to vote because there is no one with the correct qualifications. Politicians don't see non-voting or spoiled ballots as protests. The see it as "happy with whoever wins".
In the UK, a "None of the Above" option or party name is specifically legislated against so the only real option is for someone with the money to support the campaign to stand as an independent and promise to do nothing if elected and actively campaign for people to vote for him/her as a "none of the above" option.
It might get interesting if someone did do that, won, and then immediately resigned to force a another election. Then stand again. Rinse and repeat until the other candidates get the message that they need to make real and concrete campaign promises if the want to attract a real vote.
If I did the lottery and if I won, I'd certainly have a go at it just for the laughs :-)
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