Oculus 'Always On' Services and Privacy Policy May Be a Cause for Concern (uploadvr.com) 96
Will Mason, reporting for Upload VR: It turns out when you install the software to run Facebook's Oculus Rift, it creates a process with full system permissions called "VRServer_x64.exe." This process is always on, and regularly sends updates back to Facebook's servers. The process' main purpose is to help detect when the Rift is turned on and on your face so that it can launch Oculus Home, but the further reaching implications of it are potentially much more salacious. Digging into the Oculus Rift's Privacy Policy reveals that Facebook is not the only company that is able to collect your data, as under the policy "third parties may also collect information about you through the Services," this includes entities on the "related companies" list. The company plans to utilize your data to, among other things, "market to you." Surprised?
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The closest I come is:
26083 ? Ssl 0:00 C:\windows\system32\services.exe
I have WINE running because my favorite FTP client is an old Windows program called AbsoluteFTP.
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seems like Facebook wants to eradicate privacy (Score:1)
It seems like the purpose of Facebook is to eradicate privacy, wherever it may be. Loneliness, and hate speech are to be eradicated by big Facebook.
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Even better when people start disabling this background service only to later find their expensive toy no longer works thanks to this always on DRM.
Re:Facebook collecting private data unnecessarily? (Score:5, Interesting)
This is precisely why I lost all interest in Oculus the instant I heard that it had been acquired by Facebook.
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this times a billion.
i can't believe anyone thought it was going to turn out good with facebook owning it.
you've gotta be fucking stupid to believe thats not going to turn into a shitshow.
I fully expect within 5 years oculus will start doing something like 'watch this ad to continue playing your game with oculus'.
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This, along with the insane costs, are why I never really batted much of an eye towards VR stuff even as it started to mature. After seeing facebook buy the rift, I knew exactly how it would end up.
I'd fully expect the PS VR to do similar to be honest. And while I'll reserve judgement until I actually see it, Steam's Vive is probably going to do the same as well.
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Ditto. Then I discovered that these things combine the worst of two things that didn't succeed - Kinect and 3DTVs. I mean, people hated Kinect because it forced them off the couch, and it appears most VR games have you moving in a space, so you not only needed the space Kinect required, but you have to get off. O
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This is precisely why I lost all interest in Oculus the instant I heard that it had been acquired by Facebook.
Same here. It is why I am glad there are several competing devices that are due out as well. That said, I am really waiting on one that has a decent field of view.
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I believe that it's alleged to do something for games. Since I play an Elite clone (from 1981 or 1982), Sudoku (16x16), and Sid Meier's Civilisation from 1991 ... I'm wondering what effect a Rift would have on these?
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This isn't new. the last couple years, most new hardware, particularly stuff that connects to your phone or IoT devices are like this.
fitness bands
smart watches
thermostats (like the Nest)
ODB Readers
Android OS/Windows 10
Even though these devices could easily be managed so all data stays local, either on the device or on a smartphone, companies making them force all data to get uploaded to their servers so they "own" the data [fitbit in particular makes you pay an extra monthly fee to get access to the data
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Indeed. And now we see why Facebook actually bought Occulus.
Oh my! (Score:2)
They have 360 degree filming and viewing ability, and their entertainment value is only exceeded by their ability to gather information.
There's no Santa, even Easter rabbits don't lay eggs, and Facebook isn't really free.
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He's talking about the Gear VR, which is actually an Oculus product (though sold by Samsung):
https://www.oculus.com/en-us/g... [oculus.com]
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https://www.oculus.com/en-us/g... [oculus.com]
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What are the odds of them coming back, apologizing, and thanking you for the correction?
wait, what? (Score:1, Insightful)
Someone signed up for Facebook is surprised that Facebook collects and sells their personal data? Really? That is literally how they make their money. It is the business they are in.
By now it is well known: if you don't want that kind of harvesting, you don't use Facebook. That means: blocking their address blocks in your firewall, so you don't load their "like" buttons and you don't use their services in any way. You most certainly don't run their software on your machine! If you do that, well, yeah.
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Someone signed up for Facebook is surprised that Facebook collects and sells their personal data? Really?
LMFTFY: Someone who bought a virtual reality device is surprised to find that Facebook is collecting an selling their personal data. Really.
You didn't read even the first line of the summary: "It turns out when you install the software to run Facebook's Oculus Rift" [emphasis mine]. It's a Facebook product. If I buy a Honeywell thermostat with WiFi that provides thermostat access via the cloud, I would expect it to be in frequent contact with Honeywell's servers. Similarly, I would have every expectation that a Facebook VR set would contact Facebook's servers.
The real questions anyone should have are "what data do they collect, how do they
Re:wait, what? (Score:5, Insightful)
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Exactly this. Pushing the boundaries of acceptable conduct on a platform to get background access for longer and ultimately deliver more information home is what Facebook's apps do. At the end of the day if you're a hardware company, and your bundled management/utility software has worn out its welcome (I'm thinking of you e.g. ASUS, Logitech), if I can still use your hardware fully with standard drivers, you will still get my business.
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It's a Facebook product. If I buy a Honeywell thermostat with WiFi that provides thermostat access via the cloud, I would expect it to be in frequent contact with Honeywell's servers. Similarly, I would have every expectation that a Facebook VR set would contact Facebook's servers.
I have no such expectation. There is no reason for a display with position tracking sensors glued to it communicate with Facebook servers any more than there is any reason for a keyboard to communicate with Unicomp or a monitor to communicate with Samsung.
If you want to use a locked down DRM'd shitstore that communicates with facebook then it is reasonable to expect this bullshit .. however we were all assured that the Rift hardware would be OPEN... meaning participation in the bullshit would be optional.
The real questions anyone should have are "what data do they collect, how do they use it, who do they share it with, and how long do they store it?" Given that it's Facebook, I'm guessing the answers are: "every single byte; to build a better model of their customers to better market to them, and to match people with their personal network; they share it with everyone, warrant or not; and forever".
T
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And that's surprising why? Facebook sells the device.
DO NOT BUY (Score:4, Insightful)
The solution is simple. Do not buy this shit. And, tell your less technical friends. They are actively hostile to their would-be consumers. Just don't fucking buy it. In fact, outright spread the word that Occulus=scum.
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THIS one is gonna change the world!
That's exactly what we're concerned about.
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And so it did - it demonstrated that at long last off-the-shelf hardware was capable of being assembled into an impressive consumer-grade VR headset at a reasonable price, and got several major manufacturers interested in producing them.
Now, save up your pennies and get ready to go buy one of it's competitors, because Oculus decided to sell out to one of the most invasive companies in the world, who decided to leverage the technology to lure customers into giving them unrestricted access to everything on th
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I'll wait until they support Linux and OSX [slashdot.org]
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Oculus Rift is not the only VR option. I'm considering the HTC Vive, since they partnered with Valve, who seem more serious about Linux support than Oculus is.
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Come on, that's not fair. Give them proper credit.
They're an invasive, manipulative, dishonest, big data company.
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"Facebook" occulous rift.. wtf did that happen..
July, 2014
https://games.slashdot.org/sto... [slashdot.org]
https://www.facebook.com/zuck/... [facebook.com]
http://www.theguardian.com/tec... [theguardian.com]
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You thought you were buying something innovative and free and open and spent quite a bit of money on it, then learned a while latter that its owners had just sold out to Facebook. I'd say butthurt is exactly how I would feel.
uggh (Score:2)
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salacious? (Score:3)
I don't think that means what you think it means.
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Sure. But then Microsoft changed the game, and everybody else wants to get in on the action. I mean if people will tolerate their OS spying on them, surely they'll be willing to let something they actually care about spy too, right?
Bleh.
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Microsoft didn't change the game. They upped the ante. The game was already well into the end-game by the time Windows 10 rolled around.
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. . .And I've got this Ethiopian Prince with some shares he wants to sell if your interested?
Seriously this thing will take full video of everywhere you use it and of all the people around you. It will probably have microphones which will record everything you say. Its very easy to stich all that video together to make 360 picture files, translate speech into text then scan it with AI. Plus the pictures and video of the people will no doubt help make better dossiers of all your friends and family.
Just anoth
Surprised? No. More challenged. (Score:2)
The exercise is now how to turn this into a device that YOU own.
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But the hardware itself isn't even such a great step up from the previous prototypes/devkits, for example, the field-of-view seems to be lacking. [doc-ok.org]
Besides, Linux support has been dropped and Windows 10 is now required.
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> What does the facebook software do?
From the sounds of things, it collects your data and monetizes it. The summary told me that. Why'd you ask? ;-)
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It is hardware. Hardware needs an interface to communicate with software. Reverse engineering has been a staple of the industry ever since Turing broke the Enigma.
Windows 10 is not required. Their software requires it, not the hardware.
The Horror (Score:2)
You mean I might have to get an ad blocker for my Oculus rift O/S? How terrible...
Jesus you guys are worse than Tipper Gore.
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Morons who accept shit that's defective by design breed more shit that's defective by design.
If it wasn't for morons like you we wouldn't have to use ad blockers at all, because there wouldn't be ads.
We didn't used to have advertising on the Internet, until some fools thought there was actually such a thing as a free lunch.
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Depending on what you're calling the 'net, there have pretty much always been ads on it. I'm not sure where that sentiment comes from - this mythical view of the past. Do you not remember the, "Call 555-1212 for the best BBS in town - best warez!" No? Probably not. You probably weren't there and are just parroting what you heard from a friend who heard it from a friend.
Now, on the academic networks there weren't so many ads. However, there were still promotions. The first instance of UCE/spam was in somethi
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If I were making fun of you or seeking termination of the conversation then, by all means, I'd vocalize that. I'd even make a funny face and look at them as if I were incredulous that such a person could speak without assistance, walk without hurting themselves or others, and was allowed to use the sharp scissors.
On the other hand, I'd not vocalize that if my goal were to continue a conversation. (Unless it was a close friend who'd said something utterly stupid and I was having fun at their expense.) I'd no
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In my case, it would make a sound like "burr" only with an H. Sort of like an Ebonics speaker may enunciate "her." Such accents would be found in the middle of the Eastern Coastal States.
However, I'd pronounce it like I'd pronounce 'burr.
I'm more likely to say "durr" or "derp." That dependson whom I'm communicating with an the ultimate goal of that effort.
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The same could be said for most any other transforming technological advances. From radio to automobiles, to television to telephones, to printing to even speech.
Why'd you expect it to be different this time? Did you think we, as a species, suddenly improved? You really don't think you're enlightened, do you? Do you really think that the species is somehow better, more advanced, or improved? Whatever gave you that idea?
What was I thinking? (Score:2)
Thought to myself the Rift is just a monitor stuffed with sensors. Surely I would be able to use it directly with third party software and avoid the inevitable facebook bullshit we all knew was coming. But noo... at the last f*cking second before release they did away with separate runtime downloads and make you install their shitstore + register an account before you even get access to the runtime.
What is sad is how lame Oculus software is. They install very chatty poll happy windows services (managed co
"It turns out" (Score:2)
Thank you for once again rehashing FB's data sharing policy.
I'm sorry when the rest of the world found out that FB shares data and uses it for marketing, and how's how they fund the free web services you choose to use, you were on the toilet or picking your nose or something.
Nothing to see here.
E
P.S. "It turns out" is how you start a surprising conclusion to a story, not a an entire paragraph.