Researchers Use Ambient Light Sensors To Steal Browser Data

[Guest]

Security researchers have discovered that ambient light sensors used in smartphones, laptops, and tablets can be used to steal browser data.

Researchers Use Ambient Light Sensors To Steal Browser Data : Read more

 

[LORD_ORION]

Figures Google would want an exemption, obviously they figured this out and went the path of stealing your data for monetization purposes, rather than security disclosure.

 

[bit_user]

Figures Google would want an exemption, obviously they figured this out and went the path of stealing your data for monetization purposes, rather than security disclosure.

That makes no sense! Google already has your data. They should want to make it harder for other people to get your data, to make the data they have on you more valuable. Anyway, this isn't about data collection for marketing purposes - this is sort of like a more sophisticated phishing scam.

If you want to be cynical about this, you could say that google is trying to make web apps less secure, in order to make android seem less bad. Though, I don't really think that's their motivation. I think they just felt it was harmless enough, and wanted web developers to be able to take advantage of these things.

 

[LORD_ORION]

It makes perfect sense if they can simply adjust your sensors and get a hit of your locked down browsing habits whenever you are doing something they are interested in.

 

[TadashiTG]

Why would the browser need these sensors in the first place? Permission should be denied by default.

 

[Gilles_2]

after reading the original article
all we can see is that with this sensor, the website can very slowly steal information, so slowly that any normal user would have close that damn page already