MacOS Big Sur is spying on everything you do and sending the data to Apple

Notebook Check ^ | 11/17/2020 | Sam Medley

[IndispensableDestiny]

This is likely a non-issue brought up by those that do not understand certificate checking (hint: your browser is likely doing this too).

Apple is using Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP) to check whether your signed applications were signed with valid certificates, or if those certificates have been revoked for some reason.

Why is OCSP unencrypted? It uses the HTTP protocol not HTTPS. If it used HTTPS, it would create an endless loop of checking certificates. Not good.

MacOS lets you install unsigned apps or apps with unknown signatures. You have to make a conscious decision to allow that. I don’t know what happens if a signed app returns a revoked or bad status. That is, will the OS still let you run the app if you allow it?

[shaven_llama]

Brave and/or firefox with privacy extensions.

I don’t go through the VPN if I’m just doing normal stuff (online banking/shopping, etc.).

[StAnDeliver]

Interesting. If Big Sur is air-gapped, when do the apps fail?

[desertfreedom765]

I have a similar procedure.

I live a boring life, but I don’t want to be followed around by peeping toms.

and as you said, things are getting weird.

[mjustice]

Even if you have to opt-in to send the analytic data to Apple, if they’re sending it *UNENCRYPTED* it’s a big problem... as a big shiny beacon for anyone sniffing traffic on that network.

MJ

[StAnDeliver]

Charles for iOS is the schiznitt if ya wanna peek at that traffic.

[SgtHooper]

Yeh, well, Biden’s not a pervert either!

[minnesota_bound]

In China, Apple has multitudes of children looking over your files... heh heh heh.

[Swordmaker]

Someone suddenly notices that if you check the box to send MacOS analytics to Apple that it will DO JUST THAT and gets panties in a wad. . . No, personal information is not sent, and it does not put users at risk as the breathless article claims. Yes, information about what App is sent, and what the status of the OS and configuration of the OS and Mac is sent, but those are important to defining issues. Solution is to turn off Analytics. Easily done in settings. — PING!

Apple Big Sur Security and Analytics Check Box
PING!

If you want on or off the Apple/Mac/iOS Ping List, Freepmail me.

[dayglored]

"AARRRGGGGGHH!!! THIS DAMN COMPUTER DID EXACTLY WHAT I TOLD IT TO DO!!!"

*sigh*

Meanwhile, the pic you posted in your comment is a 404 for some reason. The image URL on the FR page looks like this:

https://freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/3906908/%E2%80%9Chttps://i.postimg.cc/SxjZLTWh/B702-EA3-D-2176-44-FC-B080-0-E458-A7-DD4-CA.jpg%E2%80%9D

but in a browser bar, if you peel out this:

https://i.postimg.cc/SxjZLTWh/B702-EA3-D-2176-44-FC-B080-0-E458-A7-DD4-CA.jpg

You get this (I reduced its size):

[Swordmaker]

Re: Photo. That’s what I wanted to post. Nothing I did would let it post. Something got broken in the migration of FR to the new server. Did you have to reduce the size before posting or did you do it in the HTML command? I used a sizing command. Thanks.

[dayglored]

Interesting. Here it is at full size (no WIDTH=XXX element). Just a regular ol' image link:

<IMG SRC="https://i.postimg.cc/SxjZLTWh/B702-EA3-D-2176-44-FC-B080-0-E458-A7-DD4-CA.jpg">

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Big Sur is bricking Mid-2014 13 inch MacBook Pro computers. I have a 15 inch Mid-2014 MBP, so no Big Sur for me.

[Irish Eyes]

Bookmark

[AbolishCSEU]

I did hear that big sur exploded some charging feature in that it couldn’t determine voltage to correctly charge a variety of apple devices requiring different voltages on usb C.

[Swordmaker]

Found the problem. The new server for FR is interpreting pasted quotation marks as a double apostrophe. No wonder it’s not working. Delete the quotation marks and replace with a proper quotation mark around the HTML Image source command and it works. Thanks for the help in trouble shooting this.