Free Republic

“Somehow I don’t see Steve Jobs thinking what a great idea it would be to take an aggressive position on a highly politicized issue and thereby gratuitously piss off a significant segment of your customer base.”

He openly assisted Kerry, Gore and Obama in their presidential campaigns. Can you get any more highly politicized?

Tim Cook has been with Apple for 16 years.

I agree, but you asked a question as if the answer was that there’s no concern about bureaucrats (the government) gathering seemingly harmless data from a persons phone. Granted, you didn’t ask me, but I thought I’d help. I’m a giver.

I came to the same conclusion as you regarding my personal inability to do much about it but I believe that the ones who have the least to fear should be the most vocal. Maybe we’ll talk about that someday.

“Can you explain to me what would concern you about anyone, even the government knowing that you walked a mile today, and also up five flights of stairs?”

I’m good with all your arguments here but the reason you need to be concerned with faceless, unelected, immune from prosecution, bureaucrats should be obvious to anyone at FR. There is no such thing as a mostly Democrat bureaucracy that’s only interested in how many miles you walked today.

If you’re going to repair anything on a Mac go to https://www.ifixit.com/Device/Mac

They are impossible to fix without these guides. OK, not impossible, but tossing them through a plate glass widow doesn’t count as fixing.

They often have links to parts also.

“...you taunted me about your bank not asking you whether you wanted Two-Factor authentication for account login. . . which you later retracted.”

Are you even reading the same thread or are you so used to dissembling with impunity that it’s become your automatic reaction? I haven’t retracted anything yet. Happy to do it when necessary, but my point was simple and correct. You’ve been raving about Apple’s security that is NOT ACTIVE by default. My bank, on the other hand, does not ask me if I want a security feature, they tell me what they’re going to do and explain what I have to do to comply. If Bank of America has a higher level of security that you have to opt into, then they’re as bad as Apple.

The canard that additional security is too hard for most people is absurd. Programing your VCR was hard, rocket science, in fact, compared to activating additional security features. Yet somehow there are VHS tapes floating around with every episode of “Alf” carefully preserved.

Apple, being the most brilliant company on the planet, should have devised a way to make their OPTIONAL security easier to use, that’s supposed to be their forte.

“Read what I wrote. Not what you wish I wrote, Loonard. Now, stop writing to me.”

Swordmaker: “My Bank of America accounts do have limited Two-Factor for on-line transactions, which I use. . . but not for gaining account access...”

Swordmaker: “I told you I use SafePass on my Bank of America accounts with all options turned on. When I activated that, it covered movement of funds only. Apparently their IT department is now adding account access.”

As usual, you’re quick to call me a liar for accurately representing your readily available quotes. If I’m misreading you it’s because you’re obfuscating.

“your Reply 42 to me”

Which was my reply to Battman. You can’t even tell the truth on a simple link.

I never asked you to list your banks. You volunteered. I mocked your insistence that Apple had better security than your banks yet you were completely satisfied with the forms of security that your banks offer.

It was only then that I began to look at your claims. And I’ve barely started. Shame on me.

You pulled banks into this debate and I simply did some cursory checks on one, just one, of the banks you mentioned. Bank of America, now, according to you, does offer 2FA. They not only offer 2FA now, but according to you they are adding the specific form of 2FA that you said they did not offer.

Instead of admitting that you may have jumped the gun, you blamed me and now you want to scream it to an end. Well done, Apple master, well done.

“Apparently their IT department is now adding account access. Right now, BofA does allow access to my financial records using only a username and password. . . without a second factor. I just tried it again. . . and for my accounts there is no login offered for second factor. That’s listed as “coming soon,” for my accounts, and I will be “notified when it will be activated.”

So they DO offer 2FA for your accounts NOW and “for you” they are ADDING 2FA for your login. So you’re wrong about Bank of America not providing login 2FA and you’re trying to generate FUD about Bank America and the other banks you listed even though Bank of America is adding what you yelled that NONE of them offered. You’re right, it’s all my fault.

“You strongly imply that I lied about my banks that support two factor security. . . and then state that you look this up by Googling it. You are the liar, Loonard. I stand by my statement. To put my accounts into a bank that uses two-factor authentication for account access I would be limited to just four of the banks listed...”

You insist that the only secure form of 2FA is the one used by Apple for account access. No surprise there. But then you listed 6 banks by name. I have no idea what your banks offer or do not offer in the way of 2FA but I do know that you’re a master of the authoritative half-truth, so I did some simple research that turned up statements about Bank of America like this:

“Log into your Bank of America account...You’ll then see a red button at the center of the page that reads “Add SafePass.” Click it and you can add one or more numbers for verification, and select whether you want SafePass to kick in only during significant financial transactions, or for every bank login.” (1)

Someone thinks that Bank of America offers 2FA (or SafePass) for transactions as well as logins. You say they don’t, but you have a problem with the definition of the word “fact,” so I’m more apt to believe Nathan at the WSJ.

(1) Safety First! How to Sign Up for Two-Step Verification on 11 Top Online Services
http://blogs.wsj.com/personal-technology/2014/04/11/safety-first-how-to-sign-up-for-two-step-verification-on-11-top-online-services/

Half-truths, as usual, Tommy. I’ll pick this topic up again, possibly serialized, but we are looking into simply publishing the results.

Your mindless recitation of Apple talking points has been invaluable. I never expected, however, that you’d exaggerate, fabricate, and dissemble so effortlessly. You are a valuable resource indeed. Thank you.

“How are you doing on proving Apple owns those factories in China...”

Apple factories in China spring up spontaneously without any input from Apple Inc., that’s what you were selling then, and after 2 months of additional research that has covered hundreds of articles, thousands of pages of corporate reports and contact with some of the writers and researchers associated with articles that you quoted and often misrepresented I have concluded that you’re a delusional Apple troll who attempts to pass off fake facts that even Apple wouldn’t dare repeat.

As I expected, Apple’s implementation of 2FA is more secure than your bank, even though you’re satisfied with the security provided by your bank, or banks, as you have so many...none of which has 2FA as impenetrable as Apple but you trust them to manage your money but not your record collection. Brilliant!

|If your bank does not provide a level of security that you are not comfortable with, than you would be well advised to move your money.

Should read: If your bank does NOT provide a level of security that you ARE comfortable with, then you would be well advised to move your money.

Two Factor Auth (2FA)
https://twofactorauth.org/

I assume that Tommy believes that nothing qualifies as 2FA unless it is precisely the form used by Apple. I’ll leave the definition of “classic” 2FA to you. Basic 2FA is simply something you know and something you have. While banks are under represented, that does not mean that they are not secure.

While Tommy was all 2FA for his music collection, he wasn’t interested in it for his bank.

“My passwords are difficult. My banks WILL call if they observe unusual activity in my accounts. If my accounts are compromised by fraudulent activity, I merely have to notify the bank with a declaration of fraud, and the money is replaced. I’m satisfied with those protection, Leonard.”
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3200299/posts?page=53#53

I do not trust Tommy with Apple facts. He prefers authoritative half-truths as I have documented in the past. In matters of financial security I would never suggest that anyone trust his “facts”.

I apologize if I misstated the level of security provided to you by Chase. If your bank does not provide a level of security that you are not comfortable with, than you would be well advised to move your money.

“You, sir, are being a snide, insulting rude ass.”

I appear to all bloviating self-deluded sociopaths as a snide, insulting rude ass. Another badge of honor my friend.

The fact is that some of the banks on your list claim to use 2FA. No one else around here checks your authoritative assertions but I do. Your argument is with Google and your banks.

You have been telling everyone how effective 2FA is and that Apple, being a pro-choice company, didn’t want to burden the general population with their advanced security features. You, however, being a crack security expert, have activated Apple’s advanced security features on iCloud so that no one will steal your “Best of Menudo” album.

And then, without any prompting, you posted bank names and claimed that you were a customer even though you claimed that none of them had the secure features that Apple provided to protect your “Backstreet Boys Golden Hits”. How smart is that?

Google your banks, big boy, and then call customer service, because while you claim none of them use 2FA, most of them would call you a liar. Maybe you have to activate it yourself, just like you did to protect your “NSYNC Gold” collection.

When I Google the banks that you and Tommy listed, they say that they do use 2FA. Maybe you both need to call your banks customer service department.

“I don’t believe you. . . I gave you a list, which includes two of the largest banks in the United States. They don’t even offer it as an option. Little boy.”

You’re a digital security expert and a classically trained economist and you keep your money in a bank that’s less secure than your music collection? You’re a piece a work big guy.