RSSReport: Android will also come with a kill switch
By Tim Conneally | Published October 16, 2008, 3:26 PM
Google's Android Marketplace carries a warning that Google has the power to remotely remove applications that violate the developer distribution agreement, putting the G1 on par with the iPhone at least in the kill switch department.
In August, attention was brought to a blacklist for unauthorized applications located in the iPhone's CoreLocation API -- a blacklist that is tied to a remote "kill switch" for malicious programs. The existence of such a kill switch was later confirmed by Steve Jobs himself to The Wall Street Journal.
The same thing has just happened with Google's Android Marketplace. But the difference this time is that the possible kill switch didn't have to be unearthed by an engineer, but rather was found by IDG News reporter Nancy Gohring, looking through the Android Market Terms of Service. These terms will be offered in more or less plain view to all users in the "About Device" tab when the first Android Phone goes on sale next Wednesday.
From the terms of service: "Google may discover a product that violates the developer distribution agreement ... in such an instance, Google retains the right to remotely remove those applications from your device at its sole discretion."
This refers only to software obtained through the Android Market, and not through any other means, such as mobile app store Handango, which will also be selling Android apps.
I will never buy anything with a kill switch....
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|What the GD hale is toolie talking about on this entire page?! Is there any way I can add the idiot toolie to my kill list here on BetaNews?
http://www.flamewarriors...warriorshtm/nitpick.htm
He wouldn't be so bad if he ever knew what he was talking about. But he reminds me of my 82-year old neighbor who stumbles and fumbles his words, and then sporatically yells three words in the middle of every other sentence.
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|All flame and no substance. Typical...
If you think my comments are only "marginally relevant" to the topic, what do you consider yours?
Do your reality blinders really work *that* well?
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|actually, skimore, I think the operative term here is "malicious". They don't want any apps that might harm or otherwise make the network unstable like, say... Windows mobile... I think that's why people accept it. Because it's smarter and better.
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|WTF!
My car's gas inlet has a restrictor plate that makes it difficult for me to put jello into the tank! And its far too small to allow me to wiz into it.
And I just discovered that my shoes are restricted and I can only put each of them on one foot and they eliminate MY CHOICE of which shoe I want to wear on which foot I want to wear it!
Those #%$@%#* @ssholes!
I'm p!ssed!
LOL!
What a bunch of weenies.
If you don't like it, use some of that prodigious intelligence you folks so successfully keep hidden, and DON'T BUY IT!
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|"My car's gas inlet has a restrictor plate that makes it difficult for me to put jello into the tank! And its far too small to allow me to wiz into it."
Difficult, but not impossible :)
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|yawn.....
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|Android v1
iPhone v2
WM v6.1
just like all software.. does it really matter what version it's on???
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|ummm.... I have over 100 apps on my iPhone and over 600 in my computer library and none were downloaded through the Apple App store...
Im sure you've never heard of Installer and Cydia too? lol
btw... There is an easy download for the iPhone that simply disables the kill switch if you're that paranoid about it...
Note that Blackberries have the exact same kill switch too...this is nothing new.
Dont get your panties in a twist about nothing...
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|*laughing*
I notice how you conveniently "forgot" to mention those are for "jailbroken" (Hacked) iPhones...
*shakes head*
If the iPhone is so great, why do you have to hack it to get it to work the way you want it to?
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|Alright, why are you plappering into the smartphone channel?
Last I heard you just got your 1st regular cell phone a few weeks back... ;-)
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|I guess for the same reason as people gotta uninstall windows and use linux, cause they don't like the way it came, but they like the hardware and want it to play how they want it to.
Same reason people hack wm so they can install their, appz, or blackberry. People will always want what they can't have. The general public is fine with what they have, its use few who want more. Why is it so hard to believe, or realize that there is nothing wrong with it.
As for a iPhone, you really can't trash the iPhone until you have had one. I have played with one and liked it a lot, the OS is considerably better then any other I have had the honor of playing with. Is it a swiss army knife that can do everything no. But it sure can do most everything people want, it's sleek and sexy.
Why is this so hard to understand. Why do I hack my Wii and Xbox to play old video games, why not just leave it unmodified. Why cause it isn't the greatest and I want it to do what i want it to do.
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|Yeah, it's awesome. It makes phone calls, man....from anywhere.
Now get off my lawn.
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|Way to miss the point.
He was generalizing using the exception as the rule.
I know *he* doesn't know any better, but you?
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|Everyone knows that dimwit...
And are you too dumb to make things how you want them instead of how they come from the factory?
By your childish response I can only suppose you use a Razor or something similar...lol
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|See below for some laughable entertainment from our local monkey...hahaha
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|They are running BN of a server you keep on your lawn? Well at least I know where to take my dog going forward....
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|No, childish would be name-calling.
Everyone knows that dimwit...
See below for some laughable entertainment from our local monkey.
Good to see you got that out of the way quickly.
I'll make it simple for you:
The great majority of iPhone users don't hack their phones. These people's only options for apps are those offered via the AppStore. The kill-switch affects *all* apps they can load on their phone.
Android users will have multiple repositories available to them *without* hacking the phone, the kill-switch *only* affects those using the Android Marketplace.
And are you too dumb to make things how you want them instead of how they come from the factory?
Void the warranty on a $200 device? Yeah...that's the *smart* thing to do.
Buy a device that actually does what you want it to do without modification? Nah...that's apparently the *dumb* thing to do.
Pure. Comic. Genius.
I can only suppose you use a Razor or something similar
Nope. Bland, generic, off the shelf phone that makes and receives calls. I don't need it to do anything else, why would I pay for it?
Because it's "Cool"?
*laughs*
That stopped being a reason to buy things around 10th grade, thanks.
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|Pretty pointless.
Any app offered through the Android Marketplace can be gotten from elsewhere and thus be completely immune to the "kill switch".
This means that it is *hardly* "On par" with the iPhone's AppStore. (being as that is the *only* place to get apps for the iPhone)
This is nothing. Just avoid the Android Marketplace until the "fix" that little tidbit.
(What did they do to my iGoogle!!!! Those bas****s! Tabs on the *LEFT*???!?! Talk about wasted space.... No way to return it to the old default (Tabs on top). Booo! Seriously considering switching homepages now. Google just lost a user.)
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|iGoogle!? Come on now, give me a break!
Re tabs - I haven't seen this one but with hardly any non-wide format screen on the market I find tons of tool bars and ribbons on top just as lame.
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|Feh...
I have a widescreen monitor. I use it so I can have multiple full windows open at the same time and see them all. I just *lost* the right-most column in iGoogle thanks to this asinine new layout.
The *least* they could have done was *add* the functionality, not *replace* it.
(Now taking suggestions for new "AJAX" "start" pages)
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|Big Brother....
What the H**.. M$ could NEVER get away with this feature.. People FREAKOUT on the windows updates now these same people accept apple and google for doing it.
I have a WM 6.0 phone w/ AV and a bunch of apps.
Google is making a HUGE miskate!!!
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|Google is making no mistake whatsoever. Imagine Google putting an application on their market place that, say, change the background based on the week of day. Now the developer of the application has put in it some functionality that allows them to listen (and watch) what the user is doing when they want.
When Google finds out, they want to reserve the right _and_ the ability to kill such application. Since you bought it through them, they have some liability and therefore they do need the ability to nuke such rogue application...
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|Skimore, you running any unsigned applications. I doubt it, you have to install hacks to allow you to run unsigned applications. So technically Microsoft did it before you got the software! They simply won't allow some programs to get signed example most emulators for nes/snes can't get signed. Which means you must use hacks to install and run the application.
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