iPhone Faces Potential Ban in Italy Due to "Walled Garden" Software Approach

Megalith

Megalith

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The “walled garden” approach is not necessarily a bad idea, particularly from a security standpoint, but the concept may conflict with a new bill being proposed in Italy allowing users to download any software, whether proprietary or open source, on any platform. Although the ban is unlikely to actually go forward, iOS does fail to meet the expectations of the proposed law: apps can only be distributed through the App Store, and only if developers adhere to Apple's guidelines.

The bill in question, Senate Act 2484, is aimed at ensuring Italians have open access to software, content, and services. The portion of the bill potentially relevant to Apple essentially says that users should have the right to download any software, whether proprietary or open source, on any platform. Users have the right to, in an appropriate format to the required technology platform use fair and non-discriminatory software, proprietary or open source content and services of their choice.
 
A walled garden is the only safe way to handle mobile apps and even that is not 100% proof.
 
B00nie said:
A walled garden is the only safe way to handle mobile apps and even that is not 100% proof.
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I'll take the risk. Should have the freedom to do as I please so long as I accept the risk. Give me freedom or death as the saying goes.
 
Simmonz said:
I'll take the risk. Should have the freedom to do as I please so long as I accept the risk. Give me freedom or death as the saying goes.
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It's your money... I wouldn't risk it. Maybe it won't hurt you if your bank account gets steamrolled occasionally, who knows?
 
B00nie said:
It's your money... I wouldn't risk it. Maybe it won't hurt you if your bank account gets steamrolled occasionally, who knows?
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As you said, even using the app store can't be 100% safe. If something happened I wouldn't blame anybody but myself.
 
There are two types of users; us power users and everyone else. Power users have the knowledge and responsibility to use these digital devices safely. As for everyone else? Not just no but hell no. Most people wouldn't know how to use their smartphone or computers safely even if their very lives depended upon it. They just click, click, tap, and tap. You could put a window on a screen in front of them saying "I'm a virus, don't click me" and they would do it anyways. These are the people who need all the hand-holding that they can get and then some. They are entirely too ignorant (I didn't say stupid) to handle a truly open playground, they need the walled garden to keep them safe from their own ignorance.

Us power users may love our open playgrounds but for the vast majority of users that's just too much for them to handle. Look at how the Windows platform has become a virus-ridden cesspool of a platform for proof of that.

The only way computing will be safe is if we take the decisions out of the ignorant user's hands and make those decisions for them.
 
trparky said:
There are two types of users; us power users and everyone else. Power users have the knowledge and responsibility to use these digital devices safely. As for everyone else? Not just no but hell no. Most people wouldn't know how to use their smartphone or computers safely even if their very lives depended upon it. They just click, click, tap, and tap. You could put a window on a screen in front of them saying "I'm a virus, don't click me" and they would do it anyways. These are the people who need all the hand-holding that they can get and then some. They are entirely too ignorant (I didn't say stupid) to handle a truly open playground, they need the walled garden to keep them safe from their own ignorance.

Us power users may love our open playgrounds but for the vast majority of users that's just too much for them to handle. Look at how the Windows platform has become a virus-ridden cesspool of a platform for proof of that.

The only way computing will be safe is if we take the decisions out of the ignorant user's hands and make those decisions for them.
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I agree with you. I have a wife and 2 kids that are totally ignorant about computing safety. My wife is annoyed I took away sys admin access on her computer from her and won't let her log onto mine. Why did I do this? Tired of fixing her computer, find malware, etc. Several years ago she had like 3 or 4 "search bars" on her browser. Reason? She installed coupon printers and clicked the "OK" button without even reading anything.
It is annoying when I have to type in my password to authorize updates and install occasional software. However, I spend a lot less time fixing the computers than I used to. Scale this up to the general population, it's no wonder we have the computer security issues we are seeing.
 
B00nie said:
It's your money... I wouldn't risk it. Maybe it won't hurt you if your bank account gets steamrolled occasionally, who knows?
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Or their nude photos get sent all over the world........................................ oh wait sorry, that inside of Apple's safe and secure garden. :oops:
 
DarkStar_WNY said:
Or their nude photos get sent all over the world........................................ oh wait sorry, that inside of Apple's safe and secure garden. :oops:
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No, that wasn't.

That was someone guessing passwords and got someone else's log in.
 
Trimlock said:
No, that wasn't.

That was someone guessing passwords and got someone else's log in.
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Just guessing a password? Or did Apple's software allow unlimited guesses so virtually anyone could use a simple brute force attempt to access an account, which someone did and gained access to huge number of accounts?
 
DarkStar_WNY said:
Just guessing a password? Or did Apple's software allow unlimited guesses so virtually anyone could use a simple brute force attempt to access an account, which someone did and gained access to huge number of accounts?
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That still has nothing to do with their walled garden.
 
Love how governments think they can dictate how a company develops its products. Apple could just as easily tell them to piss off and pull products from there.
 
DarkStar_WNY said:
Or their nude photos get sent all over the world........................................ oh wait sorry, that inside of Apple's safe and secure garden. :oops:
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That's through plain old hacked user accounts and not through infected apps. They managed to get around the protections by social engineering the support. With android you're also in the risk of losing your privacy along with your money through infected apps found (where else) directly in the android store. Thanks for reminding that also. A fake game app or addon can turn your phone into a spy device that secretly records everything you do and makes calls to toll phone numbers silently while at it.

You guys are exposing yourselfs to huge risks.
 
Having much experience with Italians (real ones, not Americans pretending to be Italian) and their legal system, I can say that someone thinks they can make some easy quiet money out of this.
 
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