Another Reason I Dislike Smart Phones

[JimT]

https://www.dailysignal.com/2025/01/17/ ... behaviors/

[Rexster]

Well, now I know why I suddenly started receiving calls from Allstate agents, wanting to sell me a policy, when I used a spare flip phone, for a day or two, rather than my usual iPhone. The calls came to the flip phone. I am a cautious driver, normally driving within the speed limits, especially in urban and built-up areas, and their spy network must have picked up on that.

[stretch]

I finally got a smart phone after resisting for many years. ( And I work in IT! )
The landline finally got TWICE as expensive as the cell phone service, so I finally switched.

Interesting little facts with insurance companies. Before I bought the smart phone, I would get
lots of spam calls directed towards older folks - up to 5 a day. I'm 64. When I got the "smart" phone, I kinda
accidentally on purpose forgot to update my insurance companies with my new phone #. And my utilities
and credit card companies, come to think of it ....... 2 spam calls in the last 6 months on the electronic
crib toy, neither of which I answered, and neither of which was directed toward senior citizens. Yeah, I know they'll
find me eventually, but for now I'm enjoying the peace and quiet.

My house and car insurance company also misspelled my name on the policy. They gave me a middle initial which I don't have.
I've never corrected it. But I now know where some of my junk mail originates from!

And I DO NOT take the cell phone everywhere, and limit what I do on it. Yeah, not a perfect solution, but it DOES make a difference.

The game with the cell phone is, "surveillance capitalism." Every little thing you do on the smart phone sends some information
out there for some giant corporation to exploit. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. Be careful to whom you are
giving your information! YMMV

-Stretch

[Rexster]

I know that the weather app on my iPhone must be spying on me, because it is the only app that I keep always enabled to track my location, in order to receive accurate tornado and lightning warnings. When I drive to an unusual destination, I can expect to soon receive SPAM calls that show to be coming from where I had just traveled, on a day trip.

What is truly creepy is that the “voice assistant” can also spy on us. Saying the name of a distance town, out loud, during a discussion, has caused me to suddenly start receiving SPAM calls that showed to be from that town.

It is possible to selectively enable and disable the ability of each app to track us. I hate menu-diving, so, normally just let the weather app track me.

I hope that my elderly mother lives forever, but, if/when she finally passes, I may stop carrying mobile phones.

[Pisgah]

A cell phone is first and foremost a tracking device. By that, I mean that tracking is its MAIN function, with telecommunications just a come-on to get us to voluntarily submit. I've got one,of course, but anyone who gets hooked up at least needs to know -- you are 100% giving up your privacy any time it is in your possession. A cellphone is intended as a "S&M" device -- Surveillance and Manipulation -- and it is following and directing you everywhere you go whether you are aware of it or not...

[Rockrat]

What about keeping your phone, when you travel, in a Faraday bag? Would be like turning off the phone after you disabled tracking.

[Grizz]

A cell phone is first and foremost a tracking device. By that, I mean that tracking is its MAIN function, with telecommunications just a come-on to get us to voluntarily submit. I've got one,of course, but anyone who gets hooked up at least needs to know -- you are 100% giving up your privacy any time it is in your possession. A cellphone is intended as a "S&M" device -- Surveillance and Manipulation -- and it is following and directing you everywhere you go whether you are aware of it or not...

exactly right. that is exactly what they are.

what's the alternative? ma belle likely won't be resuscitated? vhf radios are ok for small spaces, but they can also be tracked, and they have no secure comms unless they are expensive. your keyboard transmits keystrokes far enough that alphabet hackers can read them.

whisper signal allows wifi calling with secure encoded traffic point to point, but the cell towers are still tracking it. you can take the sim card out of a "phone" and still use wifi for secure comms, but you need a vpn that lets you assign a different router, say in israel, to mislead the internet trackers. and you still need wifi, say from mcdonald's, which leaves a digital calling card, even from israel.

i think the days are over when i could take a thumb drive with linux on it and reboot the library computer.....

the phone is the enemy i suppose, or the enemy enabler. we live in interesting times

p.s. faraday bags work and i use them. but when i need comms they instantly connect themselves anywhere in the world.

[JimT]

What about keeping your phone, when you travel, in a Faraday bag? Would be like turning off the phone after you disabled tracking.

Another option would be to by a couple burner phones and don't start them up until you need them. Then chuck 'em in the trash when done.

[marlinman93]

I also got forced into a smart phone and never liked it. I kept getting those stupid spam calls until I asked my granddaughter how to stop it. She asked me what I wanted to do on my phone and I told her make or receive calls, occasionally make or receive a text message, and use the camera. No apps, nothing else. She turned off everything I don't want and suddenly my phone did two things. First the battery lasted days between charging, and second the spam calls went to less than a half dozen in a year!
I like my smart phone now, and it's just fine.

[JimT]

I think your granddaughter could have an income from people like us!

[stretch]

I think Jim may have a point!

-Stretch