Security by allowing Permissions?

[JK_MAN]

I'm a new Android tablet user - recently picked up the Asus Transformer 101 (for $299 from Best Buy!)

Does everyone feel OK allowing all the permissions as you download popular apps, such as Netflix (below)? I feel like I'm giving the vendor a free look at everthing I'm doing, emailing, apps running, files saved.
What gives? Is this standard, and is there a way to block all these permissions and still use the app properly?
What security risks am I opening myself too? (all apps I've downloaded seem to require you to allow all these permisions!?)
Thanks in advance for any replies/thoughts!

Permissions (for Netflix app)
This application has access to the following:
Network communication
full Internet access
Allows an application to create network sockets.
Your personal information
read sensitive log data
Allows an application to read from the system's various log files. This allows it to discover general information about what you are doing with the device, potentially including personal or private information.
Phone calls
read phone state and identity
Allows the application to access the phone features of the device. An application with this permission can determine the phone number and serial number of this phone, whether a call is active, the number that call is connected to and the like.
Storage
modify/delete USB storage contents modify/delete SD card contents
Allows an application to write to the USB storage. Allows an application to write to the SD card.
System tools
prevent device from sleeping
Allows an application to prevent the device from going to sleep.
retrieve running applications
Allows application to retrieve information about currently and recently running tasks. May allow malicious applications to discover private information about other applications.
Show all
Network communication
view network state
Allows an application to view the state of all networks.
view Wi-Fi state
Allows an application to view the information about the state of Wi-Fi.

:-\

 

[mcdan333]

Re: ?? Security by allowing Permissions ??

It does sometimes bother me, and I have in the past uninstalled apps due to what I considered intrusive permissions.

However, since I have rooted my device and installed an open-source Android build (cyanogenmod 7), there is a better way. CM7 allows you to selectively disable permissions for individual applications. Some apps will croak on this, some will just raise an error and continue with reduced functionality, but some will carry on just fine with certain permissions disabled. You can find advice on rooting and installing CM7 elsewhere in these forums.

 

[JK_MAN]

Re: ?? Security by allowing Permissions ??

Thanks mcdan.
I'm using a new BlackBerry Bold for work, and get to choose what permissions to grant on each app download - and can block types of info each app wants to have access to. It sounds like CM7 allows you to do something similar. ?
Is CM7 an OS you run in place of Honeycomb (or ICS)?

I'll search the forum for more on this.
JK

 

[CDot]

Re: ?? Security by allowing Permissions ??

Is there any way to selectively disable certain permissions in stock ICS (without having to root)? I don't really feel like rooting/installing custom ROM, but will seriously consider if there's no way to do it.

*this is my first Android device; had a blackberry for the past 4.5 years

 

[Ed_Strong]

Re: ?? Security by allowing Permissions ??

Im in the same boat... had BBs for 4 years and now and found it great that I could deny permssions on aps, but now on my new 4G Touch I cant control the permissions only allow them, very frustrating!

 

[wkjex1]

I'm in the same boat. I switched from an iPhone to the Samsung Note and I've had 2 credit cards compromised since switching to an Android 2 months ago. I've deleted a bunch of apps from my phone and I'm not excited about rooting this because I just don't have time to manage it all, but I'm very upset about what I'm reading about google and these phones. I love the Note. I realize that Carrier IQ was installed on the iPhone, as well, but I never had trouble with security.

Are there any softwares out there that can tame what these applications have access to? It boggles my mind that absolutely everyone of them has access to my contacts, etc.

What are these developers doing with all this data? Do iPhone apps have access to as much data? Are the developers collecting the stuff they have access to in databases?

Unhappy android user.

 

[AndroidLifeStyle]

Yes iphones work in the same manner, but are inspected by apple before hitting the apple market, the thing is the android market is open to anyone who can develope an app! with that said thats why the feature the permissions before you download because Google doesnt exactly watch what goes up like they should, dont be intimidated by rooting! it is quite simple and takes no management and end the end will actually make your device safer, plus the big perk, you can stay on 4.0, i happen to have an app that allows you to change permission for my X2 and is quite nice to be able to override what krooked corporate companies are after

If you have a youtube account, sub and ill have a video up tomorrow showing how and where to aquire, the rooting is something you must ponder while you sleep
AndroidLifeStyle's Channel - YouTube

 

[Rukbat]

Most permissions are just the app needing something that Android "feels" you should be notified about. For instance, an app to monitor your data usage has to be able to see your data usage. It doesn't monitor everything you do on a data connection, it just counts bytes. (It could - like CIQ - log everything you do and "phone home", but that nonsense is caught pretty early and you'd hear about it. Like we heard about CIQ.) It's more a matter of Android being written to consider almost anything but keyboard and screen access somehow "sneaky".

Of course if you download a map app and it wants access to your contacts, that's suspicious, but if a contact app wants access to your contacts, that's normal.