So like... most b2c apps out there? I checked app privacy report for a few such apps I have installed and also got a very high proportion of third party domains. Maybe not as high as 77% but definitely above 50% (ie. more domains are third party than first party). The most surprising part here is them refusing to put correct info in the "data collected" section of the app store listing.
edit: they seemed to have updated the store listing, so the "data collected" section is correct.
iterateoften•1h ago
A government app being built like b2c is exactly the problem
gruez•48m ago
I'm sure that HN's preferred app would be <5MB, and has zero third party SDKs or telemetry, but half a dozen SDKs and third party domains is basically most mass market apps these days. Is it bad? Yes, but the whitehouse isn't being egregiously bad, but "whitehouse app is bad, just like most other apps" isn't going to get clicks.
aplummer•32m ago
See gov.uk for a good example
SV_BubbleTime•29m ago
Oh, sorry you missed Exlir and WASM, and rust and programming socks of course. Half credit.
abustamam•28m ago
"everything else sucks too" is not a great defense for the US govt.
gruez•22m ago
If only. It would be a far better state of of affairs if the US government sucks like every other first world country. No other first country are waging war in the middle east, having paramilitary forces terrorize residents, or are undergoing a partial government shutdown.
tr_user•58m ago
Are you also the type of person who thinks the government should be run like a business?
jmalicki•55m ago
The government should outsource way more of their traffic to third parties than a business should, since the government is inefficient, right?
amazingman•52m ago
Poe's Law strikes again. I legitimately can't tell if this is sarcasm.
gruez•53m ago
No. Stop putting words in my mouth.
mattbuilds•47m ago
No one put words in your mouth, they asked you a question. You are the one who made the initial comparison to B2C apps, so it seems like a fair question to me. Your comment implies that its standard and the app isn't doing anything out of the ordinary when I think most people would except an official government app to be held to a higher standard than the average B2C app.
gruez•43m ago
>You are the one who made the initial comparison to B2C apps, so it seems like a fair question to me.
The relevant part of B2C is the 2C part, not the B. Mass market apps are generally ridden with telemetry and SDKs. Moreover I'm not sure how you think it's a "fair question" to go from a remark about how other apps are equally bad, to thinking I want the US government to operate as a business. It's like doing:
A: "I called the IRS and was put on hold for 2 hours, can you believe that?"
B: "To be fair that's the experience calling into most businesses, like banks or the cable company"
A: "Wow so you think we should be running the IRS like a bank?"
>I think most people would except an official government app to be held to a higher standard than the average B2C app.
Is this a "yes, in an ideal world that's how things should be" type of statement, or are you claiming "yes, government agencies have a track record of delivering technical excellence on software projects, and this particular project was especially bad"? The former is basically a meaningless platitude, and I don't think anyone seriously thinks the latter is true.
ryandrake•24m ago
Ok, so then it just sounds like whataboutism. Those other apps are just as bad. The tone of your original post sounded like you were defending the app's bad behavior. A lot of people might have mistaken your intent, which you clarified in [1].
The flip side of "whataboutism" is "isolated demands for rigor"[1]. Going back to the IRS example, is it a fair retort to point out that IRS's hotline only sucks as much as any other large organization's hotline, or is it "whataboutism"?
Are you also the type of person who thinks the government isn't being run like a business everywhere in the world?
If so, why do you think lobbying exists?
I'm not saying it should be run like a business, but it is naive to think it isn't run like one.
nkozyra•30m ago
> If so, why do you think lobbying exists?
Specifically because it's not a natural market. There are people who secure a 2-year, consequence-free term to impact U.S. law, at the behest of people with money.
Lobbying is special interests dictating decisions that often are not financially, morally, or otherwise ideal/beneficial to the other party (the United States and its people). This wouldn't fly at any corporation or business because there would be direct impacts on the bottom line or reputation of the company.
refulgentis•53m ago
Right, the White House is collecting data and sending it to Huawei, and overall collection rate is worse than any other app you’ve seen by a wide margin.
That makes me net more surprised after reading your comment.
You're not surprised the white house is worse than any other app you've seen by 20%?
gruez•1h ago
edit: they seemed to have updated the store listing, so the "data collected" section is correct.
iterateoften•1h ago
gruez•48m ago
aplummer•32m ago
SV_BubbleTime•29m ago
abustamam•28m ago
gruez•22m ago
tr_user•58m ago
jmalicki•55m ago
amazingman•52m ago
gruez•53m ago
mattbuilds•47m ago
gruez•43m ago
The relevant part of B2C is the 2C part, not the B. Mass market apps are generally ridden with telemetry and SDKs. Moreover I'm not sure how you think it's a "fair question" to go from a remark about how other apps are equally bad, to thinking I want the US government to operate as a business. It's like doing:
A: "I called the IRS and was put on hold for 2 hours, can you believe that?"
B: "To be fair that's the experience calling into most businesses, like banks or the cable company"
A: "Wow so you think we should be running the IRS like a bank?"
>I think most people would except an official government app to be held to a higher standard than the average B2C app.
Is this a "yes, in an ideal world that's how things should be" type of statement, or are you claiming "yes, government agencies have a track record of delivering technical excellence on software projects, and this particular project was especially bad"? The former is basically a meaningless platitude, and I don't think anyone seriously thinks the latter is true.
ryandrake•24m ago
1: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47596187
gruez•13m ago
The flip side of "whataboutism" is "isolated demands for rigor"[1]. Going back to the IRS example, is it a fair retort to point out that IRS's hotline only sucks as much as any other large organization's hotline, or is it "whataboutism"?
[1] https://slatestarcodex.com/2014/08/14/beware-isolated-demand...
neya•47m ago
If so, why do you think lobbying exists?
I'm not saying it should be run like a business, but it is naive to think it isn't run like one.
nkozyra•30m ago
Specifically because it's not a natural market. There are people who secure a 2-year, consequence-free term to impact U.S. law, at the behest of people with money.
Lobbying is special interests dictating decisions that often are not financially, morally, or otherwise ideal/beneficial to the other party (the United States and its people). This wouldn't fly at any corporation or business because there would be direct impacts on the bottom line or reputation of the company.
refulgentis•53m ago
That makes me net more surprised after reading your comment.
You're not surprised the white house is worse than any other app you've seen by 20%?
gruez•42m ago
???
commoner•40m ago
dwattttt•21m ago
longislandguido•5m ago