Forums » Privacy Browser Android Forum »
WebView Telemetry
Added by B DuBois 2 months ago
I saw this reddit post:
Is it true? Does the default Android System WebView have its own telemetry? Thank you.
Post below:
Per my https://divestos.org/index.php?page=browsers#webview
These browsers must be combined with an up to date WebView provider to be secure.
If you are on stock/OEM version of Android or have Google Apps installed, you are likely using the Google/Chrome WebView with extra telemetry.
Replies (2)
RE: WebView Telemetry - Added by Soren Stoutner 2 months ago
WebView does have some built-in telemetry, which they call metrics.
https://developer.android.com/develop/ui/views/layout/webapps/managing-webview#metrics
However, an app can disable it with an entry in the manifest, which Privacy Browser Android does.
Depending on how it is implemented, it is possible that Google can also track you if you are using the Safe Browsing Service.
https://developer.android.com/develop/ui/views/layout/webapps/managing-webview#safe-browsing
As the documentation on exactly what Google is doing is nonexistent, and as it is almost certain that Google is abusing their "Safe Browsing" Service to spy on users, Privacy Browser Android disables it as well.
RE: WebView Telemetry - Added by ask low 2 months ago
Also. The Divest OS page that you're viewing, is outdated. Here's the issue that accounts for the modifications
https://gitlab.com/divested-mobile/divestos-website/-/issues/10