how bad are text expanders? (textpand)
from birdcat@lemmy.ml to privacy@lemmy.ml on 02 Mar 07:32
https://lemmy.ml/post/26633434

ive been using expandroid, but sadly it stoped working for the stuff i most need it for.

now i found texpandapp(.)com. its really nice cuz it works my browser and note taking app.

most home calling can be stopped via dns blocking i guess (?), but it still has those questionable permissions:

how bad is all of that? keylogger-level bad?

(cannot block all internet access, bad phone and the vpn slot is occupied)

edit: turns out split tunnelling with “block all connections without vpn” does the job, nice.

#privacy

threaded - newest

Xanza@lemm.ee on 02 Mar 07:51 next collapse

These applications have to read everything you type to be able to see if the expansion trigger is being used. They are quite literally keyloggers.

They may be nice, but you’re essentially letting the application read everything you type. Including passwords, social security numbers, anything…

Any type of network access here is unacceptable.

birdcat@lemmy.ml on 02 Mar 08:05 collapse

thanks, kinda thought so, gonna use netguard when using it, more important than the vpn

Flagstaff@programming.dev on 02 Mar 15:35 collapse

Rethink is better than NetGuard.

freijon@lemmings.world on 02 Mar 12:22 next collapse

I know you’re probably referring to mobile apps. However, I only use a text expander on Desktop, where I can recommend espanso. It’s FOSS and doesn’t connect anywhere (unless you tell it to). I wouldn’t trust a non-open app that can read everything I type.

Flagstaff@programming.dev on 02 Mar 15:37 collapse

Ha, I just made !espanso@programming.dev recently!

Flagstaff@programming.dev on 02 Mar 15:37 collapse

Why do you use a separate Android app with all of those hostile permissions instead of the built-in personal dictionary and its shortcuts? I have thousands of shorthand lines in Android’s personal dictionary, like wdyl = what do you like (type the first part and the second part appears in the autocorrect pane for you to touch if you want).

birdcat@lemmy.ml on 02 Mar 18:11 collapse

i dont seem to have that function. anyway cannot rly see the harm with that app and the vpn block solution.

Flagstaff@programming.dev on 02 Mar 18:48 collapse

Your Android device doesn’t have a personal dictionary section in the Language & Input page? What phone do you have? Yeah, keeping it offline is probably fine, but I’m just surprised since this has been a thing for at least 7 Android versions now, as far as I know.

By the way, HeliBoard (an offline fork of the now-defunct OpenBoard) seems to have its own private, built-in personal dictionary; I migrated to that since finding out.