I have degoogled but I find myself missing Google Wallet/Pay despite it being the worst spyware there is. I would like to have both my bus pass and card available on my phone in case I ever get stranded with out either. I’ve found this app but when trying to emulate a MiFare Classic, it emulated a MiFare Plus and when attempting to emulate a Visa or MasterCard, it just errors out and says to please insert the card.
I presume I need some sort of sniffer hardware like a Proxmark3 to get as much data off the cards as possible, though I’m not really sure how to get the data from there to an emulator on my phone with the intention of out and about.
Please only reply with genuine answers. Any shit about ToS or poor security etc. will be ignored.
How is Google wallet the worst spyware? I’m not aware of anything particularly nefarious it’s doing
By paying with Google wallet, Google knows exactly what you bought, at which store, and even at what time.
No they don’t. They know how much you spent, when and where. They have no idea what you bought, except it’s something that is traded at wherever location.
You have to realise that it’s easier to believe “Google is spying on your card usage” than actually doing any research or understanding how the technology works. This is the internet after all.
Google’s Gemini AI says they know the details of the transactions. The link Google provided as a source was this which says they collect your data:
https://support.google.com/googlepay/answer/10223752?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid#zippy=%2Cinfo-that-google-wallet-may-collect
They still don’t get a list of items you bought. Is running a request for payment, it’s not billing a list of stuff.
Okay but how is it spyware
The dictionary definition:
“software that enables a user to obtain covert information about another’s computer activities by transmitting data covertly from their hard drive.”
Just because a program tells you it’s collecting your data in the fine print doesn’t mean it’s not spyware.
Is it covert if you know it’s happening and have agreed to it?