biketom5

I have been using Strava for a few years now and I am not experiencing the same things that you are. I am using an iPhone X and under Settings I have most everything activated/allowed except Location, which is only active while I am using the app.

whipnet

Does the friend you had to create an account for have the same friends as you? Maybe it's your friend's friends and Strava assumes you know them too.
I've personally have never seen this pop-up on Strava. I also have never joined Facebook.

*

msu2001la

I'm super confused by this response, because your previous post literally states "their heat maps were revealing the locations of secret military basis" and links an article from Wired that includes the headline "The end of secrets" and includes the statement "anyone can identify secretive military bases and patrol routes based on public data shared".

It's not until halfway through the Wired article that they state what should have been made obvious: "bases pointed out by researchers and journalists had already been previously revealed through other public sources."

The reality is that no base locations were "revealed" by Strava. You can find all of these military bases on Google Maps already. Their locations are well known, not secret.

MinnMan

You stated that the stories ALL claimed the following

Show me one example that (a) says that Strava was doing this in secret and (b) that the tracking was contrary to said individuals permission.

Steeler_fanatic

Below is from the Strava website.

How does Strava access my contacts and how do I prevent access to my contacts

• Address Book
  • You can give Strava access to your address book for social connections via the Find Friends page. You have the option to sync your address book on this page during account creation or at any point after your account has been created. After you choose to connect your address book, we continue to sync your contacts regularly to be able to provide you with up to date recommendations.
  • You can remove your address book connections from further syncing and storage by Strava by visiting the Contacts Permission menu from the Settings Page in the mobile app.
• Facebook Connections
  • You can give Strava access to your Facebook connections via the Find Friends page or by creating a Strava account by using your Facebook account. In either case, you are giving permission for Strava to access your friends list and connect you with your Facebook friends who are on Strava and have also connected their Facebook accounts.
  • If you wish to disconnect your Facebook account, and consequently your connections, you can do so by logging in to https://www.strava.com/settings/profile and clicking disconnect on the right-hand side of the page.
• Gmail Contacts
  • If you choose to use your gmail.com account via Strava to send invitations to your contacts, Strava will only use that information to send invitations on your behalf and will not use it for other purposes.

ridesoldtrek

Full Disclosure: I have not read every reply. Someone may have proposed this.
It could be that someone who has you in their contacts list is a Strava user, and has allowed Strava to use their contacts (unless there's no opt-out), and Strava is using that to connect the two of you.

This happened to me. I have free Strava. A recent business associate (who is not in my contacts, and with whom I have NO electronic record: facebook, linkedin, ANYTHING, etc. except for confidential professional emails between us) recently joined strava. Strava sends me an email: Do you know RJ? Creepy, there is NO way Strava could know that I know RJ from my electronic footprint, unless I am in RJ's contact list. Turns out this is the case, and RJ was even more freaked out by it because RJ is a medical professional, and our business connection is highly confidential.

So BEWARE

ridesoldtrek

Based on my experience, this is the default setting.

msu2001la

Oh, I see. Yes, the claim of secret tracking was an exaggeration on my part, which I assumed was obvious.

I think my overall point is pretty clear: Strava did not reveal the locations of secret military bases which is something you directly stated, and something the Wired story you linked strongly implies. The Wired story is like most others that were written on this topic, with an outlandish headline about secrets being revealed when that isn't actually the case.

SpeedyBlueBiker

I'm not on Strava and plan to stay that way. Other than Facebook, I'm not on any other social network platform including linkedin.

MinnMan

Yup. Your exaggerations and assumptions are benign. Any similarities to the accusations that you level are not material.

stephr1

And how do we know they don't? Advertising and email/contact culling are marketing tools and some of the biggest revenue generators available to sites like this. Not that it's a bad thing if it keeps a a non-profit(?) alive.

stephr1

There is no such thing as bad PR.

canklecat

We're tracked in many ways. If you and RJ have exchanged emails using Gmail, Outlook (or the older Hotmail, which I still use), etc., those are scanned for data to push ads and other connections. Signing up for Strava may have triggered connections that were already made to push the social networking aspect of Strava.

Some folks set up standalone accounts with Strava, using unique passwords. But I'd bet most of us use our existing Facebook and Google logins for convenience -- and because many of us enjoy the social networking aspect. Signing up for Strava using our Facebook or Google accounts helps data trackers confirm clues to our identities and personal or professional connections.

This is how we pay for all those "free" services -- email, social networks, physical activity tools, etc. Ideally if we paid for subscriptions the services would offer more privacy and protection from intrusive ads. In actual practice, most sites and utilities offer more features to paying subscribers, but don't cut back on data harvesting or ads at all.

Cyclemeter may be the most private activity app for cyclists/runners, etc., but I see from checking their website just now that they're offering more integration with social networking. But as long as it's optional and they aren't forcing it by making sharing the default, that's okay.

Pearson100

I don't think Strava has necesssarily harvested *your* personal information. If you follow some of your friends, then Strava might list *their* followers as friends/people you might know. And in that list, some of your friends pop up in Strava.

prj71

Nothing creepy about it.

If you started following your friend to see his ride then Strava will suggest people within his circle of Strava Friends that you may or may not know. Same way Facebook works.

Besides... you are here on this forum. Does that creep you out?

autonomy

It's very creepy and big tech has been getting much better at it. Do a search on Google for anything that can be sold to you (like a product or a service). Then go on Instagram and see what kinds of ads you get - two completely different companies and platforms, but almost instantaneously the ads will uncannily reflect your search. One time, I clicked on an ad on Instagram while scrolling, and a few hours later the company - which I've never heard of before - sent me a promotional email! And Instagram says they don't share details like that with advertisers... yeah, I don't believe it.

Here's the main landing page to manage what Facebook knows about you: https://www.facebook.com/your_inform...and_businesses
Some picks:
See which 3rd-party sites shared your activity with Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/off_facebook_activity/
What Facebook thinks you're interested in: https://www.facebook.com/adpreferenc...tion_about_you
Advertisers who uploaded a contact list with your information: https://www.facebook.com/adpreferenc...tion_about_you
This last one is fantastic. Basically, everyone you ever bought anything from will share all your info with advertisers in order to show ads and sell more stuff to you: Advertisers can upload lists or use lists that other advertisers have uploaded to show you or exclude you from seeing ads. Lists can contain contact information, for example, an email address or phone number, that is hashed so that Facebook does not learn any new identifying information about you. Lists can also contain advertising identifiers instead of contact information. Information from lists is matched against our existing list of users. The identity of matched users is not revealed to the advertiser during the matching process.

Yup, all they need is a one-way connection. Facebook is known to have been creating 'ghost' profiles for people before they ever joined. Instagram, at some point, may have based their 'this person is also on instagram' suggestions based on location proximity.