Re: [presentation-api] [Question] Why does the spec require a browser to select the presentation device (#526)

I'd say a major reason is fingerprinting. Giving access to the list of presentation displays would reveal too many bits of information about the user's context. I believe enumeration of devices in the case of the Media Capture and Streams API is only possible once capture of audio/video has already started (meaning when user has already granted permission about microphone and camera usage).

The Presentation API still allows web pages to assess whether there is a presentation display (and notes the underlying fingerprinting consequence under [Personally Identifiable Information](https://www.w3.org/TR/presentation-api/#personally-identifiable-information)).

The spec notes another reason under [Device Access](https://www.w3.org/TR/presentation-api/#device-access): "The Presentation API requires user permission for a page to access any display to mitigate issues that could arise, such as showing unwanted content on a display viewable by others".

The [Window Management API](https://www.w3.org/TR/window-management/) could perhaps be a better fit for multi-screen scenarios and allows to get detailed information about screens used by the user's device.

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Received on Monday, 6 January 2025 08:59:53 UTC