Re: [widgets] Please include a statement of purpose and user interaction expectations for <feature>

On Jun 2, 2009, at 16:02, Robin Berjon wrote:

> On Jun 2, 2009, at 14:57 , Henri Sivonen wrote:
>> Please include a corresponding UA requirement to obtain  
>> authorization from the user for the features imported with  
>> <feature>. (It seems that the security aspect requires an  
>> authorization and doesn't make sense if the dangerous feature are  
>> simply imported silently.) As far as I can tell, the spec doesn't  
>> currently explain what the UA is supposed to do with the 'feature  
>> list' once built.
>
> I don't think that that is a good idea. The purpose of <feature> is  
> to provide a hook through which a widget may communicate with a  
> security policy. What's in the security policy really isn't up to P 
> +C to define (though it certainly should be defined somewhere else).  
> Maybe it could ask the user, as you state, but maybe it could see  
> that the widget was signed by a trusted party, or know that the  
> device doesn't have any sensitive data for a given API, or maybe  
> anything goes on the full moon.


I see. The track record with Java APIs doesn't fill me with confidence  
that the Right Thing will be done, but I guess this is outside the  
scope of interop-oriented specs. (My current phone asks me every time  
Google Maps Mobile wants to use the network and doesn't allow me to  
grant the permission permanently and doesn't ask me when GMM wants to  
grab my geolocation and send it to Google.)

-- 
Henri Sivonen
hsivonen@iki.fi
http://hsivonen.iki.fi/

Received on Tuesday, 23 June 2009 10:56:10 UTC