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Facebook's "Hello" Tells You Who's Calling Before You Pick Up

Posted by samzenpus on from the who-is-it? dept.

Mark Wilson writes: When you receive a call you'll usually see the number of the caller, but this may not be helpful in identifying them before you decide whether to pick up. Facebook's answer to this problem is Hello. This new app comes from the Facebook Messenger team and aims to tell you more about the person getting in touch with you even if you don't have their number saved in your address book. Currently available for Android, the dialer app also allows for the blocking of calls from individuals.

9 of 78 comments (clear)

  1. Caller ID by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Innovative!

    1. Re:Caller ID by Zaelath · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Even better than that, it's the same "we'll google the number and put up a name" feature built into recent Android builds anyway.. but with "Facebook" instead of "Google". Given their usual rigour, it will probably work acceptably in 30% of cases in the continental US and be worthless outside of that.

      I guess there's a point to the "1532 have blocked this number" except that ALL the people you want to block come from undisclosed numbers/PABX/skype anyway, so ... meh.

      Plus, it has the added bonus of feeding back the phone number of everyone that ever calls you to Facebook, because you know, they're not far enough up your ass now.

  2. One more reason to abandon FB by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Once again, your identity is being used in ways you didn't approve. Now when you call a business or a non-personal contact -- they'll know all about you.

  3. Back to the future by jtara · · Score: 1, Insightful

    When you receive a call you'll usually see the number of the caller, but this may not be helpful in identifying them before you decide whether to pick up.

    What kind of obsolete phone have you been using?

    1. Re:Back to the future by gstoddart · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Have you been paying attention lately?

      The scammers and spammers have started making the call display look like a number which is similar to the one they're calling. The first six digits the same as your own number.

      I wouldn't trust the call display at all, because it's pretty much fake unless you know exactly who is calling. Because the corporations who started off using these call centers got exemptions to be able to spoof it, caller ID is now almost essentially useless.

      Of course, I'd trust Facefuck to be on my phone about as far as I could throw Zuckerburg, because I know damned well they're a bunch of greedy assholes I don't trust at all.

      --
      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    2. Re:Back to the future by Zero__Kelvin · · Score: 3, Insightful

      "It doesn't work on an iPhone, third party apps aren't allowed to steal information from you typically on iOS where as that is on by default on Android and its completely acceptable to steal your data."

      That is by far the most ridiculous thing I have read all month.

      --
      Guns don't kill people; Physics kills people! - John Lithgow as Dick Solomon on Third Rock From The Sun
  4. Ship. Sailed. by rmdingler · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Caller ID itself has taken a sharp face plant, IMHO, what with the ability of telemarketers to disguise their true origins with a local cover number. It's possible the Facebook has maximized its ability to innovate, and this is all that's left to go on about.

    --
    Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.

    Ernest Hemingway

  5. Hello, I want the history of your phone calls by NotInHere · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This is nothing more than facebook wanting phone call data. The advantage for users is almost nonexistent. Its the modern way of stealing (or as they put it in their shiny presentations "harvesting") data.

  6. Facebook tells you all right by kuzb · · Score: 3, Insightful

    But not before storing this metadata along with your present location and any other personal information they can get you to give them access to.

    When will people learn?

    --
    BeauHD. Worst editor since kdawson.