> It only asks for harmless permission, install it!
Not true. It lists all the permissions being requested. Sure the scrollbar issue is real and should be an easy fix.
I don't understand why people are so confused about permissions. If the user grants your extension permission to read your browsing history so it can provide value to them, why is that a problem? It's not. The problem is if the user grants a malicious extension the same permission because the extension is fraudulent. The author said this extension would never pass chrome store review, so it seems that the user would never be in this position in the first place and your example doesn't really match reality.
>I don't understand why people are so confused about permissions.
I don't understand why people (read: devs) still assume permissions are read and understood.
The vast majority of people simply do not read nor understand permissions and just instantly hit the OK button. Even Linus from LinusTechTips doesn't read permissions, and he's even a tech guru unlike most people.
So hopefully the Chrome store review process is the nanny they need.
The only thing that has permission to read and modify website data on my browsers is my password manager. I trust it. Without that permission it could not operate and provide me immense value. Yes, I would be hosed if it got pwned. It's a calculated risk on my part.
One cannot live in a world where we have the benefits of browser extensions and also disallow all behavior that could ever possibly be used for bad. It's an inconsistent worldview.
What are you talking about? I'm not mocking anybody. We have app store reviews because it's a known fact that not all users read or care about permissions. My point is simply that those safeguards exist for those users and they seem to be working rather well.
People (usually) understand the words that pop up when an extension/app asks for permissions. But they don't necessarily understand the implications of allowing those permissions. And most have little grasp on how to judge an authors trustworthiness, other than the star rating on the store listing... which is driven by other users who mostly also don't have a clue.
It is not unusual to see stories of malicious applications or extensions with hundreds of thousands of happy users and good reviews.
> It only asks for harmless permission, install it!
Not true. It lists all the permissions being requested. Sure the scrollbar issue is real and should be an easy fix.
I don't understand why people are so confused about permissions. If the user grants your extension permission to read your browsing history so it can provide value to them, why is that a problem? It's not. The problem is if the user grants a malicious extension the same permission because the extension is fraudulent. The author said this extension would never pass chrome store review, so it seems that the user would never be in this position in the first place and your example doesn't really match reality.