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Welcome to Techsurvivors => Tech => Topic started by: Jack W on March 03, 2017, 12:08:54 PM

Title: "current location"
Post by: Jack W on March 03, 2017, 12:08:54 PM

Every now and then when visiting sites, I get the pop-up such as:

[attachment=3366:location.jpg]

What is this ???

And how do I either avoid this pop-up, or simply auto-respond with 'Don't Allow' ?

Jack

Title: "current location"
Post by: kimmer on March 03, 2017, 12:32:38 PM

Just a guess but it's probably ad driven. To stop this behavior in Safari:

Safari > Preferences > Privacy > Website use of location services > select the option you want, which in your case is probably "deny without prompting" (see attached)

[attachment=3367:SafariPref.jpg]

Title: "current location"
Post by: Jack W on March 03, 2017, 12:37:26 PM

Thanks Kimmer,
But doesn't show in Safari 5.1.10.

Title: "current location"
Post by: kimmer on March 03, 2017, 12:42:22 PM

QUOTE(Jack W @ Mar 3 2017, 10:37 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks Kimmer,
But doesn't show in Safari 5.1.10.

Hmmm, I'll research later today and see if I can find anything; but it may be something you have to put up with using an older Mac OS and browser.

Title: "current location"
Post by: kimmer on March 03, 2017, 01:14:59 PM

Okay, how about System Preferences > Security & Privacy ... do you have a tab for Privacy? If so, is Safari listed there and, if so, does it show the option to turn Location Services on and off for Safari (and possibly other things)?

Title: "current location"
Post by: Paddy on March 03, 2017, 02:09:49 PM

QUOTE(kimmer @ Mar 3 2017, 03:14 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Okay, how about System Preferences > Security & Privacy ... do you have a tab for Privacy? If so, is Safari listed there and, if so, does it show the option to turn Location Services on and off for Safari (and possibly other things)?

Location services can be quite useful for sites that might be trying to tailor content to your location - i.e.: a weather site, or just about anything else you can think of where location might be useful. Of course, it can also be used to show local ads.

To disallow location services for other browsers and more info, read on:

http://www.macworld.com/article/3063772/in...r-location.html

My pet peeve isn't the location requests, it's the "allow push notifications from this website"!!! UM. NO!!!!!

Title: "current location"
Post by: Xairbusdriver on March 03, 2017, 07:45:19 PM

QUOTE

But doesn't show in Safari 5.1.10.

I suspect that is a big part of the problem. Sometimes new controls are added to apps with each update. You can always stay with the older versions, but don't expect to have the new items, which can be much more than just "fluff". Security is an important area, obviously, and Apple has updates specifically for that, but they always have a limit on how old an OS they can support. Other operating systems have similar problems with updating every known version, it's noy just Apple.

"Location" often means different things to different requesters, as Paddy points out. The 'location' many sites want is simply to add your "eyes" to the geographic area your IP address points to. That may not be any more accurate than the location of your ISP's server, tens of miles away, in other words.