I've just found out it today that I'm not able to take a Sneak Peek photos any more (either on Nexus 4 or Nexus 7). I'm getting this message - 'Due to privacy laws, Sneak peek feature is not available in your country.'.
So I have few questions:
1. What privacy laws (please provide me with the exact law for Ireland)? It is my phone and it is my privacy. I've agreed to use this product to protect my phone and tablet so it is my privacy you talking about and it is my privacy that can be compromised (and I'm ok with this feature working on my phone) ... or is Norton concerned about privacy of the potential thief?!?!
2. Will it start working again when I travel to another country (ie. Poland)?
3. How good is locating without picture? Imagine the situation - your phone stolen, location is given to you, no. 4 Well Road Whatever City, you go there and stand in front of apartment block containing 120 flats. NOT REALLY HELPFULL WITHOUT PHOTO TAKEN ... IS IT?
4. How come your competition is still offering this feature?
5. Why wasn't I informed of this being disabled?!?! I've paid for your product and all features included. Are you going to lower the price or give a rabate for next year license? How come it was ok to have this option working for 6 months and it is not anymore?
I'm sorry for any inconvenience this causes. From my understanding this is a privacy issue with all European countries. The sneak-peek feature should function with no issues once the device is locked using the Anti-Theft lock feature (in all European contries with the exception of Germany where no Sneak Peek feature is allowed), however, you are not be able to take On-Demand sneak peek photos. If no sneek peek photos are taken at all, even when locking the device, please let me know so I can raise this as an issue to the development team.
I have followed up with the development team to get more information on the privacy law and will update once I get a response.
The DPA (DATA PROTECTION ACT) UK & EUROPE, does NOT stop companies using SNEAK PEAK.... with the owners permission....
Therefore I repeat the previous question...WHICH law is Norton quoting ????
For the previous questioner, YES Sneak peek DOES work in the UK and IRELAND , but ONLY WHEN THE DEVICE IS LOCKED.....
Which also begs the question....if its illegal as Norton says, then that should be illegal as well :(
I suspect this is more about Nortons cost of resources to track phones, NOT any mythical law......
So to the Norton rep...WHICH LAW PRECISELY ???????
If this is not recinded by Norton , I suspect I will be moving all my phones AND mobile security to other companies products :( Which would be a shame as I have used NIS for years on ALL of my companies machines and now also NMS....
Local laws and regulations by their very nature are subject to change. Because of the vast nature of this topic, Norton Support cannot provide detailed answers on your question. Rest assured, the changes in Norton Mobile Security's Anti-Theft feature were implemented after an exhaustive country-by-country evaluation that continues on an ongoing basis to ensure that the product complies with local regulations.
I am sorry but your answer is untrue for the UK.....
Also your COMPETITORS are allowing it in the UK, therefor its a basic business economics question... i.e. do you allow those other competitors to take your customers as THEY are providing the service (legally) which your company is not....
As the owner of several companies , its not the way I would work, and I am pretty sure that Symantec will regret this decision if its not reversed :(
I am sorry but your answer is untrue for the UK.....
Also your COMPETITORS are allowing it in the UK, therefor its a basic business economics question... i.e. do you allow those other competitors to take your customers as THEY are providing the service (legally) which your company is not....
As the owner of several companies , its not the way I would work, and I am pretty sure that Symantec will regret this decision if its not reversed :(
All the best Brett :)
Hi Brett.
I am not here to defend Norton just to try and help Norton users, but I do not see how you can say that Jon's post is "untrue" in the UK. I also, might like Sneak Peek to be available in the UK, but I do not see how Jon's broad answer which does not even refer to the UK (I agree that the link does, but that also appears correct to me) is "untrue in the UK". I do see that the rules in the UK may not require Norton to act in this way in the UK, but I also think Jon has explained why they have made a commercial decision to do as they do.
You may well be right that other companies act in a different way and that Norton may suffer as a result. So if I have missed something about the "truth" of Jon's post it might be helpful to me and Norton if you could clarify.
In the UK the DPA (Data Protection Act) became law in 1998 and is derived from EU law.....
Therefore it affects ALL EU countries equally...
Therefore what Jon said IS untrue....he may believe it is true, in which case Symantec NEED some new lawyers.....as it is NOT....AND JUST OUT OF INTEREST Germany is not exempt from it either (as a full member country of the EU), and whomever told him it is, also needs to read the relevant EU laws....
The reason other competitors are allowing Sneak Peek is that they obviously HAVE better lawyers, its also the reason that so called Spy apps like Mspy and Stealth Genie can control mobile phones as a hidden app..... because it IS allowed under EU law.
Returning to the original concern expressed in this post, note that the Sneak Peak feature does still function should your phone be stolen and you lock it. With the apparent exception of Germany (the EU framework does allow countries to impose requirements stricter than the general law; they must just offer at least those protections), you can still use the feature to photograph your device's thief or his environs, you just have to lock the phone as stolen, first.
It sounds to me as though what the law is concerned about are scenarios where a user "accidentally" leaves a phone somewhere, aimed at an area of likely interest (a spouse's bed or a colleague's desk, for example), and then uses Sneak Peak to snap photos without that person's consent.
After a few lawsuits for de facto complicity in such acts, the other software vendors' risk/return calculus for not requiring some action declaring the phone as having been stolen before allowing remote photos to be taken may not look so wise....
Sorry, but I am still trying to understand what made this feature so 'handy' for you. The feature is designed as an aid in finding a lost/stolen device. What other function can you be using it for?
From the app description on Google Play..
Sneak Peek[3] uses the built-in webcam to take a photo of anyone using your device once you list it lost or stolen (webcam-enabled devices only)
We are upset because the tested software differs from the actual purchased software with less functionality. When purchasing then state which functions will not be available anymore.
but then it voids that function, which I actually used.
Can you share an example of when you use this feature when the phone is not lost/stolen? I am just trying to understand why a few users are as upset about the restrictions on this feature.
Thank you for your response. I used the same account as the tested one. I could probably lock the phone and go trough all that, but then it voids that function, which I actually used.
If there are privacy laws, then Norton must make one aware of it before purchasing.
I'm not an employee or a lawyer, so I cannot explain why South Africa is affected. There may be privacy laws you are not aware of that restrict the use of this feature.
It is interesting that the feature worked while using the trial, but stopped after you registered it. Did you use the same Norton account for the trial and the purchased versions?
Are you able to use the feature after you lock the device? The only reason to use the feature if not stolen, is if it is lost. You can still lock the device and do a Locate and a Sneak Peak to try to locate it. Then unlock it when you find it.
Tested the product for 30 days and Sneak Peek did work. After registering and paid I get the error "Due to privacy laws, Sneak peek feature is not available in your country" - why only after I paid? This is South Africa, not a lot of laws in any case...