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I was listening to Mormon Stories, and apparently Missionaries had tablets with a custom OS that tracked their online activities. They were not allowed to use other devices.
https://youtu.be/BGWTCEZud5c
2:28:00
When devices are provided by the church, they can deploy them with management and security software that goes WAY beyond what they can do with personally owned devices. Tracking location, tracking website activity, all of that is possible as long as the device is owned by the church (businesses can also accomplish this but they rarely invade privacy to such a degree because their only concern is that you are working during work hours)
Just got this out of the blue. I haven't submitted a DA letter because fuck that, the borg doesn't deserve a formal notice, but I don't remember giving anyone my email address in the congregation. Where the hell did this come from? Is this app even legit? They knew my name and old congregation and everything.
This is exactly why I DID do a DA letter. I wanted everyone to know where I stand so they didn’t just think I was “spiritually weak” and feel the need to “encourage” me all the time.
I mean, unless you have a specific private email that you thought nobody knew about, email addresses are about as common as phone numbers and easy to get. All they have to do is ask someone “hey, do you have so-and-so’s email? I want to send a link.”
Yeah, in the real world, we ask for consent before sharing people's contact info. Overstep in boundaries hard-core. Is there an option to unsubscribe? Can we use this angle to get them in trouble with the fcc? At least get their spam bot to get outlawed by email servers?
Look up your personal information online like your name, address, or phone number. I’ve noticed on www.fastpeoplesearch.com some email addresses are given for some people.
Ignore it. In 2018 when GDPR was a big thing in the UK we were all asked to sign it to allow the congregation to keep records on us. (It was touted as being for ministry records but it also allowed things like judicial records to be kept too.)
I refused to sign it.
This app is not created by their organisation. Even if I was fully in I would not download this shit. You don't know who created it and what inflation they are collecting and keeping. Go jump.
You needed to give your email address for the links to view circuit assemblies and regional conventions online the last 3 years. Maybe that's your answer.
The app is legit and used by many congregations including mine. It has no hidden tracking permissions (at least on Android). It's not made by the Borg itself but by a team of volunteer JWs.
Honestly, the app makes both PIMO and PIMI life a lot easier by centralizing all congregation schedules and assignments in one place. It even lets you submit your (fake) monthly service report without talking to a single human. Since it's automated, your group and service overseers will pay less individual attention to you (a good thing!)
Honestly I doubt they’re savvy enough to track anything. And I doubt the branch is aware that they’re sharing letters on it.
But if the branch were really up on tech they’d already have this kind of thing. Posting congregation schedules and letting you report time through an app seems like a great idea for anybody under 40.
Yep, our hall uses it, and there are competitor apps. Elders tired of having to email schedules and assignments and deal with time reporting when everyone was on zoom. PIMIs saw a gap in the market and pounced, just like all the JW Etsy shops making stationary.
None are run by the branch, but I’m sure when it gets adopted widely enough they will come out with their own version. Just like there were apps to display song lyrics on the hall tvs. Everyone used them, then the branch made official versions and banned the others.
The branch can’t handle the IT necessary to spy on every tablet. It can barely handle acting like big brother for bethelite’s devices.
Exactly this. If anyone tried to tell me I HAD to have this, I would just tell them, look this app is not created by the org, you want to try force it I'm happy to give world headquarters a call and confirm with them if this is required for all publishers to use.
Yes, the two comments above. I believe the Governing Body will never roll out and require something like this for all JWs. The app in that letter is just something that the local BOE has decided it would be good to use. All you really need to do is to say something like: I am not comfortable with the security of the mobile app. More and more apps like this lead to security breaches and personal information being stolen.
You could say this exact same thing for either a Watchtower produced or non-Watchtower produced app. Either way you can just say I don't want to use it and the Body of Elders can do nothing about it.
Don't read much into it. Elders are trying to simplify their life in regards to assignments, reports, etc by use of third-party apps. Just ignore it and move on.
How long have you been gone? I'm assuming you are faded and inactive? If so, the following information will be helpful.
In the Announcements and Reminders to Elders January 2021, Section 3 Special Effort to Assist Inactive Ones: (Subsection 3) "If an Inactive one has made it clear that he does not want to be contacted by the congregation, his wishes should be respected."
That instruction is a direct quote from the elders textbook Shepherd the Flock under the section Inactive: Shepherding 25:13-18
So it is fairly simple. For now, just send a reply message exactly as follows:
"Please UNSUBSCRIBE this email address"
If you have any further message or communication from them, you can reach out to me for a specific response. We can use the specific wording in the SFL to request no further contact.
But I think preliminarily, the unsubscribe request should resolve it.
Thank you! I faded back in 2015-2016, and this past year I've made it well known to the one PIMI person who still tried to contact me that I have no intention of returning to the Witnesses, ever.
I had replied back to the email stating that I am not one of Jehovah's Witnesses, but I've been thinking of asking them how they got my email too. As stated in other comments, I've not provided my email to anyone in the borg, ever, to the extent of my (admittedly poor, especially my time aa a PIMI) memory. Do you think I should still ask to be unsubscribed?
I would. It's a legal thing too. Asking to be unsubscribed from a mailing list is a serious thing. They have a responsibility to remove you from what could otherwise be considered spam email.
Ideally, if they could just stop making contact you wouldn't have to worry about sending anything more or needing to DA.
my family’s cong has been using this app for a while now. it’s not an official watchtower app. you can submit your hours through there, and see your overall “progress”. you also get your assignments through the app. it’s basically “helps” reduce direct contact with the publisher. they can simply check their “agenda”.
Yeah this is just an elder or servant that got tasked sending this to everyone in the congregation records. Nothing to worry about. If you're inactive, ignore and move on. If you're active but don't want to use it, ignore it and move on.
I'm active (PIMO) and use it and it's nice. It actually requires less contact which I didn't think they accounted for. No more emails and text about meeting updates, no reminders for field service. More and more less personal.
Calm down, folks.
This is just a third-party app to streamline things for them, making it easier on the secretary. They post letters, updates, hall cleanings service groups, assembly/convention dates, CO dates, announcements, accounts, and most importantly, you can enter your monthly time on here.
While you do have to enter a personal log in and pin ( like everything else on Earth), you decide whether or not to give them personal info (phone number, emergency contact info., etc). Chances are they already have all of this on file anyway. Clearly, they already have your email.
It's a convenient way for them to put everything in one spot and not have to run around delivering everything piecemail or collecting time 1 by 1.
Some halls use it, some don't. It's not an org thing.
Haha, maybe. I guess I'm just not the paranoid type.
Grew up with a father who would streak the living room, shutting off all the lights, screaming at me and my mother, "Get on the floor! Don't you know they're watching us!"
🫣🙄
I had a look at app - at least on Apple devices it is on the public store and they've declared there is no data collected and they can't see anything on the device. Apple has a pretty stringent app review process so it's pretty harmless
They can say that it’s not collecting any data about you. But it would not surprise me if there’s something operating deep in the background of it that does it. Kind of like how you can show your location on Snapchat. I’m amazed the elders of each congregation have it required everyone to put the Snapchat app on their phone so they can track where they are at any given time. So the young brother who claims he was never at the strip club. They can use the app to show his location and see exactly when and what time he was there. Just ignore it.
I got that same email a few weeks ago. Just ignore it, your emails in their database somehow. Mine came from my old service group overseer. I don’t think you should worry about jt
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My brain instantly told me it will have tracking abilities and know if you have the jw app open for meetings lol
I was listening to Mormon Stories, and apparently Missionaries had tablets with a custom OS that tracked their online activities. They were not allowed to use other devices. https://youtu.be/BGWTCEZud5c 2:28:00
When devices are provided by the church, they can deploy them with management and security software that goes WAY beyond what they can do with personally owned devices. Tracking location, tracking website activity, all of that is possible as long as the device is owned by the church (businesses can also accomplish this but they rarely invade privacy to such a degree because their only concern is that you are working during work hours)
There is not much they can see or do on Apple Devices. It gets murkier when it comes to android
Just got this out of the blue. I haven't submitted a DA letter because fuck that, the borg doesn't deserve a formal notice, but I don't remember giving anyone my email address in the congregation. Where the hell did this come from? Is this app even legit? They knew my name and old congregation and everything.
JWs are a snitch culture. There's always someone willing to provide information on you. They think it's virtuous.
This is exactly why I DID do a DA letter. I wanted everyone to know where I stand so they didn’t just think I was “spiritually weak” and feel the need to “encourage” me all the time.
I just might if this keeps up. I'm really scared about them having my email.
I mean, unless you have a specific private email that you thought nobody knew about, email addresses are about as common as phone numbers and easy to get. All they have to do is ask someone “hey, do you have so-and-so’s email? I want to send a link.”
I just don't remember giving anyone in the congregation my email. Nobody had a reason to have it.
Most email clients have filter functions - just send these sort of emails directly to your spam/trash folder and forget about it
Yeah, in the real world, we ask for consent before sharing people's contact info. Overstep in boundaries hard-core. Is there an option to unsubscribe? Can we use this angle to get them in trouble with the fcc? At least get their spam bot to get outlawed by email servers?
Look up your personal information online like your name, address, or phone number. I’ve noticed on www.fastpeoplesearch.com some email addresses are given for some people.
Ignore it. In 2018 when GDPR was a big thing in the UK we were all asked to sign it to allow the congregation to keep records on us. (It was touted as being for ministry records but it also allowed things like judicial records to be kept too.) I refused to sign it.
Same here. I furiously refused to sign it. Then 2 elders phoned me at work and told if won't sign I can't be used in congregation or be a pioneer.
So if you keep your privacy, they remove your slave duties? Sounds like a win-win to me.
I was already faded and didn't want Any responsibilities but they made a big thing that everyone should sign.
Just sign this and you can go free...... To be our slave. Uhhh no thanks lol. I'll stay in "prison" thank you.
Sounds like heaven to me! Idyllic!
Did Brexit change that?
No.
This app is not created by their organisation. Even if I was fully in I would not download this shit. You don't know who created it and what inflation they are collecting and keeping. Go jump.
If it's on iOS there is only so much they can see and do Android is much more dangerous when it comes to data
You needed to give your email address for the links to view circuit assemblies and regional conventions online the last 3 years. Maybe that's your answer.
In this case no, I haven't had any desire to see any JW propaganda for years, but your suggestion of hoe they could have got my email is a good one.
Ok, it was just a thought. Just block the sending address and ignore.
The app is legit and used by many congregations including mine. It has no hidden tracking permissions (at least on Android). It's not made by the Borg itself but by a team of volunteer JWs. Honestly, the app makes both PIMO and PIMI life a lot easier by centralizing all congregation schedules and assignments in one place. It even lets you submit your (fake) monthly service report without talking to a single human. Since it's automated, your group and service overseers will pay less individual attention to you (a good thing!)
Honestly I doubt they’re savvy enough to track anything. And I doubt the branch is aware that they’re sharing letters on it. But if the branch were really up on tech they’d already have this kind of thing. Posting congregation schedules and letting you report time through an app seems like a great idea for anybody under 40.
Yep, our hall uses it, and there are competitor apps. Elders tired of having to email schedules and assignments and deal with time reporting when everyone was on zoom. PIMIs saw a gap in the market and pounced, just like all the JW Etsy shops making stationary. None are run by the branch, but I’m sure when it gets adopted widely enough they will come out with their own version. Just like there were apps to display song lyrics on the hall tvs. Everyone used them, then the branch made official versions and banned the others. The branch can’t handle the IT necessary to spy on every tablet. It can barely handle acting like big brother for bethelite’s devices.
It's not an official app of the org itself. I don't think they would even aprove using it.
Exactly this. If anyone tried to tell me I HAD to have this, I would just tell them, look this app is not created by the org, you want to try force it I'm happy to give world headquarters a call and confirm with them if this is required for all publishers to use.
Yes, the two comments above. I believe the Governing Body will never roll out and require something like this for all JWs. The app in that letter is just something that the local BOE has decided it would be good to use. All you really need to do is to say something like: I am not comfortable with the security of the mobile app. More and more apps like this lead to security breaches and personal information being stolen. You could say this exact same thing for either a Watchtower produced or non-Watchtower produced app. Either way you can just say I don't want to use it and the Body of Elders can do nothing about it.
Um… i got the same email. Are we in the same hall 😂😂
Don't read much into it. Elders are trying to simplify their life in regards to assignments, reports, etc by use of third-party apps. Just ignore it and move on.
Just realized too that I forgot to censor the app name in one part, I can re-upload if that breaks any rules.
I got one of these after making it well known that I would not be returning to meetings
How long have you been gone? I'm assuming you are faded and inactive? If so, the following information will be helpful. In the Announcements and Reminders to Elders January 2021, Section 3 Special Effort to Assist Inactive Ones: (Subsection 3) "If an Inactive one has made it clear that he does not want to be contacted by the congregation, his wishes should be respected." That instruction is a direct quote from the elders textbook Shepherd the Flock under the section Inactive: Shepherding 25:13-18 So it is fairly simple. For now, just send a reply message exactly as follows: "Please UNSUBSCRIBE this email address" If you have any further message or communication from them, you can reach out to me for a specific response. We can use the specific wording in the SFL to request no further contact. But I think preliminarily, the unsubscribe request should resolve it.
Thank you! I faded back in 2015-2016, and this past year I've made it well known to the one PIMI person who still tried to contact me that I have no intention of returning to the Witnesses, ever. I had replied back to the email stating that I am not one of Jehovah's Witnesses, but I've been thinking of asking them how they got my email too. As stated in other comments, I've not provided my email to anyone in the borg, ever, to the extent of my (admittedly poor, especially my time aa a PIMI) memory. Do you think I should still ask to be unsubscribed?
I would. It's a legal thing too. Asking to be unsubscribed from a mailing list is a serious thing. They have a responsibility to remove you from what could otherwise be considered spam email. Ideally, if they could just stop making contact you wouldn't have to worry about sending anything more or needing to DA.
I will do that in the morning then, thank you for the info!
Anytime
my family’s cong has been using this app for a while now. it’s not an official watchtower app. you can submit your hours through there, and see your overall “progress”. you also get your assignments through the app. it’s basically “helps” reduce direct contact with the publisher. they can simply check their “agenda”.
Time to sign up the sender for all sorts of fun non-JW lists!
Yeah this is just an elder or servant that got tasked sending this to everyone in the congregation records. Nothing to worry about. If you're inactive, ignore and move on. If you're active but don't want to use it, ignore it and move on. I'm active (PIMO) and use it and it's nice. It actually requires less contact which I didn't think they accounted for. No more emails and text about meeting updates, no reminders for field service. More and more less personal.
Calm down, folks. This is just a third-party app to streamline things for them, making it easier on the secretary. They post letters, updates, hall cleanings service groups, assembly/convention dates, CO dates, announcements, accounts, and most importantly, you can enter your monthly time on here. While you do have to enter a personal log in and pin ( like everything else on Earth), you decide whether or not to give them personal info (phone number, emergency contact info., etc). Chances are they already have all of this on file anyway. Clearly, they already have your email. It's a convenient way for them to put everything in one spot and not have to run around delivering everything piecemail or collecting time 1 by 1. Some halls use it, some don't. It's not an org thing.
This, my friend.... Is how it starts.
Haha, maybe. I guess I'm just not the paranoid type. Grew up with a father who would streak the living room, shutting off all the lights, screaming at me and my mother, "Get on the floor! Don't you know they're watching us!" 🫣🙄
I don't think is a Borg approved app, just ignore and delete JW.org while at it too
I had a look at app - at least on Apple devices it is on the public store and they've declared there is no data collected and they can't see anything on the device. Apple has a pretty stringent app review process so it's pretty harmless
report as spam. also report the app for fake news / false information. move on.
They can say that it’s not collecting any data about you. But it would not surprise me if there’s something operating deep in the background of it that does it. Kind of like how you can show your location on Snapchat. I’m amazed the elders of each congregation have it required everyone to put the Snapchat app on their phone so they can track where they are at any given time. So the young brother who claims he was never at the strip club. They can use the app to show his location and see exactly when and what time he was there. Just ignore it.
Cant even hide anymore
I also keep getting these from a congregation I never chose to join.
I got that same email a few weeks ago. Just ignore it, your emails in their database somehow. Mine came from my old service group overseer. I don’t think you should worry about jt
No more accessing PornHub on that phone. 🤣 Think of the money to be made selling burner phones with encryption keys and VPNs to PIMOs….