Say it ain’t true, WordPress. Stealth auto-update

The just-released version 2.3 of WordPress includes an auto-update “feature” which phones home with information on the site; installed plug-ins, url, etc. It can’t be disabled natively and they don’t tell you they’re doing it.

WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg appears evasive and unhelpful about this, saying everyone else does it (perhaps, but at least they tell you they’re doing it and provide opt-outs) then says hey, there’s a fix for it (however it’s a third-party plugin, and not from WordPress itself.)

When Microsoft pulls crap like this, people can and do protest loudly about privacy violations.

WordPress is about the most trusted name in blogging, hope they don’t blow it.

1 Comment »

One Response to “Say it ain’t true, WordPress. Stealth auto-update”

  1. Eli Stephens on 26 Sep 2007 at 11:15 am #

    The latest issue of eWeek Magazine (unfortunately not online as far as I can see) contains several articles about the latest Microsoft escapade, in which setting the “Automatic Updates” feature to “No automatic updates” does NOT prevent Microsoft from automatically updating your computer without your knowledge.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS

Leave a Reply



Comments subject to deletion at whim of capricious webmaster. Disagreements are ok. Flames, trolls, and right-wing attacks are not. If your comment doesn't appear immediately, then moderation is on, thus there's no need to re-send it.

(However sometimes the anti-spam programs here go awry. Email us if your comments seem to vanish into the void.)