[tbb-bugs] #33594 [Applications/Tor Browser]: Fenix Use of Glean

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#33594: Fenix Use of Glean
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 Reporter:  sisbell                   |          Owner:  tbb-team
     Type:  task                      |         Status:  new
 Priority:  Medium                    |      Milestone:
Component:  Applications/Tor Browser  |        Version:
 Severity:  Normal                    |     Resolution:
 Keywords:  tbb-mobile, Android       |  Actual Points:
Parent ID:  #33184                    |         Points:
 Reviewer:                            |        Sponsor:  Sponsor58-must
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Comment (by sysrqb):

 Replying to [comment:5 sisbell]:
 > In fenix, app/build.gradle we have options for disabling crash reporting
 and telemetry. They are only disabled for debug builds but I can patch
 this.
 >
 >
 > {{{
 >
 >     if (!isDebug) {
 >         buildConfigField 'boolean', 'TELEMETRY', 'true'
 >     } else {
 >         buildConfigField 'boolean', 'TELEMETRY', 'false'
 >     }
 > }}}

 I'm concerned about something being added in the future that initializes a
 MetricController (or another piece of Glean) and ignoring this build-time
 flag. In the future, I hope we can use something like the above but only
 after we audit the implementation and ensure it is proxy-safe. Telemetry
 pings over Tor aren't good, but they aren't as disastrous as bypassing the
 proxy.

 I have a patch that changes Glean to a compileOnly dependency. This means
 that it is used at build time, but the dependency is not included in the
 final package. I think this is a relatively clean solution.

 I opened a Github Issue requesting feedback:
 https://github.com/mozilla-mobile/fenix/issues/10125

 and the patch:
 https://github.com/sysrqb/fenix/commit/fd426371204f84298c89176f7a58bf6199d9aef0

 Note, with this patch, it still includes glean. We'll need a patch for
 `buildSrc/src/main/java/Config.kt` that flips `includeGlean` from `true`
 to `false`.

--
Ticket URL: <https://trac.torproject.org/projects/tor/ticket/33594#comment:7>
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