millions of people doxxing themselves everyday without even...
harry@Harrris0n
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Jan 23, 2026
~2 min read
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millions of people doxxing themselves everyday without even knowing. If you spend the time analysing reports, you can determine where somebody lives and works.
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A few people asking why Waze has usernames in the first place.
Short answer: Waze was never just a nav app - it was built as a social network for drivers.
The username system is baked into everything.
Short answer: Waze was never just a nav app - it was built as a social network for drivers.
The username system is baked into everything.
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The biggest reason was Waze Carpool. From 2016-2022 they ran a full carpooling service where drivers could offer rides to commuters heading the same direction.
You needed usernames so riders and drivers could identify and trust each other.
COVID killed predictable commuting so they shut it down - but the username infrastructure stayed.
You needed usernames so riders and drivers could identify and trust each other.
COVID killed predictable commuting so they shut it down - but the username infrastructure stayed.
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Then there’s the social features most people forget exist.
You can add friends, see them on the map in real-time, send “beep beeps” (basically pokes), and chat with other drivers.
All of this needs persistent identity to work
You can add friends, see them on the map in real-time, send “beep beeps” (basically pokes), and chat with other drivers.
All of this needs persistent identity to work
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There’s also full gamification.
Points for every report, leaderboards showing top contributors in your area, and ranks you level up through - literally called Baby → Grown-up → Warrior → Knight → Royalty.
Your avatar gets visual upgrades (pacifier, shield, sword, crown).
None of this works without usernames tied to your activity.
Points for every report, leaderboards showing top contributors in your area, and ranks you level up through - literally called Baby → Grown-up → Warrior → Knight → Royalty.
Your avatar gets visual upgrades (pacifier, shield, sword, crown).
None of this works without usernames tied to your activity.
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And 500,000 volunteers edit Waze maps.
Every road fix, every new business, every corrected speed limit - tied to a username for attribution and accountability.
It’s how they built accurate maps without paying for it.
Every road fix, every new business, every corrected speed limit - tied to a username for attribution and accountability.
It’s how they built accurate maps without paying for it.
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The problem is all these features assume you want to be identified.
There’s no middle ground - no way to report traffic anonymously while still participating in the community.
You’re either fully visible or you don’t contribute. And most users have no idea their reports are being broadcast publicly with their username attached.
There’s no middle ground - no way to report traffic anonymously while still participating in the community.
You’re either fully visible or you don’t contribute. And most users have no idea their reports are being broadcast publicly with their username attached.
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the privacy policy is quite alarming
harry@Harrris0n
In my previous post, I demonstrated how Waze user data can be scraped from the public web map to track individuals.
But I glossed over something important: what does Waze's own privacy policy say about your data?
I went through the full policy. Here's what stood out.
But I glossed over something important: what does Waze's own privacy policy say about your data?
I went through the full policy. Here's what stood out.
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UPDATE: the support on this post has been absolutely insane. I appreciate each and every one of you. I almost didn’t write about it because I thought it would garner very little interest.
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If you feel like supporting my research, you can buy me a coffee at buymeacoffee.com/h4rr1son anything I receive will go towards paying for my vercel bill for firehound.covertlabs.io (my other project which you should really check out).
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good step forward
x.com/harrris0n/stat…
x.com/harrris0n/stat…