After weeks of denial and attacks on him from the world over, Steve Jobs says the "tracking" file in I-products was all a "programming mistake".
"Apple has blamed programming errors for its collection of data that tracked the rough location of iPhone users and pledged to cut down drastically on the practice, which has alarmed consumers and privacy advocates.
After a week of increasing criticism and regulatory attention over the issue, the company said that it should not have been compiling the information on users who turned off location-based services. It said it should not have stored the records for a year.
“The reason the iPhone stores so much data is a bug we uncovered and plan to fix shortly,” Apple said. “We don’t think the iPhone needs to store more than seven days of this data.”
The furore echoes Google’s gaffe with its StreetView service, in which fleets of cars sent out to take pictures recorded personal data sent over WiFi networks. Google’s unauthorised data collection was uncovered by German regulators, prompting the company to drop the practice.
In both cases, the companies were trying to assemble databases of communications data to connect users to the best wireless connections or other functions more quickly.
The companies were racing to offer more advertisements, maps and other functions to people based on where they were and had stepped on privacy laws and consumer expectations, said analysts.
Apple’s confession “is a huge setback” for such efforts, said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at Gartner.
“Consumers are starting to realise they are broadcasting a lot of personal information and that they don’t want to share all this in many cases with people they have no interaction with,” he said.
Regulators in Germany, South Korea and elsewhere have begun enquiries into Apple’s collection of data, which was often stored on users’ home computers in unencrypted form and could have been obtained in legal proceedings or by hackers.
Two Apple customers have filed a lawsuit citing wiretap laws and are seeking class-action status for their case.
Several members of the US Congress, which is considering far-reaching consumer privacy laws, have also demanded explanations from Apple, Google and others about what they compile from increasing powerful smartphones.
Ed Markey, a US congressman who was among those writing to Apple for answers, welcomed the changes but said he wanted to learn more.
Apple and Google were asked to appear at a hearing on mobile privacy on May 10 by Senator Al Franken, the Democrat heading a new judiciary committee panel on privacy and Apple said it will testify.
“The same technology that has given us smartphones, tablets and cell phones has also allowed these devices to gather extremely sensitive information about users, including detailed records of their daily movements and location,” said Mr Franken in announcing the maiden hearing for his subcommittee. “This hearing is the first step in making certain that federal laws protecting consumers’ privacy – particularly when it comes to mobile devices – keep pace with advances in technology.”
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/161af6b4-70f9-11e0-962a-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1KmOgpIjH
"Apple has blamed programming errors for its collection of data that tracked the rough location of iPhone users and pledged to cut down drastically on the practice, which has alarmed consumers and privacy advocates.
After a week of increasing criticism and regulatory attention over the issue, the company said that it should not have been compiling the information on users who turned off location-based services. It said it should not have stored the records for a year.
“The reason the iPhone stores so much data is a bug we uncovered and plan to fix shortly,” Apple said. “We don’t think the iPhone needs to store more than seven days of this data.”
The furore echoes Google’s gaffe with its StreetView service, in which fleets of cars sent out to take pictures recorded personal data sent over WiFi networks. Google’s unauthorised data collection was uncovered by German regulators, prompting the company to drop the practice.
In both cases, the companies were trying to assemble databases of communications data to connect users to the best wireless connections or other functions more quickly.
The companies were racing to offer more advertisements, maps and other functions to people based on where they were and had stepped on privacy laws and consumer expectations, said analysts.
Apple’s confession “is a huge setback” for such efforts, said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at Gartner.
“Consumers are starting to realise they are broadcasting a lot of personal information and that they don’t want to share all this in many cases with people they have no interaction with,” he said.
Regulators in Germany, South Korea and elsewhere have begun enquiries into Apple’s collection of data, which was often stored on users’ home computers in unencrypted form and could have been obtained in legal proceedings or by hackers.
Two Apple customers have filed a lawsuit citing wiretap laws and are seeking class-action status for their case.
Several members of the US Congress, which is considering far-reaching consumer privacy laws, have also demanded explanations from Apple, Google and others about what they compile from increasing powerful smartphones.
Ed Markey, a US congressman who was among those writing to Apple for answers, welcomed the changes but said he wanted to learn more.
Apple and Google were asked to appear at a hearing on mobile privacy on May 10 by Senator Al Franken, the Democrat heading a new judiciary committee panel on privacy and Apple said it will testify.
“The same technology that has given us smartphones, tablets and cell phones has also allowed these devices to gather extremely sensitive information about users, including detailed records of their daily movements and location,” said Mr Franken in announcing the maiden hearing for his subcommittee. “This hearing is the first step in making certain that federal laws protecting consumers’ privacy – particularly when it comes to mobile devices – keep pace with advances in technology.”
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/161af6b4-70f9-11e0-962a-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1KmOgpIjH
