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AccuWeather for iOS Sending Location Data to Monetization Company Even When Location Sharing is Off [Updated]
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“Despite stories to the contrary from sources not connected to the actual information, ”
Tip for tone deaf companies: don’t start your apology with condescending snark. As someone who doesn’t use the app I now don't want to try it. It’s unprofessional and rude to attack people for asking questions.
Tip for tone deaf companies: don’t start your apology with condescending snark. As someone who doesn’t use the app I now don't want to try it. It’s unprofessional and rude to attack people for asking questions.
"AccuWeather and Reveal Mobile are committed to following the standards and best practices of the industry. We also recognize this is a quickly evolving field and what is best practice one day may change the next."
In other words: one day you're quietly monetizing data and the next day someone notices you're doing it, the field quickly evolves, and suddenly you're committed to following best practices.
In other words: one day you're quietly monetizing data and the next day someone notices you're doing it, the field quickly evolves, and suddenly you're committed to following best practices.
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They updated a statement, but as I see it, they were caught out and are now trying to cover themselves.
I second WeatherUnderground, especially the Storm app. There was recently some backlash of them cancelling the ad-free after being bought by the Weather Channel .. and I was recently able to go in and renew ad-free until 2018.
I am! It’s called Loop Weather (at risk of angering the spam gods).
In all honesty, I’d advise waiting to purchase it. We’re planning a (probably permanent) price drop to $0.99 later this fall when we launch version 2 with some fairly radical changes. A free update if not, but hey, a dollar saved on the purchase is a dollar saved.
This is a made-up story by the other weather app developers designed to take down the competition. The weather app business is dirty, underhanded, and cut-throat. Just kidding. However, let this be a lesson to other companies who try these tricks. You’ll end up with no info to sell, and, no customers who trust you, silly rabbit.
Did you read the statement that AccuWeather had released?
They were caught red handed, just that simple.
Instant delete.
I don't care what their half-truth explanation is.
[doublepost=1503457254][/doublepost]
Did you read his entire post?
He was making a joke.
I don't care what their half-truth explanation is.
[doublepost=1503457254][/doublepost]
Did you read his entire post?
He was making a joke.
Just to be clear, this is not an official NWS app but one created by a third-party developer, apparently using NWS APIs.
The US NWS suggests bookmarking http://mobile.weather.gov/#typeLocation on your mobile device (but it ain't pretty, just be warned).
This is what I do. Just put a safari shortcut right on my home screen. It works.
I hope that Accuweather realizes that almost no customer wants targeted advertising. Just what we need, more advertisements for things that we have already bought like Google and Amazon provide. I want no targeted ads. I pay for apps because I want no ads at all.
Agreed, Dark Sky.
With one additional note: the folks behind the Dark Sky app not only sell their own app (and they made a nice web version), but they also built a backend that collects data from lots of different sources and then does a lot of very nice hocus pocus with said data to get their very accurate local results. They make this data available through the DarkSky API to other developers who use it from a lot of different apps (I actually use it from Python for my home weather station), and they make their money from fees charged to other app makers if a developer's apps collectively make more than a certain amount of API calls per day. So there are other apps out there that use the Dark Sky data - if the Dark Sky app itself doesn't float your boat, look around for other apps that use data from Dark Sky (most will say "Powered by Dark Sky" in the fine print somewhere).
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I don't think I use it on my iPhone. Maybe my wife does.
We use the App on the AppleTV. Accuweather was far more accurate than the Weather Channel app or even our local forecasts. I guess with my AppleTV never leaving the house, I can still use it.
Anyone have an AppleTV weather app with good radar to use? Thanks.
We use the App on the AppleTV. Accuweather was far more accurate than the Weather Channel app or even our local forecasts. I guess with my AppleTV never leaving the house, I can still use it.
Anyone have an AppleTV weather app with good radar to use? Thanks.
Is "audience segmentation and analysis, to build a greater audience understanding and create more contextually relevant and helpful experiences for users and for advertiser." the new way of saying "we offer lies and b/s as a way of justifying selling your private data to a third party to make money off you without offering you some of it"?
Popular and well-known iOS weather app AccuWeather has been caught collecting and sharing user location data even when location sharing permissions are turned off, according to a blog post recently shared by security researcher Will Strafach.
According to Strafach, AccuWeather was partnering with data monetization firm Reveal Mobile to collect GPS coordinates, including speed and altitude, the name and BSSID of a user's Wi-Fi router, and whether a device has Bluetooth on and off, all of which was available to Reveal Mobile when location services were enabled.
With location services disabled, AccuWeather was still sending the Wi-Fi router name and BSSID, which still offered Reveal Mobile location data.Reval Mobile is a firm that uses location data to gather information on a user's home, work, and frequently visited locations, pairing that data with demographic targeting criteria to allow retailers to deliver targeted ads. From the company's website:In response to Strafach's blog post, Reveal Mobile says the data it collects is anonymized and grouped into audience segments. "We offer no product or service that permits anyone to see an individual device's location data," reads a statement on the Reveal Mobile website. The company also says it does not reverse engineer a device's location when location sharing is turned off.AccuWeather vice president of emerging platforms David Mitchell told ZDNet that AccuWeather will use data through Reveal Mobile for "audience segmentation and analysis, to build a greater audience understanding and create more contextually relevant and helpful experiences for users and for advertiser."
Following Strafach's discovery, many people have been uninstalling the AccuWeather app, and given the wealth of weather apps available in the App Store, this is not surprising. AccuWeather does not apparently have plans to end its relationship with Reveal Mobile, so users may want to find another weather app.
Update: AccuWeather and Reveal Mobile have provided a joint statement on the issue:
Article Link: AccuWeather for iOS Sending Location Data to Monetization Company Even When Location Sharing is Off [Updated]
Understood. I was using Yahoo Weather on an iPad for a while, but then decided it was simpler to use the stock app on an iPhone.
Had a paid version. Deleted.
Also use it on my Windows 10 PC so that'll be gone too as soon as I get home.
Weather Underground installed and ads removed.
Also use it on my Windows 10 PC so that'll be gone too as soon as I get home.
Weather Underground installed and ads removed.
i'm surprised apple didn't do anything about it so far. when that scandal happened a couple of years ago, where the apps where using a third party analytics framework all apps where removed from app store.
Yeap, that was from a couple of years ago now too. And Touch Arcade is MacRumors sister website setup by the same founder, so you know it will be a real interview. It is rather shocking how the games business model changed to freemium and data mining to maximise profits!
I agree that the iPhone app works really well! It's what I use on that device. I wish Apple made an iPad version too, in all seriousness.
Ugh, the amount of corporate speak in the statement, felt like they are trying to confuse the customers rather than assure them!
Meanwhile I guess the default weather widget in the iPad will suffice, or looking out at the window...
Meanwhile I guess the default weather widget in the iPad will suffice, or looking out at the window...
Happens everywhere with every company. We either need to get used to it or find life harder.
I did a google search yesterday, was it free or was I the product? Updated from 10.8 to 10.9 the other day, now was that free or somewhere along the line are Apple getting something from it?