Apple should make it easy for me, the consumer, to decide if I want to allow an app to track me all of the time. What’s wrong with having the “always allow” option along with other two? It’s a pretty simple question And I am smart enough to know which apps I want to allow to track me. Don’t we every once and a while get a notification that an app is tracking us in the background and whether or not we want to allow that to continue?
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App Developers Claim Apple's iOS 13 Location Tracking Changes Are Anti-Competitive
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Yup
I just now (a few minutes ago) used Viber, somehow I got privacy settings on my screen, I was disgusted by all the tracking, I toggled all buttons, but then came the trackers, there was no button to toggle them all to off, instead I had to go through a list of 100's..No kidding..of companies that "make my service better", took me 10 minutes to toggle them all to off.
Hey Apple, are you reading this.
These apps shouldn’t exist in the first instance so I’m happy if they die.
“Always Allow” isn’t disabled permanently, only requires an extra 2 clicks to really make sure it’s enabled.
I would like to believe that in circumstances such as the one you give below, the app developer would actually take the extra step to program in a proper tutorial/instructions on how to properly set up an app like this.
Now ask that question of a thousand random users and I bet most of them will have no idea...
I would like to believe that in circumstances such as the one you give below, the app developer would actually take the extra step to program in a proper tutorial/instructions on how to properly set up an app like this.
[doublepost=1566044951][/doublepost]Without looking at your phone, can you say with certainty which apps have/have not been granted access to “Always Allow Tracking”?
Now ask that question of a thousand random users and I bet most of them will have no idea...
Why? What is wrong with apps like Tile? It's helped me out several times and wouldn't have done so if I didn't allow it to always know where I am
I am not sure the two scenarios are remotely comparable.
With android, the problem is that all apps are sucking your data equally. That google is doing it as much as third party apps doesn’t make it any more right or “fair”. It just means that the system is universally broken.
With iOS, maybe it’s unfair that Apple “cheats” by excusing itself from its own rules, but I would rather have a system where everyone else but Apple is subject to a more stringent set of rules, than everyone not being subject to them at all.
It’s the lesser of two evils for me.
There are many, many cases of background location tracking being used mostly to track the user rather than provide any benefit to the user. Also, not everyone is as knowledge as you. It is an inconvenience, that’s true, but given that many companies are using this to actively exploit users, I think it’s a valid trade off.
This definitely makes me value the iPhone more.
Tile is a perfect use case for background location, but for every one valid case, there are many, many more invalid cases.
Personally I like this change. It will cause most app developers to create apps that work without background location because getting users to go into settings is a PITA at best.
People do what’s convenient. If the app pops up ‘always allow’, they click that. If it pops ups ‘only while using’, then they click that. If they must go into settings to use the app, they’ll do that if they care enough about the app, but it will definitely cause some people to just delete the app. I’m okay with that because I think privacy is very important and ultimately the user is still in control.
“Anti competitive” is a catchy phrase but words have meaning and it isn’t applicable. The email’s author and those who signed on to it appear amateurish and unconvincing. But they did get The Information to write an original story and MR to repeat it. So there is that.
Which apps would those be? I just checked a number of apple apps in ios 13 b7 and they had the same three options:
- never
- ask next time
- while using
I love the change. Also, Apple apps use our location for entirely different reasons than most other apps. On iOS 12 I only allowed each App to track me while using the App anyway, I prefer being prompted for this. There are very few apps that I want to track me. A few weather apps and Google (because I have less issues with Google tracking me all of the time than other companies). I’m fact, I just went into my privacy settings and changed more of the apps to always ask instead of letting them carry over the settings from iOS 12.
I disagree. I'm not assuming most apps are out to get me. I'm assuming 1 in a thousand apps will either be "out to get me", or more likely - badly made. And those badly made apps then have the ability to collect data and leak that data.
You say "nothing changes here", but it does change. The default behaviour changes, and for the majority of people that is a huge change. It isn't for people like you, or I - we know our phones inside out, and we know where to find these sorts of settings to limit bad apps. However is it reasonable to expect non-tech geeks to really know their phones that well? Know the settings menu inside out? Not really. Most people just want to use their phone, and it isn't unreasonable to expect a certain amount of privacy.
The default should be max privacy. And then you give away what you feel comfortable with, to who you choose. N
Those apps are misusing APIs for spying on you and Apple has finally done the right thing.
Just wait a bit longer until all of us are tracked by cameras with facial recognition. Actually it's already happening in some Asian countries, and it's a matter of time it will be everywhere.
It's a fact that's happening, and I'm glad Apple is fighting for our privacy, but it's a fight with more fronts.
“Users trust Apple”, but Apple doesn’t trust the consumer enough to decide for themself. It doesn’t hurt to give users the option to still opt-in to always.
Which device? Could you possibly check on any device in the 7-8 series? It isn’t there for me in 8.
[doublepost=1566052837][/doublepost]
Which app? I’m trying on many apps and it isn’t there, but I only want in Weather and it isn’t there for me. This is fresh install.
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Full stop. It remains easy for anyone to enable tracking. It takes all of five seconds to go into the privacy settings and do it for any reason. (Your use case is also a bit bizarre. You don't need to buy and install an app to track your family member, since it is offered as a free service with your iPhone, iPad, etc., by Apple).
You can still use it like that.
Nobody prevents you from doing that.
I don't get why so many people think it's a bad move. It's good! If you have an app that's so important for you that it should have the ability to track you permanently, it's sure worth the 20 seconds of your time to enable it in Settings.
Then care to explain how find my friends works?
It gives updates with out it being used to others.
Or what about maps and calandar giving those useful updates of X amount of time to work or leave by X time to get there in time.
The apps are not in use yet they have your location.
So now not only is Apple cheating they are lying to their users.
No they are exactly comparable. If we flipped this and it was Google who did those restrictions on the devs while they were cheating people like you would be screaming how wrong it is yet because it is Apple it is OK.
If the rules are so good then Apple should play by them as well. Blindly trusting apple not to abuse their power is not a good idea.
Plus Apple being under the same rules forces them to make sure that they are supporting devs correctly and also prevents them from doing blantete anti trust which Apple is doing a fine job of making the case for governments for them.
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I completely agree with you, my point was that the person I was quoting said every one of those apps shouldn't exist; I was just trying to point out that there are legitimate use cases, Tile being one.
I'm OK with this change, I was just responding to the silly "none of these apps should exist" nonsense
Sure, if you want to be pedantic and hyperbolic. Find my is the exception, think of it as making an emergency call on the phone. Do you have to unlock the phone to make an emergency call?
You give permissions to others to find your location. If(hypothetically) you're lying in a ditch unconscious and have to enable location services, is that a great design? Apple will never win with some, just don't grant anybody permission to see your location.
But stop catching Apple like this, it's really silly.
Agreed. Those "very few apps" now have a much more difficult time gaining access to that information, and I applaud that. Having to jump through a couple of extra hoops to enable this feature is a good things, and I wouldn't mind it being a bit more difficult.
However, the very people who were taken advantage of by those unscrupulous developers are also (categorically) the least likely to understand those hoops. Now the grandparents and other technically challenged users will be less able to take advantage of legitimate features.
Further, based on Apple's historical behavior I suspect this is just Step 1 towards completely removing the "Always Track" option from non-Apple apps. That's not a win for anyone. Not App Devs. Not Users.