Apple Updates Privacy Site to Explain How It Handles Personal Information

[0004838]

It's when you publicly stand out that you become a target for attention.

Your euphemistic use of the word, "attention", chills me in the same way the German, "Sonderbehandlung", or "Special Treatment" must have chilled those sent to Concentration Camps during World War II…

 

[macs4nw]

.....Skip the company marketing bits from the spokespeople and read the actual policy.

Even that doesn't necessarily give you the whole picture. Most companies from time to time bend the reality somewhat to make it appear their products and or services are better than they really are, but some companies occasionally outright lie and cheat for market advantage, and as a random example of that, the recent scandal of VW manipulating their diesel engines' pollution figures.

 

[0004838]

Statements like "we have never" are important as canaries: if the government ever abused its position enough to make something happen, and if Apple were unable to fight it, they could remove that statement—then the "canary in the coal mine" would be dead, and Apple would have indirectly let the public know that they are secretly fighting something the "law" has forbidden them from mentioning directly.

Just FYI, one such canary has already served its purpose: ZDNET - Apple omits 'warrant canary' from latest transparency reports.

 

[Good User Name]

There are still a lot of things that they could do in this field. For instance, let users remove their Apple IDs and their personal information when they abandon their Apple product(s) (compare this with Google or Microsoft), let users download a copy of their data Apple has on their servers (Google does this), support OpenVPN and OpenPGP natively, let users see a list of their saved Wi-Fi networks on iOS (to avoid sniffing), improve cookie management (e.g. let users delete cookies from websites that have not been visited in X days, some websites store cookies with a huge lifespan), add a permission dialog when an app wants to access iCloud Drive (many games do this and it’s annoying). I could go on, but these are the things I wish Apple would do eventually.

Have you made these suggestions to Apple?

 

[KALLT]

Have you made these suggestions to Apple?

Naturally. It’s an annual ritual for a couple of years now.

 

[69Mustang]

Even that doesn't necessarily give you the whole picture. Most companies from time to time bend the reality somewhat to make it appear their products and or services are better than they really are, but some companies occasionally outright lie and cheat for market advantage, and as a random example of that, the recent scandal of VW manipulating their diesel engines' pollution figures.

Although VW's crap hit the fan, sort of unrelated to the discussion of privacy. It kind of takes the focus away from privacy and puts it on companies doing bad s*** in general. Like I said, if anyone is concerned about privacy they should read the company's policy. Listening to the CEO's (any CEO or company leader) words about privacy instead of reading what the company puts in writing is counter productive in my opinion. But that's just me.

 

[macs4nw]

Although VW's crap hit the fan, sort of unrelated to the discussion of privacy. It kind of takes the focus away from privacy and puts it on companies doing bad s*** in general. Like I said, if anyone is concerned about privacy they should read the company's policy. Listening to the CEO's (any CEO or company leader) words about privacy instead of reading what the company puts in writing is counter productive in my opinion. But that's just me.

I hear what you're saying but my point was more that, although somewhat unrelated, both issues come back to the subject of trust, i.e. if they're caught lying about specs or performance (or pollution figures for that matter), there is that lingering doubt that perhaps they're also not 100% above board in their published privacy policies, after all what they do with our data is difficult to track and or prove.... just sayin'

 

[SteveW928]

Yep, better just don't do anything that anyone ever would consider remotely inappropriate.

Long live the ... whoever is in the government, now or forever!

Like hiding Jews from Nazis?
It's easy if what is illegal/unlawful is the truly awful stuff... but what if the illegal/unlawful becomes doing the good/right thing?

 

[SteveW928]

That's cowardly and unamerican: being happy to see a fundamental right erode into nothing. I assume that things I do in private stay private, and I do something to mitigate or change the situation when it turns out my understanding was wrong.

You'd better pay close attention to what Comey is doing then...

 

[SteveW928]

Except when the government tells you that you MUST comply and will stay quiet about the fact too?

Exactly, and they'll pay Apple really well for it and indemnify them from any recourse. I guess it's just a matter of whether you trust Apple in that 'won't ever work with the government' stuff or not (like many other companies already are).

As much as I love Apple, I think that's BS.

 

[macworksgreat]

You vil be vatched and enjoy it!

 

[SteveW928]

There are still a lot of things that they could do in this field. For instance, let users remove their Apple IDs and their personal information when they abandon their Apple product(s) (compare this with Google or Microsoft), let users download a copy of their data Apple has on their servers (Google does this), support OpenVPN and OpenPGP natively, let users see a list of their saved Wi-Fi networks on iOS (to avoid sniffing), improve cookie management (e.g. let users delete cookies from websites that have not been visited in X days, some websites store cookies with a huge lifespan), add a permission dialog when an app wants to access iCloud Drive (many games do this and it’s annoying). I could go on, but these are the things I wish Apple would do eventually.

Or, how about ***ONLY*** allowing your Apple ID / iCloud password to be collected via an appropriate spot in the Settings app... instead of popping it up all the time here and there while you're working. Can you say phishing lesson?

 

[SteveW928]

That's not a happy way to live at all. Rolling over and assuming no one has privacy is a horrible way to live. It makes us no better than North Korea, frankly. And unless people continue to tell their governments that this is not OK, we will all get exactly what we deserve.

Actually, it's probably a bit naive to think that's not the case already.

And, it's actually a bit worse than N. Korea in this regard, as people in the USA tend to think they are free from it and that most of the information they get isn't propaganda.

 

[SteveW928]

It is precisely this mindset that has gotten us into this mess. No thank you. We do not live in a utopian fantasy land. There are real people out there, right now, who would force their will and beliefs on you if they could. They would round up people with dissenting political, religious, or sexual opinions. These technological tools give them the power to find those who oppose them and limit their free speech, or worse—threaten their friends and family.

History has shown that this happens time and time again when too much power is given. That is why the forefathers of the United States had taken such great care in putting many limits on government powers. The checks and balances. It is not a balanced approach to continually monitor the every action of citizens who have done nothing wrong. However, it does enable corrupt leaders to effectively operate. Will this happen overnight? No. These things rarely do. It is the slow slide into oblivion that tricks most people into thinking everything is fine, and we've been sliding for at least 12-14 years—perhaps longer. You may be happy now, but that happiness is foolish and fleeting.

Oh, I think we're there already... have been for a while. Have you been paying attention to who is in the White House, and FBI director and such... and what they've been openly saying and doing? It isn't even a secret any longer... it's just that the general population are 'amusing themselves to death' (to play off a popular book title on the subject).

 

[SteveW928]

There are laws that could Apple require to be quiet. There is no law that could force Apple to lie. (And plenty of laws that would make it illegal to lie).

You don't have to force them, you just pay them well and indemnify them. Problem solved.

 

[ErikGrim]

 

[mijail]

View attachment 587941

That's interesting. Why not post a link to the original so we can get all the context? Thanks!

 

[mijail]

Like hiding Jews from Nazis?
It's easy if what is illegal/unlawful is the truly awful stuff... but what if the illegal/unlawful becomes doing the good/right thing?

Looks like I really have to start using <sarcasm> markers or something.

 

[SteveW928]

Looks like I really have to start using <sarcasm> markers or something.

I was kind of wondering... but it was a point I wanted to make more clear anyway.

 

[SteveW928]

View attachment 587941

I'm not sure about that chart though, as I've pretty sure Comey was referring to at least a couple of those companies as models for how data could be encrypted in-transit, yet need to be de-crypted at the company to be 'processed' for some reason, which is where the govt could monitor. Maybe he was just talking about 'in theory'... would have to listen to it again I guess. But, anyway, that's the plan. And because of all the money involved and indemnification, I doubt we'd ever know unless it leaked somehow.

 

[unplugme71]

Your euphemistic use of the word, "attention", chills me in the same way the German, "Sonderbehandlung", or "Special Treatment" must have chilled those sent to Concentration Camps during World War II…

Here's the line | and you crossed it way out here *.

 

[SteveW928]

Here's the line | and you crossed it way out here *.

Yea.... no.

 

[0004838]

Here's the line | and you crossed it way out here *.

*shrug* I was sharing what I felt, not asking for anyone's endorsement. I think it's the lack of use of inverted commas around, "attention", that lends the sentence that extra power. As though the word had been imbued with a new and concrete meaning instead of being a comical or whimsical replacement for another.

 

[ErikGrim]

That's interesting. Why not post a link to the original so we can get all the context? Thanks!

https://www.eff.org/who-has-your-back

 

[ifixscreens]

I am sure this got nothing to the picture leak of some famous celebrities Good Job Apple! now they can't sue you when their personal picture get leaked!