The slower members amongst us will always find something negative to this story. It's quite sad at times really.
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Tim Cook: If Data Privacy Isn't Addressed, the Problem 'Gets So Large It May Be Impossible to Fix'
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Yeah the state of Big Tech is terrible. All of these companies are pretty morally bankrupt, but Apple is the best of all of them, which isn’t much of a compliment. My personal power ranking of suckiest tech companies (from worst to not as bad)
1. Facebook
2. Google
3. AirBnB
4. Uber
5. Amazon
6. Apple
Bloomberg (specifically, Bloomberg | Quint) had another dubious story this week: Now Apps Can Track You Even After You Uninstall Them . This story claims:
But that's not really true. On iOS, those tracking methods work only if you have enabled notifications for the particular app. From tracking-service provider AppsFlyer's iOS help page:
Noting that one must give permission is a crucial detail. This story is far less sensational without that little detail -- and Bloomberg failed to include that little detail in their story. They failed to report the whole truth. There may be a way for Apple for categorically eliminate those uninstall notifications, but experienced users are never giving out notification privileges unless there's a compelling reason to do so.
I wish that TC and Apple would call out Bloomberg for this dubious notification story.
But that's not really true. On iOS, those tracking methods work only if you have enabled notifications for the particular app. From tracking-service provider AppsFlyer's iOS help page:
Noting that one must give permission is a crucial detail. This story is far less sensational without that little detail -- and Bloomberg failed to include that little detail in their story. They failed to report the whole truth. There may be a way for Apple for categorically eliminate those uninstall notifications, but experienced users are never giving out notification privileges unless there's a compelling reason to do so.
I wish that TC and Apple would call out Bloomberg for this dubious notification story.
I completely agree with Tim Cook that the aggregation and use of personal data needs to be curtailed or we'll very quickly end up with the situation in China where a "social credit score" is being implemented. This goes beyond someone gaining access to your contacts or credit card numbers.
It means that companies and/or the government will be able to track things like how many times you visit certain types of restaurants based on location data and your insurance company raises your rates because you went to McDonalds too many times. Or, your posts on Facebook are aggregated and condensed to a rating by employers which makes you untrustworthy. Your travel can be limited, the price you pay for goods and serves could change. Etc Etc. If you choose not carry a device that tracks you or opt out you'll automatically get the lowest score.
It means that companies and/or the government will be able to track things like how many times you visit certain types of restaurants based on location data and your insurance company raises your rates because you went to McDonalds too many times. Or, your posts on Facebook are aggregated and condensed to a rating by employers which makes you untrustworthy. Your travel can be limited, the price you pay for goods and serves could change. Etc Etc. If you choose not carry a device that tracks you or opt out you'll automatically get the lowest score.
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I disagree completely.
It’s important for individuals with power and influence to use it to speak out about things like homosexuality. It helps to culturally normalize LGBTQ folks, and it helps to empower those who may be in a position where they experience discrimination or judgment for just being themselves. The more people who are out and willing to talk about it the better.
Tim Cook said:
It's also much easier to come out gay when you're already at the top, ie CEO of a massive company like Apple. It's much harder for those who come out early in their lives or careers, much more difficult for them to advance, so Tim saying that doesn't really mean much IMO.
Tim probably chose to stay quiet and advance in the corporate world, and he must have made the decision quite consciously.
personal power ranking of suckiest tech companies (from worst to not as bad)
1. Facebook
2. Google
3. AirBnB
4. Uber
5. Amazon
6. Apple
No Microsoft? Shouldn't they be joint Number 1 with Facebook?
1. Facebook
2. Google
3. AirBnB
4. Uber
5. Amazon
6. Apple
No Microsoft? Shouldn't they be joint Number 1 with Facebook?
Why would that even bother you? He's doing what he feels is right, and Apple backs him up 100% on this, as do I. If you don't like it, maybe switch to a more "conservative" PC maker?
The trouble is people like Michael Dell live a flamboyantly open heterosexual life. He should do that on his own dime. So not sure the poster would approve of that. One day we will move away from saying somebody is out. The problem isn't Cook being out, it is that the mentality is still around that considers it an issue. Some posters don't realize why it is still necessary to come out and why in 30 years it won't be necessary any longer, and how their vile makes this process continue to be needed and prolongs the length of duration for this to happen.
One day they will just say a person is gay because nobody will grow up having to hide. There will no longer be the term openly gay.
I am pretty sure if you ask most people why they are using an Apple product, they won't be saying it's for privacy.
It’s frustrating that companies and app developers use the Jedi mind tricks like, “we collect your personal data to improve your experience”. After identity thieves have stolen from me, my wife, my friends and family on multiple occasions, I can guarantee it’s not an improvement in my experience. I’ve been avoiding social media since it came out, as best I can, but my friends and family dont. With all these factor my entire life story seems to be public.
Tim Cook, please don’t allow app developer to collect anything from my device. Why do games like “Pac-Man” need to know my location and time of play. They sell my personal info to any identity thief who wants to know when I’m home. Apples walled garden is not tall enough.
Tim Cook, please don’t allow app developer to collect anything from my device. Why do games like “Pac-Man” need to know my location and time of play. They sell my personal info to any identity thief who wants to know when I’m home. Apples walled garden is not tall enough.
Cook is saying all the right things. Apple and it's users will benefit greatly when all is said and done. I can't imagine that companies like Google and Facebook are feeling great about their long term business models, it's time to get back to the drawing board. The people who care about their privacy will only continue to grow.
For two of those four, customer data IS their business. For another, customer data is key to driving more sales. Only one doesn't rely on customer data as a part of their business model.
I’m not sure if you’ve done this intentionally or not but you hit on a great point. Data brokers, who are the vast majority of who is sucking up data from various sources, exist solely to compile this data and sell it to interested parties. This is data theft once removed, period. None of us gave an app consent for the developer to get a revenue boost by selling data (anonymized or otherwise) after the fact, yet it’s a standard process in the Tech world.
You also pay for that respect. Most people don't care - or don't care enough to care - so cheap/free sounds like a better alternative.
It doesn't if Apple doesn't sell users data, they still collect it. And the problem with that is the gov can get a court order to get it or a hacker can steal it.
For all the crap he takes, he seems like a pretty genuine guy.
The easiest thing Apple can do is to lead. Two things to continue leading:
1. Encrypt, on-device, using a private key that remains on the device in the secure enclave (and is not backed-up anywhere), all information that is traveling through iCloud. So data, whether at rest or not, would be encrypted with an on device (iOS or mac OS device) key. Apple would no longer be able to provide iCloud information to anyone, just as they can't (we think) provide keys to on device information.
2. Automatically set up an iCloud I2P connection for all Apple devices with the option of switching to using Tor or VPN. Make it a one button option: "I2P connection on/off".
3. Encrypt all communications between iOS and macOS devices by default with an open protocol which others can adopt.
This wouldn't deal with the Facebook issue of tracking everyone, but both would be helpful for many people around the world in many cases and would put more pressure on the others to improve their own data protection policies.
1. Encrypt, on-device, using a private key that remains on the device in the secure enclave (and is not backed-up anywhere), all information that is traveling through iCloud. So data, whether at rest or not, would be encrypted with an on device (iOS or mac OS device) key. Apple would no longer be able to provide iCloud information to anyone, just as they can't (we think) provide keys to on device information.
2. Automatically set up an iCloud I2P connection for all Apple devices with the option of switching to using Tor or VPN. Make it a one button option: "I2P connection on/off".
3. Encrypt all communications between iOS and macOS devices by default with an open protocol which others can adopt.
This wouldn't deal with the Facebook issue of tracking everyone, but both would be helpful for many people around the world in many cases and would put more pressure on the others to improve their own data protection policies.
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Hence why I said that it is “part of the reason”
Implication is that it won't really be "part of the reason".
The reality is most people that use Apple products don't consciously care about their privacy efforts.
It contributes to their overall brand, which is why people buy Apple, for the brand.
That's why it's important for people to become more educated in the online choices they make.
DuckDuckGo has pros/cons. To say they don't track you is being naive. They do track you, but they claim only for behavioral purposes via tracking pixels. We don't really know what they have in their data warehouses. It's easy to pull out IP addresses from a tracking pixel and correlate to a specific user. Not saying DDG is bad, but this makes people trust them without really thinking.
In early 2000s, I could go into Starbucks and sniff wifi packets for people's personal information. It's quite easy to pull out credit card numbers and passwords to websites. Nowadays with SSL and encryption, this makes it much more difficult and for good reasons too.
The internet is dangerous if you are not aware of what you are doing - this includes Apple too. I wouldn't blindly assume a corporation is looking out for the best of its users just because it says it does.