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Tim Cook on Health Records Privacy: 'People Will Look at This and Feel That They Can Trust Apple'
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LOL... I only trust Apple with what I *MUST* trust them with; Apple is not my doctor and not the maker of any medical device I actually USE, so, NO, I do NOT want my medical records accessible by Apple or any of their devices. I really wished the office there would run on either GNU/Linux or some BSD and not Windows... I’m sure it’s all compromised anyway, but I’d like not to have a direct pipeline between my provider and Apple’s servers, thanks. I’d love if it were not processed through anything made by Misrosoft, but that’s probably NOT on the menu. :-(
In an NPR piece on the privacy of storing health records on the iPhone, Apple CEO Tim Cook this week said that Apple is a company that people can trust with sensitive information.
As evidence, Cook said that Apple has always avoided selling user data, something that Cook and other executives have repeated time and time again.Apple executives have always pointed out that its customers are not its product, something that distinguishes Apple from other tech companies like Google and Facebook that rely heavily on user data for marketing and monetization purposes. According to Cook, Apple's privacy commitment is serious and not something that the company says just to earn customer trust.Cook's statement is part of a wider look at the Health Records feature added to the iPhone last year, which is designed to allow iPhone users to see actual medical records from hospitals, clinics, and doctors right in the Health app. Apple has partnered with many different institutions for the Health Records feature, bringing easy access to health data to millions of people.
Sam Cavaliere, a tech worker who uses Health Records and was featured in the NPR article, says Apple has earned his trust. "I don't get fed advertisements for them, so I don't see them trying to monetize it," he said, going on to explain that he's "comfortable" with what Apple's doing.
UC San Diego Health's chief information officer, Dr. Chris Longhurst, also said that Apple's focus on privacy had made hospital officials feel more at ease because patient health privacy is of the utmost importance.
UCSD Health likes the fact that all record data is stored on device only and not uploaded to the cloud, something that helps to protect patients.
NPR pointed out recent news that certain health-related apps like period trackers and heart rate monitoring apps were sharing data with Facebook for targeted advertising, but Apple clarified that those apps don't, of course, connect to Health Records, which is a highly protected and restricted feature. Health app access in general can only be granted with explicit user permission.
Longhurst says that even though the Health app is well protected by Apple, there are "potential risks" and patients that use the feature should stay informed to make sure they're not inadvertently sharing health data with third parties.
Article Link: Tim Cook on Health Records Privacy: 'People Will Look at This and Feel That They Can Trust Apple'
Right on Apple! It’s not like you flubbed a FaceTime privacy bug fix or let FB continue to mine iOS’ user data.
Just curious, could you provide any literal examples of this? If you could be specific as possible.
Privacy and security are both ways Apple clearly differentiates themselves from the market, in my opinion. This is the number one reason why I support Apple. And, iMessage and FaceTime, both would be hard to not have access to.
There’s a difference between mistakes and an intentional business model.
Where on your scale does "ignoring official privacy bug reports for a week then pulling the plug on the entire service because the media paid more attention than your own software team" fall?
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They also sold Google a $9 billion backdoor to track your activity by allowing them to buy the right to be the default search engine.
Just to be clear, HIPPA doesn't protect privacy, it just provides consequences if people don't do so and by that point the information is out the door.
Apple's involvement in multiple medical studies, where the participants agree to provide bio-metric data in the hopes that it benefits mankind, should be lauded. I would have no problems with opting into a study via an Apple device. On the other hand, although I use Google and Amazon services, I'd be more hesitant that my data would be too tempting for them to not find some loophole to sell it.
It is so easy to change search engine, this is the first thing of all on the list when you choose Safari settings. Apple isn’t even trying to hide this from you.
They also give you, the user, the ability to change the default search engine. Google is the most widely used search engine by far. It makes sense to have it as the default. You can adjust this at any time.
That patronizing thing that people like you do is so lame. You know, where you use the child version of someone’s name who you despise by adding a Y at the end. It sounds so bitter and pathetic.
Understood. I should have said that HIPAA is fairly stringent compared to the general lack of data protection laws in the US. The EU systems are all government centralized. Maybe Apple has programs for places like China and India I don't know about.
You sound like a Facebook University graduate when talking about HIPAA (not spelled HIPPA). That is not what HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.) is for.
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Because it would be illegal to not allow you to change it.
Regarding the Health app data...we need a better way to access OUR data. It's currently locked up in a dinky phone app...we need a health portal like Garmin provides. Locking data into iOS is shady and unacceptable; my own health data shouldn't be a platform war casualty if I leave iOS...and no, the janky export process doesn't count.
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......So then what is the issue?
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This x10000000. I can't take someones opinion seriously when they're using 3rd grade insults.
If Apple was serious about privacy they would make Google use opt-in not default.
Instead they just pay lip service to privacy, "we don't sell your data to advertisers (we just sell it to Google and they sell it to advertisers)"
While TC is talking about the virtue and need of privacy, let's not forget his leadership in removing VPN's from the China app store in 2017.
I mean privacy is good and all...right up until you have to actually stake your reputation and profits on it.
I agree 100% with what Cook said; I simply wished he believed it, too.
I mean privacy is good and all...right up until you have to actually stake your reputation and profits on it.
I agree 100% with what Cook said; I simply wished he believed it, too.
swingerofbirch
macrumors 68040
The Health app is a black hole.
I have over 20 GB of data in the Health app. My iPhone 7 is unbearably slow in loading it. It can't export it (Apple's tech support didn't even seem to know there was an export option). Each export creates a 22 byte zip file with no data in it. I've gone through the highest levels of AppleCare up to having engineers at Apple respond to me through AppleCare who tell me just to delete my data and start over. Unacceptable.
I want my data in the cloud, I want it accessible, and I want it to be there when I sign into a new device.
Yes, the data is private—even to me!
I have over 20 GB of data in the Health app. My iPhone 7 is unbearably slow in loading it. It can't export it (Apple's tech support didn't even seem to know there was an export option). Each export creates a 22 byte zip file with no data in it. I've gone through the highest levels of AppleCare up to having engineers at Apple respond to me through AppleCare who tell me just to delete my data and start over. Unacceptable.
I want my data in the cloud, I want it accessible, and I want it to be there when I sign into a new device.
Yes, the data is private—even to me!
I don't beleive that is true at all, can you cite a source? Let's not forget that Microsoft has forced you to use Bing in some versions of Windows 10 without consequences.
Actually, HIPAA does have a set of defined minimum requirements that must be adhered to and in addition to HIPAA there are other standards healthcare providers must adhere to, this really has nothing to do with Apple and their alleged dedication to privacy.
And I have to stress alleged, the more they repeat they don't sell data, the less I am inclined to believe them, especially when Apple's TOS clearly states that they can do so.
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How have they forced you to use Bing? You can use Google Chrome with no issues on Windows 10, you can always go to www.google.com and search for anything, failing to see how you are being forced into it.
No it doesn’t.
“Therefore, when a covered entity is deciding which security measures to use, the Rule does not dictate those measures but requires the covered entity to consider:
- Its size, complexity, and capabilities,
- Its technical, hardware, and software infrastructure,
- The costs of security measures, and
- The likelihood and possible impact of potential risks to e-PHI.”
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How have they forced you to use Bing? You can use Google Chrome with no issues on Windows 10, you can always go to www.google.com and search for anything, failing to see how you are being forced into it.[/QUOTE]
When Windows 10S was first released they forced you to use Bing (and Edge):
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/05/04/windows_10_s_bing_edge/
How have they forced you to use Bing? You can use Google Chrome with no issues on Windows 10, you can always go to www.google.com and search for anything, failing to see how you are being forced into it.[/QUOTE]
When Windows 10S was first released they forced you to use Bing (and Edge):
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/05/04/windows_10_s_bing_edge/