Apple: Back Off, We Don't Track Your iPhone

[Greg Tito]

Apple: Back Off, We Don't Track Your iPhone

Apple responded to allegations that iOS 4 automatically logged the location of all iPhones by claiming that it does no such thing.

Yesterday, recording every location in a non-encrypted file [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/109569-Apple-Sued-for-Invading-Privacy-by-Tracking-iPhone-Movements] that is shared whenever you back up the device with iTunes. Two researchers claimed to have found the file and even created an application to map the data to get an accurate representation of the movements of each iPhone owner. People were upset because such logs were created without the knowledge of the user, and could easily be used maliciously. Apple today clarified the purpose of the file and said that it would take steps to make the information more private in an upcoming update to iOS. There's no timetable for the update, but when it goes live users will be able to turn off the logging altogether by opting out of "Location Services."

"Apple is not tracking the location of your iPhone. Apple has never done so and has no plans to ever do so," the statement read before snarkily asking itself why everyone is so upset by this news.

"Users are confused, partly because the creators of this new technology (including Apple) have not provided enough education about these issues to date." That's the only admission that Apple might have done something wrong in the whole statement.

According to Apple, getting a precise measurement of the iPhone's location using GPS alone might take several minutes, so the iPhone cheats by triangulating using the location of Wi-Fi hotspots and cell towers. It gets that location through a "crowd-sourced" database that lists the GPS information for each hotspot and tower in the world, but guess where that information is crowd-sourced from?

"These calculations are performed live on the iPhone using a crowd-sourced database of Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data that is generated by tens of millions of iPhones sending the geo-tagged locations of nearby Wi-Fi hotspots and cell towers in an anonymous and encrypted form to Apple."

The file on each iPhone isn't a log of where you've been then, Apple says, it's a subset of the huge database that's used to make calculations on the fly. Apple admits that it does collect location data from its users, but claims that it's all anonymous, encrypted and only used to add to the database in order to help other users.

Apple also addressed the concern that up to a year of location data is stored unencrypted on each iPhone, or that the device still logs this data when "location services" are turned off.

Sometime in the next few weeks Apple will release a free iOS software update that:

reduces the size of the crowd-sourced Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower database cached on the iPhone
ceases backing up this cache, and
deletes this cache entirely when Location Services is turned off.

In the next major iOS software release the cache will also be encrypted on the iPhone.

I'm glad that Apple responded, but I'm a little peeved that they are going to get off scot-free. It sounds like some location data is being stored despite Apple's claim but the upcoming iOS update will make the file a lot less useful to anyone who might try to follow you home or something.

Dang.

Source: Apple [http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2011/04/27location_qa.html]

Permalink

 

[KeyMaster45]

I've already got an option to shut off location services on my phone, so they're going to make a sub option or something? I turned it off because I figured the damn thing would start bugging me to give it my facebook info so it could annoying tell everyone "Hey guise! He's taking crap!".

So yeah, the option is already in the configuration panel and it's easily spotted, I don't see what the fuss is about.

 

[Sevre]

I'm guessing Google will send out the exact same press release with 'Apple' crossed out and 'Google' hastily written over it.

 

[The Cheezy One]

"We aren't monitoring you" *eyes dart from side to side maliciously*

 

[gphjr14]

The damn phone has a GPS in it. It can pinpoint what part of my apartment I'm in. I had no delusions it was in some way being tracked. I imagine thats how they collect data on usage volumes. There's apps that utilize your location to offer ads and gas prices. I can't say I was flabbergasted by the discovery.

 

[saregos]

They're being deceitful - claiming "we don't track you", which is technically true, but failing to note that they build a database of "locations you happen to be right next to".

 

[manythings]

I've already got an option to shut off location services on my phone, so they're going to make a sub option or something? I turned it off because I figured the damn thing would start bugging me to give it my facebook info so it could annoying tell everyone "Hey guise! He's taking crap!".

So yeah, the option is already in the configuration panel and it's easily spotted, I don't see what the fuss is about.

The fuss is that it was doing it even when people turned it off and saving it without your permission. I have no doubt it could easily do it every single time AND delete that data in a fraction of a second but it's not as evil to do so.

 

[Hero in a half shell]

We've done absolutely nothing wrong, all the tracking was necessary for a completely different purpose.... ...so here is an update that will remove the tracking. Say whaaaaaaaaaaat?

 

[Susurrus]

Apple are evil, with the added element of pretending they're not. Like google does.

At least if they manned up and were obviously evil, like Microsoft and Sony, it would be something.

It seems pretty clear that what they were doing is at best unethical, and potentially information that could be used against their users. To fail to apologize properly for their faulty action is the height of arrogance.

 

[Thaliur]

It seems pretty clear that what they were doing is at best unethical, and potentially information that could be used against their users. To fail to apologize properly for their faulty action is the height of arrogance.

In other words: Apple-like...

I honesly expected just that press release when I first read about the tracking

 

[Susurrus]

7. When I turn off Location Services, why does my iPhone sometimes continue updating its Wi-Fi and cell tower data from Apple?s crowd-sourced database?
It shouldn?t. This is a bug, which we plan to fix shortly (see Software Update section below).
Software Update
Sometime in the next few weeks Apple will release a free iOS software update that:

reduces the size of the crowd-sourced Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower database cached on the iPhone,
ceases backing up this cache, and
deletes this cache entirely when Location Services is turned off.

Added together, these seem to suggest that really, Apple was doing what it claimed not to do:
-It was continuing to mine data even with the relevant apps turned off.
-It stored data for what is clearly an unnecessary amount of time.
-Continued to store data even when it was not supposed to be using it.

So the furore seems well-founded, and Apple are just on damage-control.

It disgusts me that because their products are all packaged in white, and Steve Jobs wears a polo neck, people continue to buy into the cult of Apple.

 

[Madman123456]

"Oh yes, our new Phone has this thingy which could be used for spying on People any make lists with all the locations they went to. But we totally did not put it in there for that, it's for something else which will come out eventually and we can't tell you what that might be or when it comes out."

This sounds like a good Reason to encourage People to avoid Apple Products.

 

[Heathrow]

I guess this is what happens when part of your design philosophy is, "users are stupid; we know better than them."

 

[RvLeshrac]

I'm guessing Google will send out the exact same press release with 'Apple' crossed out and 'Google' hastily written over it.

Google has no plans for that because they already tell you what they're doing with the location data when you first agree to have it enabled. And they don't track you at all if you don't give them permission to do so.

 

[JDKJ]

7. When I turn off Location Services, why does my iPhone sometimes continue updating its Wi-Fi and cell tower data from Apple?s crowd-sourced database?
It shouldn?t. This is a bug, which we plan to fix shortly (see Software Update section below).
Software Update
Sometime in the next few weeks Apple will release a free iOS software update that:

reduces the size of the crowd-sourced Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower database cached on the iPhone,
ceases backing up this cache, and
deletes this cache entirely when Location Services is turned off.

Added together, these seem to suggest that really, Apple was doing what it claimed not to do:
-It was continuing to mine data even with the relevant apps turned off.
-It stored data for what is clearly an unnecessary amount of time.
-Continued to store data even when it was not supposed to be using it.

So the furore seems well-founded, and Apple are just on damage-control.

It disgusts me that because their products are all packaged in white, and Steve Jobs wears a polo neck, people continue to buy into the cult of Apple.

It is a cult. I worked for a firm that insisted on Apple everything -- from desktops to laptops to cellphones -- even though they where losing money hand over fist and could ill-afford Apple's high-priced products because the CEO was praying at the altar of Steve Jobs. And badly in need of an intervention and some deprogramming.

 

[MowDownJoe]

"Oh yes, our new Phone has this thingy which could be used for spying on People any make lists with all the locations they went to. But we totally did not put it in there for that, it's for something else which will come out eventually and we can't tell you what that might be or when it comes out."

This sounds like a good Reason to encourage People to avoid Apple Products.

Humorously, Apple applied for a patent on this very thing. [http://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/gy2ww/you_know_that_iphone_tracking_thing_that_apple/]

 

[PettingZOOPONY]

Wait they admitted to doing it and now are saying fuck you morons we don't.