A lot has been made in recent days about the fact that Apple is using iPhones, iPods and iPads to gather tracking information about it's users. We haven't written about it yet because well, we didn't fully understand it. Luckily for us,
Wired Magazine wrote an excellent explanation of the issue, as well as why consumers who own those products (and there are millions of them), should be aware and care. For those who are unaware, the operating system in the products store data about your whereabouts when you use locating type applications such as Yelp or Google Maps. When you use the app, the operating systems gets information about where you are through the cellphone towers in your area, and twice a day, that information is transmitted to Apple. That way, the next time you use the app, Apple will know more quickly where to locate you and transmit information back to you more quickly. Sounds good right? Well the problem lies in the fact that Apple keeps the information on each device and it is never erased. So if someone who knows what they are doing steals your iPhone, they could presumably unlock the information and use it against you. Thus the public outcry lies in, and rightfully so, in the fact that Apple doesn't delete the information from the device. Follow all that?
According to
Wired Magazine, the reason you should care is not only does the phone or iPad contain information that could potentially fall into the wrong hands, but it's also information that could potentially be used against you.
Wired Magazine points out that law enforcement could potentially subpoena Apple's data collection services and find out your exact location, you know, if you happened to be doing something wrong and got caught for it. While that may seem a little far fetched, the main issue is, there's no real need for Apple to not delete your personal information. Personal information is exactly that, personal. It's fine if the company wants to use the information to help direct better products and services towards it's customers, but there's no reason to keep the information once it is done. As
Wired Magazine points out, this isn't Apple's first horse and pony show, so the company will most likely issue a software upgrade that fixes the glitch, but it serves as yet another reminder that consumers should be very careful with personal information. As always, concerned customers are encouraged to contact Apple with any question, but almost as important is, concerned customers should read the
Wired Magazine article
here.
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Posted by GetHuman on Tue, 26 Apr 2011 3:44pm