Steve Jobs Responds to iOS Location-Tracking Controversy

<i>Allegedly</i> responds. This supposed response came from an anonymous MacRumors.com reader:<p><a href="http://www.macrumors.com/2011/04/25/steve-jobs-on-ios-location-issue-we-dont-track-anyone/" rel="nofollow">http://www.macrumors.com/2011/04/25/steve-jobs-on-ios-locati...</a>

Correct me if I am wrong. Jobs is technically correct. Apple does not track anyone's location. Your iphone does. And in their infinite wisdom, Apple decided to store these footprints in the phone, rather unsecurely. Stupid? Yes.<p>And a one line response from Steve does not maketh the problem go away. This adds more fuel to the fire, if you ask me.<p>But I am hoping that with more awareness being brought on by these screw ups (intentional or otherwise) may finally be the reason for the frog to leap out of the tepid water. I don't believe we will give up the benefits of sharing our location completely for the sake of privacy.<p>The least desirable route in my opinion would be the regulatory route, where "Prescient" Uncle Sam dictates the rules. Which is why today's technology companies must collaborate in protecting the privacy of their customers, and build that in today. For them, an empty boiling pot or a dead frog, both are compelling reasons to change their ways today.

I'm not sure a glib one sentence reply, basically saying "does not!" qualifies as an effective response. I'm reminded of antennagate.<p>"Steve, my phone loses signal."<p>"Does not."<p>"Yes. It does. I have video."<p>"Well then don't hold it that way."<p>"What?!?!?!!"<p>"Well, since ALL phones do this, I guess we'll fix it. Sort of."

That your cell phone reports on your location is old news -- you do have to connect to a geographically dispersed network of cell towers, after all.<p>Assuming Apple (and other vendors) aren't using the data for evil (if at all), might it be possible that they could use that info for QA purposes? i.e. to correlate complaints and return rates to signal-related "problem areas" that they could use as leverage with the phone companies.<p>Are we sure location info is all that is stored?

I don't know what Apple has but people and the media are making out of _everything_ a big thing when it has something to do with Apple.<p>Stop it.

That apple collects "non-personal" location data isn't a secret. Look at their privacy policy:<p><a href="http://www.apple.com/privacy/" rel="nofollow">http://www.apple.com/privacy/</a><p>Some details as to what and why they collect data was provided by Apple to Congress last year:<p><a href="http://markey.house.gov/docs/applemarkeybarton7-12-10.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://markey.house.gov/docs/applemarkeybarton7-12-10.pdf</a><p><a href="http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Web-Services-Web-20-and-SOA/Apple-Tells-Congressmen-it-Batches-Encrypts-Location-Data-411968/" rel="nofollow">http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Web-Services-Web-20-and-SOA/Apple-T...</a><p>Some additional information as to what's going on is at:<p><a href="http://alexlevinson.wordpress.com/2011/04/23/3-new-thoughts-on-mobile-location/" rel="nofollow">http://alexlevinson.wordpress.com/2011/04/23/3-new-thoughts-...</a><p>Note the emphasis in all of this on "non-personal". As somebody else pointed out, Steve Jobs is technically correct in the statement he (supposedly) made.

If you're using Android then you're logged into your Google account all the time. Whenever you make a Google search your location is logged as part of the search data (I'm in Tuscaloosa, AL; I Google "Birmingham" and it points me to "Birmingham, AL" not "Birmingham, UK"). Google routinely logs all search query data. Google loves data.<p>So [alleged] Jobs is right about Google and Android. As for the other stuff, who knows.<p>Now it's important to know that if you're going to commit a crime or something that your iPhone may retain information to trip up your alibi, but that's very different from being routinely tracked by the vendor of your phone's OS. (But we all use Google and it tracks all of us, so learn to love it.)

I could understand the usefulness of this data to improve their designs, it's justified. But I just don't get why would they keep this data indefinitely?<p>I don't believe they couldn't foresee that this could be a marketing disaster, people is already paranoid enough.