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Earlier this week, China's state-run media broadcast labeled the iPhone a "national security concern" over Apple's Location Services feature found in iOS 7, with the country's researchers stating that the data could lead to accessing highly-sensitive data in China.
Today, Apple officially responded to the controversy on its Chinese website. The statement, which was posted in both Chinese and English, starts off by reiterating the company's commitment to privacy and stating that its Location Services exist solely to help users for activities that require navigation:
Our customers want and expect their mobile devices to be able to quickly and reliably determine their current locations for specific activities such as shopping, travel, finding the nearest restaurant or calculating the amount of time it takes them to get to work. We do this at the device level. Apple does not track users’ locations – Apple has never done so and has no plans to ever do so.
Apple also states that it does not have access to the Frequent Locations data on any iPhone, noting that access to the information can be turned off and is only used to provide commuting information and automatic routing as requested by the user:
Frequent Locations are only stored on a customer’s iOS device, they are not backed up on iTunes or iCloud, and are encrypted. Apple does not obtain or know a user’s Frequent Locations and this feature can always be turned "Off" via our privacy settings.
Apple does not have access to Frequent Locations or the location cache on any user’s iPhone at any time. We encrypt the cache by the user’s passcode and it is protected from access by any app.
Apple concludes the statement by saying that it has "never worked with any government agency from any country" to create backdoor access in any of its products, and vows to never allow access to its servers. Last year, the company shared a sentiment in its "Commitment to Customer Privacy" letter which was issued after the discovery of the NSA's secret intelligence program, PRISM.
China has become an increasingly important market for Apple, as the company has made moves over the past few years to improve its presence in the country. Last year, the company partnered with the region's biggest carrier China Mobile and opened more retail stores throughout populated areas. CEO Tim Cook has also made a number of visits to China, meeting with Beijing's mayor and the Chinese Vice Premier to discuss market growth.
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Top Rated Comments
Since when did China care about its citizens' privacy?
They would prefer citizens use phones they themselves can track
Apple has always done the opposite and even has a business model to back that stance up.
I suspect the media have gotten confused as to where there arse and elbow are located at?
The US and UK are heading at break neck speed towards a very scary Orwellian future and I'm usually the sort of guy that finds conspiracies like that silly. But after the NSA/GCHQ revelations and the total lack of action over it, as well as spying on world leaders (Merkel) and the anti-'terrorism' laws that were very recently rushed through parliament here I have to assume the worst and expect that my civil rights to be totally disregarded.
I usually consider UK justice to be ridiculously pathetic, but every few months I see people going to prison for an offence tweet or Facebook messages - stuff that while distasteful should by no means land you in prison - it's not in the near future, government control over our digital life's in a way I find immoral and illegal is already prolific. It needs to stop.
When governments are scared of their people there is liberty, where people are scared of their governments there is tyranny and all that. All the stuff the founding fathers said over the pond like oppressive tyrinacal governments, banks representing a bigger threat than armies etc is all happening today.
Anything to defend ourselves against them commies, or is it Muslims? Or terrorists? What's the media/governments flavour of the month?
America, c'mon please wake up. A two party system that's completely at the servitude of lobbyists is no fit way to run a democratic country.
As a Brit I am between a rock and a hard place, my government hasn't represented the people in a long time, the EU is becoming more autocratic by the day, the US is going down the toilet, Russia is kicking up a mess in the east of Europe and who do I get to realistically vote for? A complete freak of a champagne socialist and coward or a conservative who is only interested in selling off every national asset to his mates at rock bottom prices...
Christ at least in China I would be under no false pretences.