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Is Apple Tracking iPhone Users Through IMEI?

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the putting-on-the-foil-hats dept.

ariefwn writes ""As I sit here applying a new layer of Reynolds tin foil to my international hat of conspiracy, its been proven that Apple tracks iPhone usage and tracks IMEI numbers of all their iPhones worldwide. Hidden in the code of the 'Stocks' and 'Weather' widgets is a string that sends the IMEI of your phone to a specialized URL that Apple collects. I wonder if there will be any implications to owners of hacked iPhones..."

17 of 218 comments (clear)

  1. Just a few more minutes... by mattgreen · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm waiting for someone to respond with an eight page analysis of why this isn't really a big deal, complete with immaculate formatting and excellent grammar. Then everyone simply looks at the length of the post and says, "aha! see, it ISN'T a problem! Not that I read it all, but I'm with *this* guy!"

    Don't let me down.

    1. Re:Just a few more minutes... by ironwill96 · · Score: 4, Funny

      Ok here goes.

      This

      isn't

      really

      that

      big

      of

      a

      deal.

      I'm feeling better already, what about you?

      --
      "To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield." - Tennyson
    2. Re:Just a few more minutes... by mattgreen · · Score: 4, Funny

      You, sir, win, by not only failing to bite at my semi-troll, but actually having a laugh yourself.

      Well-played.

    3. Re:Just a few more minutes... by Valiss · · Score: 5, Funny

      I didn't read the whole thing, but I'm with that guy.

      --

      -Valiss
  2. Well... by abaddononion · · Score: 5, Funny

    At least it's Apple tracking you, not AT&T?

    Wait...

    1. Re:Well... by Typoboy · · Score: 2, Funny

      Right, AT&T has no possible way of tracking you, where you are, which cell tower you are talking to, etc.. oh wait </sarcasm>

  3. iPod Touch by jolyonr · · Score: 4, Funny

    Of course, if I happened to be running the Stocks and Weather applications on my iPod Touch it wouldn't have an IMEI number to send, would it? Not that I am running those applications on my ipod, because that of course isn't allowed.

    Jolyon

    --


    Please read my Canon EOS tech blog at http://www.everyothershot.com
    1. Re:iPod Touch by rvw · · Score: 2, Funny

      Of course, if I happened to be running the Stocks and Weather applications on my iPod Touch it wouldn't have an IMEI number to send, would it? Not that I am running those applications on my ipod, because that of course isn't allowed. Well it could send the serial number instead of the IMEI.
    2. Re:iPod Touch by sumdumass · · Score: 2, Funny

      I don't know if it is an IMEI but when you sort things like stocks you want to watch or personalized weather as well as weather local to your direct vicinity, it has to send something to identify who your are and likely the your location. So I guess the question is, does this information need to identify the person, is there any way around that and does apple in fact store it? If so for how long and why?

      I'm not even sure this is a bad thing. It all depends on the stuff we don't know yet. To some, anything is a bad thing. But then again everyone is out to get them.

  4. That's not IMEI... by Rastignac · · Score: 2, Funny

    That's iMEI !
    Like all others Apple iThings.

    --
    -- Rastignac was here.
  5. Re:Yes, and the problem is? by wattrlz · · Score: 5, Funny

    And if someone got it off eBay? In that case they can probably afford to sue.
  6. Tinfoil... by Notquitecajun · · Score: 2, Funny

    So, should people start wrapping their iPhones in tinfoil?

  7. Get your facts straight... by LWATCDR · · Score: 4, Funny

    "As I sit here applying a new layer of Reynolds tin foil to my international hat of conspiracy,"
    Reynolds doesn't make tin foil. They make aluminum foil! There is a big difference between Tin and Aluminum!

    --
    See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
  8. simple solution by eck011219 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Just use your phone in a Faraday cage, and they can't track you at all.

    --
    It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.
  9. Re:well by Chyeld · · Score: 2, Funny

    I, for one, welcome Steve Jobs as our new overlord.

    New? When did he stop?

  10. Reynolds? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    I'm sorry, but Reynolds tin foil isn't really an option anymore, because they use aluminum alloy (look at the bottom of the FAQ). It isn't even pure aluminum anymore! It's getting harder and harder to find a genuine tin foil manufacturer. It's a conspiracy, I tell you!

  11. Re:Yes, and the problem is? by Swift2001 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Yeah, and who cares about that totalitarianism stuff. At least your iPhone is free!