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If You're Connected, Apple Collects Your Data

fyngyrz (762201) writes It would seem that no matter how you configure Yosemite, Apple is listening. Keeping in mind that this is only what's been discovered so far, and given what's known to be going on, it's not unthinkable that more is as well. Should users just sit back and accept this as the new normal? It will be interesting to see if these discoveries result in an outcry, or not. Is it worse than the data collection recently reported in a test version of Windows?

7 of 313 comments (clear)

  1. Yes, worse by Zaelath · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Of course it's much worse than the data collection from a "technical preview". It's whole purpose is to discover how people use the damn thing and you sign up to be a guinea-pig in exchange for getting the advanced access.

    However, it's "to be expected" from Apple. You don't own their phones or laptops, they own you.

  2. Of course it's worse by msobkow · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Microsoft is testing a release candidate and is informing users of what they're monitoring.

    So far no one has complained about onerous licensing agreements with Yosemite, which seems to imply that Apple is not informing users about it.

    Until Microsoft has a production release, it's not even fair to compare the two.

    --
    I do not fail; I succeed at finding out what does not work.
  3. Re:If you want results from the web by blackest_k · · Score: 4, Insightful

    um no.
    you didn't read the link the string was sent to duck duck go and also sent to apple there is no need for the search string to go to both.

    if the user was using apple to search then of course the search string should go to apple but if its sent to google then it shouldn't go to apple as well.

  4. Re:Doesn't look like much by anagama · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I think I understand -- you are saying the software operates as designed, so no problems here.

    I think what you aren't getting is that the way the software is designed is what ticks off people who care about their privacy.

    Seriously, why should mail.app inform apple that I set up an account randomMailHost.com? That the software does leads you to write [closed: behaves correctly]. This is not at all "correct" from many users' points of view -- you should use a phrase that is more factual and uses words with less judgment involved, for example: [closed: behaves as _designed_ (and if you don't like the design, suck it)].

    --
    What changed under Obama? Nothing Good
  5. That's absurd, aim your hate cannon elsewhere. by Brannon · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Apple has an excellent track record on privacy issues. Not because they are super nice people, but because that's not their business model.

    They don't make money by selling user information to third parties or by selling ads, they make money by selling actual physical objects to end-consumers. I'm not sure what you mean by "it's to be expected from Apple", but I'm pretty sure you just made that up because you don't like Apple's customers (probably because you met somebody who likes Apple products who has a more expensive haircut than you).

  6. Re:Yay :D by anagama · · Score: 4, Insightful

    There is a distinction in how you interact with a browser, and the actual content of your searches. Blurring this line is pretty ugly. Apple needs to know stuff like: The user clicked in the search field, typed stuff, and then because of a 60s delay in executing the search, probably couldn't see or understand the search icon, and clearly didn't know to press return (or the phone rang). To get this, Apple doesn't need to know what the person typed. But if that is the claim -- the need to know what is typed -- why not just enable the video camera and microphone too -- that would make it easier to figure out if the person is having problems with the Safari interface, or just answering a text on his phone. I'm guessing people would be sort of grossed out by that, but it fits right in with what you say they need, so why not go total surveillance?

    --
    What changed under Obama? Nothing Good
  7. Re: Yay :D by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 4, Insightful

    If you don't trust an OS vendor, isn't using a network monitoring tool on a different host entirely, with physical access to the wire, pretty much the only way to go? If they were so motivated, the OS would basically be a rootkit with device drivers and a userspace API...