It’s Data Privacy Day and Apple has used the occasion to increase awareness about the importance of protecting people’s personal information online and within apps.
This is an area where Apple has been quite vocal because the company and its products offer users transparency and control over what data is collected and how it is used.
Apple is commemorating Data Privacy Day by sharing “A Day in the Life of your Data” – a eye-opening report that details how companies track your user data across websites and apps.
The report also goes on to illustrate how privacy features across the Apple portfolio of products and services.
“Privacy means peace of mind, it means security, and it means you are in the driver’s seat when it comes to your own data,” said Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering.
“Our goal is to create technology that keeps people’s information safe and protected. We believe privacy is a fundamental human right, and our teams work every day to embed it in everything we make.”
A Day in the Life of your Data will help users understand how third party companies collect their data and how they use it.
Also in the report is a description of the tools Apple provides their customers to make tracking more transparent and allow them to take control.
Apps on average have six trackers from other companies which are designed to collect and track people and their personal information.
And this data is aggregated, shared and monetised in an industry now valued at more than $US227 billion per year.
With iOS 14, Apple launched a number of privacy features to help users make a more informed decision on the data they share.
The App Store now has a much clearer information section – like a privacy nutrition label – so users get an instant summary on the developer’s privacy policy.
In Apple’s next beta update, the company will introduce App Tracking Transparency which will require apps to get the user’s permission before tracking their data across apps or websites owned by other companies.
In the Settings, users will be able to see which apps have requested permission to track and make changes to those settings if necessary.
Over the years, Apple has created technologies to protect user privacy and help keep data safe.
Safari was the first browser to block third-party cookies by default as far back as 2005.
In iOS 11 and macOS High Sierra, Safari added Intelligent Tracking Prevention to further limit tracking while still enabling websites to function normally.
And In 2018, Apple initiated protections to prevent companies from fingerprinting Mac — a practice in which third parties try to identify users devices based on data like fonts and plug-ins.
