Beginning with iOS 6, Apple will now prompt you before allowing any app to access your personal data. This includes not only your contacts, but calendars, reminders, and photo library as well. In addition to these dialog boxes, iOS 6 also includes a new privacy section where you can manage fine-grain controls over which apps can use your data.
This new privacy section allows you to revoke any app access to your information at any time, should you feel the need. In addition, Apple allows you to control which apps and services can use your location, in greater detail than ever before.
This is very similar to what Apple is doing in Mountain Lion, where users are also prompted any time an app wishes to use personal data. This, along with Gatekeeper, also debuting in Mountain Lion, paints a very clear picture of how seriously Apple is beginning to take privacy.
Whether these are steps Apple wants to take, or whether they are being pressured into increasing privacy and security measures is yet unknown. Just recently, Apple came under fire after Path, a social networking application, was revealed to be uploading the entire contents of users’ Address Books to its servers.
As both the iPhone and iPad grow in popularity, it’s clear that Apple will need to continue to make sure the privacy of users is protected to the greatest extent possible, due to the increased amount of pressure Apple is being put under.
Apple obviously realizes this too, and they are continuing to provide more privacy and security options in every release of not only iOS, but OS X as well. This is a big change from only a few years ago, when Apple first added basic anti-malware to OS X, 8 years late.
Via: MacRumors
Michael Steeber is a student who is obsessed with everything Apple. He enjoys making videos and runs the MSComputerVideos YouTube channel in his free time. You can follow him on Twitter as well.
7 responses to “With iOS 6, Apple Is Now Requiring Permission For Apps To Access Personal Data”
Didn’t you guys post basically the exact same article as this just the other day?
Doesn’t this just mean Path could have “asked” for access to Contacts and still gone ahead and uploaded the data?
Yeah, definitely quite similar to Mountain Lion’s Gatekeeper. Also, anyone notice the slick frosted look of the dock in 10.8? The reflections are also blurred. If anyone wants to try out the iOS 6 beta you can register your UDID here:
Want to take advantage of iOS6? Visit our website at http://www.registermyudid.info to register your UDID and gain access to iOS6 TODAY.
I’m a big fan of this, mostly so I can be nosy on what apps want from me lol
Has anyone noticed that if you are logged in to your facebook account using settings app then every time you try to download an app form app store or just view the app detail, the App store app asks you to access your facebook account. If you decline it, it will ask you every time even if you flick to next app in app store in detailed veiw. So much annoying :(
Steve Jobs said in D10 that he wanted people to be prompted everytime they started an app that needed personal data. Why do you always post things obvious things? Blogs are the slums of the Internet…