A class-action lawsuit filed in California alleges that, “Apple’s assurances and promises regarding privacy are utterly false.”
The lawsuit is based on the work of a security researcher who claims that many of Apple’s own applications send detailed analytics information to the developer even after users ask them to stop.
Apple accused of falling short on privacy promises
Apple says over and over that “privacy is a fundamental human right.” Which sets a very high bar.
Elliot Libman accused the company of not living up to its promises. He proposed a federal class action lawsuit alleging the iPhone-maker is violating the California Invasion of Privacy Act, according to Bloomberg.
“Even when consumers follow Apple’s own instructions and turn off ‘Allow Apps to Request to Track’ and/or ‘Share [Device] Analytics’ on their privacy controls, Apple nevertheless continues to record consumers’ app usage, app browsing communications, and personal information in its proprietary Apple apps, including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple TV, Books, and Stocks,” the lawsuit claims.
Apple apps allegedly track users every move
Libman’s proposed class action lawsuit references the findings of Tommy Mysk, a security researcher. He analyzed the network traffic of the App Store app in iOS and says it tracks users every move.
“As the user browses the App Store app, detailed usage data is sent to Apple simultaneously,” the researcher notes via Twitter. “The data contains IDs to map the behavior to a profile.”
Mysk released a video demonstrating his findings:
Based on these findings, Libman’s lawsuit says, “Apple’s practices infringe upon consumers’ privacy; intentionally deceive consumers; give Apple and its employees power to learn intimate details about individuals’ lives, interests, and app usage; and make Apple a potential target for ‘one-stop shopping’ by any government, private, or criminal actor who wants to undermine individuals’ privacy, security, or freedom.”
A class-action lawsuit allows an individual or a few people to bring a lawsuit on behalf of a large group. That’s what Libman is attempting to do. It will be up to a judge to decide if his suit justifies covering a larger group of iPhone users.
