WHATAPP is a surveillance app in its own right -- unless one believes everywhere where you go, what you type, almost everyone you know, almost everything you buy (among others) recorded into a single profile of you isn't surveillance.

With that said, this guy is absolutely right. Apple was wimpy on this, feeble. They put out a media department canned answer. Apple doesn't scour and record everything you do in order to monetize iit and this is their response? Weak...  

M68000 said:

Why are people so up in arms about this?  If you have nothing to hide 

Is this post for real? An actual serious point? Wow...

Fyi to the rest of the world. Privacy is one of the fundamental tenants of any level of freedom. When the powerful get to know everything you do/think/say, they will always (and I do mean always) make sure you abide by what they dictate. The very fact that the powerful can't see and know means their power, at least to some degree, is in check. 

One of the most pernicious arguments the powerful use is "As long as you have nothing to hide" or "as long as you have done nothing wrong". Everyone has something to hide, everyone has done something "wrong"(though it may not be illegally wrong), everyone has some level of thoughts and words that go against what others believe is acceptable. And everyone has done something actually illegal (there are many thousands of laws and regulations in the books. it would be impossible to live a life without crossing sentences if the massive volumes knows as law and regulation). 
The powerful use a very interesting tactic of equivocation. They try to lump ordinary people in with grossly illegal behaviors like kiddie porn peddlers -- i.e. well those despicable people have something to hide. Now why do you have something to hide. 
See how that works?

pulseimages said:

Does Apple typically offer last year’s model at a discount at the Apple Store when the new iPhone’s are released? 

Often but not a guarantee. A lot will depend on inventory. IME best times are Jan/Feb (after holiday) and slowest sales time which is usually Apple's Q3 (calendar Q2). On this second one, I got the GPS only Watch S6 in mid May, 319$. I also got APPs at 189 late May. Both were lowest or closest to lowest prices all time But I just saw here on AI S6 hit near flat 300$. I'd be surprised if Jan/Feb we don't see S6 possibly get a bit below 300. But this year may not be the year for it. Part shortages + Apple's sales have been gigantic. Their builds have barely been keeping with demand on a number of products. If if sales are titanic again this Holiday season, deals may not materialize.   

Ultimately, IMHO, If you can afford it just set up an email alert at Slickdeals for new lowest price(look to see what is the last lowest price they've seen too). Also keep an eye out here at AI. When you see something in the ballpark of that price, jump on it right when it happens.  Again, if you can afford it, the 25 bucks you might save just isn't worth the long wait and chance that you'll have waited for no deal to materialize. 

lkrupp said:

All the love for China here. I guess it’s a prelude to total acceptance ArchStanton said:

If China is serious then require App tracking to be turned off by default. Now the only thing that can be collected is within a specific app's usage (as it should be).

It would be a punch to the gut for some companies (big and.not so big) and I don't like to see people lose their jobs, but surveillance capitalism isn't something that should have been relied on for mega billions in the first place.  

“Surveillance capitalism”? What kind of babbling bullshit is this? 

You can read either book listed below (or at least do article reading at eff.org). Then you can respond regarding "babbling bullshit" with some knowledge of the subject.

You and your own opinion on the subject not withstanding, it is important to anyone else reading this: make no mistake, huge amounts of your private data is collected by many companies (Google and Facebook are collecting the most, but not even remotely close to the only ones). This is done in significant part thanks to App Tracking (one installed App tracks what you do across your others apps/phone).  If someone thinks this is no big dea, like who I am responding to, then this reply isn't for you. For those that do care, especially ones railing against CSAM with Apple, understand Apple is by far one of the least data collecting Companies out there. And if you are going to be upset about what Apple has done, open your eyes to the massive data collection that is going on constantly. 
Don't take my word for it, request your free emailed copy of your data from Apple, Google, Facebook (just expect Google and Facebook downloads to take a long time). 


How To Destroy Surveillance Capitalism by Cory Doctorow

The Age Of Surveillance Capitalism by Shoshana Zuboff

(Both available in e copy)

dee_dee said:

I’m a pretty big Apple fan, but when someone pays $1000 + for a phone, they deserve the right to do what they want with it.  I will still use the App Store, and I’m sure lots still will.  But if someone wants to side load god knows what and is fine with the risk then go right ahead. 

Big fan? Huh, my memory must be bad on that. Thought I’d Been reading recent posts from you on your dislike of Apple policy, dislike Apple’s file pro, etc. Maybe I’m thinking of someone else. 

Rayz2016 said:

ArchStanton said:

Rayz2016 said:

Hah! I said:

The more I read about this, the more ridiculous it sounds. 
Apple spends the past three years banging on about privacy, then starts scanning your photo library?
I don’t buy it, and no one would buy another iPhone if they thought their lives could be ruined by buggy software. 
The only way I see this being acceptable is if this so-called “client-side tool” would allow parents to ensure their children weren’t sending naked pics of themselves to Republican politicians posing as high-school kids. 

Okay, so this is about the kids, fair enough, but I think what we’re seeing here is the very thin edge of very wide edge. 

Thing edge to a very wide edge? How so?

Yeah, sorry, I meant “very wide wedge”. 

But what is the very wide wedge? What do you suspect this change by Apple potentially leads to?

China the country and government mandates what happens in China. They will be offended by certain things, full stop. 
United States the country and government mandates what happens in the United States, They will be offended by certain things, full stop.
Those from one place feeling outrage because those in the other places don't do it like your place need to stop substituting feelings and what they see on TV for actual thought, full stop.
Those who think other countries do bad things and believe bad things, but mine doesn't do any of that need to take their heads out of the clouds and read a book, full stop.
People that think a company should only sell products in places that are like the place you live in lack an ability to see outside their confirmation bias, extra full stop. 

Apple "fan" sites are becoming less and less Apple tech talk and more like the supermarket checkout aisle magazines. Can't wait for the eventual headline -- Report: Tim Cook Impregnates Alien so iOS Can Conquer The Galaxy

Excellent news. But again why wasn't Apple highlighting these kind of items right from the get go? IMHO Apple management made it a bad situation that a proper roll out could have significantly lessened. 

If China is serious then require App tracking to be turned off by default. Now the only thing that can be collected is within a specific app's usage (as it should be).

It would be a punch to the gut for some companies (big and.not so big) and I don't like to see people lose their jobs, but surveillance capitalism isn't something that should have been relied on for mega billions in the first place.  

mobird said:

Wonder if a injunction by who knows who might put a kabash on the release date of iOS 15?

 

Not a chance to succeed because you do not have to use iCloud. But if you use iCloud, within iCloud's ToS will be the verbiage that covers what Apple will do as part of the agreement to use the service.  Courts (and the populace in general) allowed this cat out of the bag many years ago. 

Consider: when Govs and Orgs ultimately just can't get the company to bend to their will,  they then get at one of the links in the chain of that business. Banks, credit processing, shipping are some of the places they can alternately get to upstream or downstream -- this is getting at a company by other means when that company refuses to submit.  Porn sites have been feeling this regulation/lawfare squeeze for some time now -- regulation/law fare getting at the money system these sites depend on -- forcing them to obey or drive them out of business. It isn't just porn they're doing this to.
Make no mistake, Apple didn't just put this new policy in place because it was simply part of a business plan. This is got the long arm of Govs/Orgs written all over it.