Switch to iPhone: For better privacy and security

By Rene Ritchie
last updated

There's never been a better time to switch to iPhone. Whether you're tempted for yourself or looking to help the Android owner in your life, the all-new, all-better iPhone 6 and iPhone-6-plus make the move more compelling than ever — especially when you add the value of privacy and security.

The value of privacy

Everything has a cost. Some things cost money, and we can easily see that reflected in our bank or credit balances. Other things cost time, and we can see it tick away on the clock. When things come at the cost of our attention or our data, however, they can be harder to see, and the price can be harder to appreciate.

Who's emailing us and about what. Who's meeting us and when. What we're searching for and looking at on the web. Our location, our identity, the names and contact information of our friends and family. All of this is invaluable, yet many of us are happy to give it away to save a few dollars on a gadget or a service.

Privacy is so important we've enacted reams of laws to protect ourselves against its invasion, criminally and civilly. Yet technology has made it not only easy, but attractive to barter is away without a second thought.

Yet that's starting to change. Privacy and its true value is starting to become part of the discussion. With the iPhone, Apple has gone so far as to make privacy one of its most important features.

Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, in an open letter on privacy from Apple.com (opens in new tab):

A few years ago, users of Internet services began to realize that when an online service is free, you're not the customer. You're the product. But at Apple, we believe a great customer experience shouldn't come at the expense of your privacy.Our business model is very straightforward: We sell great products. We don't build a profile based on your email content or web browsing habits to sell to advertisers. We don't "monetize" the information you store on your iPhone or in iCloud. And we don't read your email or your messages to get information to market to you. Our software and services are designed to make our devices better. Plain and simple.

Last week the President of the United States, Barack Obama, held a summit on Cybersecurity. Tim Cook accepted the invitation to be there, unlike the CEOs from competitors Google and Facebook . Some saw their lack of attendance as a protest. Others saw it as recognition that the very idea of privacy threatens their data-collecting business models. For Apple and Tim Cook, it was literally a "matter of life and death".

If you get an iPhone and use iCloud mail, Apple doesn't scan it so they can insert ads. If you turn on Siri, Apple doesn't demand you share your web activity with them in order to use even its most basic features. If you use Apple's Health app, you get to individually control read and write permissions, per app or accessory. That way, for example, if you choose not to share your blood glucose levels with your insurance company, rather than know you're not sharing it, they don't even know it exists.

What's more, if you decide you do want to use Google services or apps, you can use many of them like YouTube and Maps without being logged in, which while not a perfect shield, does help preserve some level of privacy.

Here's what iMore reader jayzero76 shared:

I bought a gold 64GB [iPhone 5s] when it came out! Love my Mac and MacBook! Got a chance to buy a [OnePlus One] and bought one to give it a try! I like Google but when I saw the facts behind it that makes me worry about security! Just check out Google dashboard and see what Google all collected from us!

To make an absurd analogy, it's the difference between buying your dinner and walking away, and getting given a lobster dinner for free and then wondering what's expected from you after. If that sounds unnecessarily creepy, that's because it is.

In a world where Google bought and developed Android to prevent their getting cut off from data during the mobile transition, Apple positioning privacy as a feature may be brilliant marketing, but it's also incredible attractive to anyone who wants to buy a product and not be a product.

Updating security

The iPhone didn't just revolutionize the mobile phone, it revolutionized mobile security. Apple built it not only to be security-first — sandboxed and protected against the kinds of malware and viruses that plagued Windows desktops of the day — but they built it to be updatable against threats of the future as well.

From the start, Apple knew it had to take control of software updates to make sure every iPhone, on every carrier, in every country got them on time and all at the same time. That continued as the iPhone expanded, and as iCloud allowed for over-the-air updates.

Contrast that to Android where updates are at the mercy of manufacturers and carriers who have somewhere between zero to no interest in pushing out updates and patches to older devices.

Google recently received attention for failing to patch a security vulnerability in Android's WebView. Android Central:

It's easy to confuse the symptom — WebView vulnerabilities — with the root cause. The real problem isn't that Google won't update Jelly Bean's WebView, but that so many devices are still running Android 4.3 and below with little prospect of being updated, regardless of whatever action Google might take. Even if Google were to issue patches for Jelly Bean's WebView code (and Ice Cream Sandwich's, and Gingerbread's), users would still be waiting on OEMs (and carriers) to push out firmware updates, just as they're waiting on Android 4.4 today. And if the manufacturers of these devices were inclined to push out updates at all, chances are they wouldn't be stuck on Android 4.3 or earlier to begin with.

This is all absolutely true. If I was an Android customer, however, it also absolutely shouldn't be my problem. It should be taken care of by some of the most powerful companies in the world, because it would be the right thing for them to do.

With the iPhone, the the latest iOS 8.1.3 software update didn't just push out to the latest iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus handsets, it pushed out to the iPhone 4s, originally released three and a half years ago in the fall of 2011.

If you'd bought an iPhone 4s on launch day, you'd now have enjoyed updates from iOS 5 to iOS 8. That includes new features like turn-by-turn navigation and extensions, bug fixes and performance enhancements, and security updates. The same time, every time.

Moreover, Apple's App Store and sandboxing model means you're protected against downloading viruses and malware, end-to-end encryption protects your communications, and the company's activation lock service makes your iPhone a far less attractive target for thieves.

Just like it's hard to put a dollar value on privacy, it's hard to put a dollar value on the peace of mind that comes from security, and from Apple delivering those updates month after month, year after year.

Time to switch!

Apple has made privacy and security table-stakes. The company has bet their reputation on respecting and safe-guarding customer data. As a customer, that's not only comforting to me, it's compelling.

It tells me that the full weight and will of one of the most powerful and focused companies in the world is bent on giving me great products rather than turning me into their greatest product.

And those are just two of the benefits of switching to iPhone.

Rene Ritchie
Rene Ritchie
Contributor

Rene Ritchie is one of the most respected Apple analysts in the business, reaching a combined audience of over 40 million readers a month. His YouTube channel, Vector, has over 90 thousand subscribers and 14 million views and his podcasts, including Debug, have been downloaded over 20 million times. He also regularly co-hosts MacBreak Weekly for the TWiT network and co-hosted CES Live! and Talk Mobile. Based in Montreal, Rene is a former director of product marketing, web developer, and graphic designer. He's authored several books and appeared on numerous television and radio segments to discuss Apple and the technology industry. When not working, he likes to cook, grapple, and spend time with his friends and family.

110 Comments
  • "If you get an iPhone and use iCloud mail, Apple doesn't scan it so they can insert ads." But they still scan it, including the attachments. What is the difference? "It tells me that the full weight and will of one of the most powerful and focused companies in the world is bent on giving me great products rather than turning me into their greatest product." Can you tell us who is turning us into their greatest product?
  • "Can you tell us who is turning us into their greatest product?" I'm sure he's referring to Google.
  • Google, Facebook, and any company whose primary profit stream is advertising or the resale of data for marketing, now?
  • Apart that there is no resale data, the product is ad space, not the user. It must be funny how do you have to retort the thing to exclude iAds from the nonsensical and FUD spreading "you're the product". No, with Google we are not the product, the product is ad space for the advertisers, and no, we are not the product with iAds, the product is ad space for the advertisers. But taking into account that almost all of the claims in this "article" are wrong, this site is becoming a bad copy of Appleinsider.
  • Dude, (Oletros) you are completely wrong about this. You're just using semantics to explain the world to yourself according how you *think* it is, instead of just seeing how it is. If Google's product is "Ad Space" as you say, then the user is the product because "Ad Space" is not some etherial thing that exists outside of the consumer. You also neglect to include the fact that the product is actually "TARGETED Ad Space," or in other words, ad space specific to the individual consumer/product. That inclusion alone makes an epic difference to your simplistic analysis. You also falsely equate Google's product with Apple's in that iAd has a wall between the consumer data and the advertisement, when Google's ads do the exact opposite.
  • "You also falsely equate Google's product with Apple's in that iAd has a wall between the consumer data and the advertisement, when Google's ads do the exact opposite." This is false, but it is an exercise of futility trying to explain anything here. The
  • What your not understanding is the ad space that Google is selling is your ad space. The only people that see those ads are you because Google is selling their real customers that space. Now let's talk about how they get that. Your data. 96% of all Googles revenue comes from selling ads. This is why they spend so much on Android, Gmail, Google Maps, Google Plus, etc, etc, and etc and then turn around and give it away for free. I promise it is not because Google is mr nice guy internet company that just wants the Internet to be a better place. They are a company out to make money they do that and the whole time you are not their customer. You are instead a mine for data. They mine that with their free services and sell it to the highest bidder who just so happens to be their real customers. Come on man this isn't that hard to understand. Android users need to be smarter than this. Where do you think they make all their money if they are giving away everything for free? Don't act like you can't explain something because we are all to dense with apple love to understand because you and I know you can't explain this because there is no mr nice guy Google explanation.
  • You are missing his point. Google does not sell your actual data, because that would kill the goose that lays their golden eggs. Google mines your data, without question, but their incentives are to keep that data to themselves and sell products based on projections drawn from that data. If they sold your actual data, they would not longer be able to sell those projections, their customers would have less need for them, and their revenues would shrink pretty quickly. Sent from the iMore App
  • You say tomato I say tomoto. You can spin it how you want, but Google mines your data through their free apps and sells that data (such as your search, where you eat, what you do, your emails, your social networking, and pretty much everything you do on your android device) to people that sell ads. Maybe you don't care about ads, but I would rather not see them. Sure, Google doesn't sell the actual data, but is there really a difference? They do all this and never let anyone know to what extent that they gather data (such as what al they gather) and what exactly is being sold. It is because of this neither you nor I can actually know what they do or who they are in bed with. My point stands that Google is not the Mr Nice Guy that they try and make the selves out to be. If they were any other company people would be demanding to know what is being gathered and sold, but they make good products that they give away for free. Your free to make that trade, and the last few years I've felt the same as I dont have anything to hide, but watching some of the ads they are using on me they only could have gotten by my emails (which scares the hell out of me) and/or search terms and those are not even necessarily when I go to Google.com. Do you remember a year or so back they pled guilty to installing malware to collect data on macs even without people using their free products? Why do we forget about these kinds of things? With great power comes great responsibility and what they've done goes a little to Far the other way for me to feel comfortable with it anymore. We all should take our privacy very seriously just like Rene's post says. If we don't act like it matters then that is how these companies will treat us. If we demand better they will be forced to be more transparent. With that said I appreciate the response and being civil about it. I like a good conversation instead of fanboy warfare.
  • "Stanford University’s Jonathan Mayer stumbled upon a secret that was being employed by Google and a few lesser-known Silicon Valley companies. According to his research, Google and others were relying on code that allowed them to install cookies on the devices of users that browsed the Web on Apple’s Safari. Traditionally, Safari rejects third-party cookies, although a loophole allowed Google and others to install small text file that, while making browsing more seamless for users, also allowed the company to track Internet usage."
  • Here is a link that Google settled and paid millions for this spying. This goes well beyond just selling some data to sell you ads and this is but one reason I think Google does more than we think they do. They make way too much money from ads and need this data to survive in the market. No matter how you look at it this is bad. http://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/google-settles-safari-privacy-cas...
  • That's nice for you and all, but it don't mean diddly-jack-squat when you wake up to this on your home screen; https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-kZCdY9IPzlY/VMveItAD6TI/AAAAAAABSzg/Q...
  • That's not Google though... That's from a cheap app you downloaded. You could probably pay a dollar and get rid of the ads. Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • Like Tim Cook says in the article I linked to, iAd is not a significant revenue stream for Apple. Likewise Google sells some hardware, but it's not a significant revenue stream for the company. And we're absolutely the product. It's our attention and data that gets sold. FUD is trying to convince people otherwise.
  • Yes Rene, we got it, if Apple target ads it is good, if Google does, it is bad. How anyone can thing different, it just will be FUD. What Tim Cook says it is the TRUTH and anyone thinking different will be an heretic.
  • Dude you are trying to convince a guy who's main revenue stream is running apple website. Unlike us who don't care if Apple, Google or some other company wins these guys want everyone to use apple products and knock down every other competitor product because they run Apple oriented website. Posted via the iMore App
  • LOL! Right, and the highly targeted ads that land in that "ad space" are just a happy coincidence, right?
    Look, I have no issues if you like or even prefer Google's products and services. That's fine. Just be honest with yourself and realize there is no such thing as a free service. For most people, this is just common sense. If you are not buying the product, then you ARE the product. Google is your demographic information to advertisers. That's how you are targeted with very specific ads. This isn't rocket science.
  • Rene you are drongo. Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • "Tim Cook was there, yet not a single one of Apple's competitors bothered to show up", aside from Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and Facebook; not a single one of Apples competitors bothered to show up. Apple was the only one of the bunch who decided to work with the US Homeland security department to share security data. Also it was a summit on cyber security, not privacy. Accuracy in reporting should be a goal for you guys to strive for.
  • LOL this site is so misleading. Most biased of all Mobile Nations blogs.
  • It is but I find Windows Central much worse. At least here no one screams F*** Google etc like childish morons. Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • No, they just write articles like this that just spread paranoia.
  • LoL so true! Aside from Xbox (okay, and maybe holographic glasses) everything Microsoft does is just about completly bull****
  • Disagreeing with me doesn't make me bias. It might even make for a productive intellectual discussion if we don't resort to personal attacks or name calling :)
  • Good luck with that. :(
  • I agree (mostly because you have a cool username)!
  • Calling you biased is not name calling. If I was name calling you would know it :)
  • Calling me bias means you're either unable or unwilling to have a productive adult conversation, which is disappointing but entirely your choice. I'm guessing that means there's nothing you really disagree with other than not liking me? ;)
  • Really lame response. Bias, as used, is a judgement/opinion. I didn't say you were lame, therefore engaging in name calling. I said your response is lame. Do you see the difference? I think you do but won't admit it. "Unable or unwilling to have an adult conversation (yadda, yadda)". Please do better Rene. Posted via the Android iMore App!
  • You are biased Rene. A biased drongo. Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • Wrong, all of them were there. Perhaps you're confusing CEO's not accepting an invitation with not being there.
  • The CEOs weren't there, which I assumed was clear from the context but I'll update.
  • Are you sure about that? I've read multiple articles the past few days that said Marissa Mayer (Yahoo), Page/Schmidt (Google), and Zuckerberg (Facebook) were all invited and declined the invitation. As far as I can tell, Cook was the only other prominent CEO that accepted the invitation and showed up.
  • The CEOs of those corps didn't go as they are pissed at the NSA, but... "Yahoo, Facebook, Google and Microsoft Corp. said they decided to send their top information security executives to the summit instead." http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-11/three-of-tech-s-bigges...
  • That's funny - I literally just found that article and was about to post the exact same thing.
  • I was just about to say the same thing! Posted via iMore App
  • I'll update it to be more precise. I thought no one would be too confused by that, but obviously some are.
  • Because you wrote BS... Read the post directly above yours Brian Williams... I mean Rene. Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • Mark Zuckerberg and Larry Page showed up?
  • This honestly just seems like fear mongering. Come on, Rene. And you realize that because of apples stance on security we aren't going to get great integration like Google now does. Seriously, I don't see anything wrong as long as you get a compelling service and they don't sell you specifically. Google could care less about us personaly. We're just metadata. It's not like there's some one person scanning our emails or tracking us. It's computers.
  • I'm deeply concerned that people think this is "fear mongering". It tells me we've come to attach no value to our privacy and security, and that's terrifying. You can absolutely choose to give up personal data in exchange for service. Hell, Mobile Nations runs on Google Accounts. I use Google Search. Just understand they're not doing us any favors. They're not giving us anything for free. We're paying for it, and with something just as valuable as money. I'm not trying to scare anyone, I'm trying to inform people. And when it comes off as scary, that makes me afraid :-/
  • I shouldn't have said fear mongering, I'm sorry. The only thing I was trying to say is that I feel that people can be too paranoid about this stuff. While you didn't do it, many Apple pundits seem to peg Google as this super evil company that whores us out to companies, which I don't think is the case.
    Personaly, I don't think Google has done anything to cause outrage or fear. Maybe one day they will and we will have to deal with it then. But they haven't done anything yet. So yes, I agree we should be concerned. Just not paranoid and fearful. Just keeps tabs on it and just be aware, like you said.
  • There's nothing evil about it, it's just a choice. If you don't have money for an Apple product, you can use time and build your own Linux box, or you can use attention and data and get into Google products. Each is a form of currency, none better or worse than those who wield them. I just think money and time have very direct, very immediate consequences while privacy and attention are harder to put a value on but can be more valuable. Apologies if I misunderstood your point.
  • I have money to buy Apple product, also have money to buy Google product (Nexus 6). I own both N6 and iPhone 6+ but use the N6 as daily driver because it integrates better with all my Google services. I don't mind sharing my data with Google because it adds value to my day to day life. At the same time I love my iPhone 6+, and use it as my home device. There are pros and cons of using each of them. All companies do business and are here to make money, Apple is no saint and the same applies to Google. For you, many others apple way is right and for others Google way is perfect. Posted via the iMore App
  • "It tells me we've come to attach no value to our privacy and security, and that's " Don't confuse no valuing privacy or security with the spreading of misinformation like you're doing.
  • No kidding... I doubt Google would give a damn if Renee had a Tuesday appointment to get his nails done at 10am,but he might get a coupon via an ad for the next time. Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • @NadaAddict: Nice touch with the crypto-homophobic remark you slipped in there. I notice from your posting history that you make a lot of these "sorta" homophobic remarks. Is there something you want to tell us? :-)
  • I have no idea what you're talking about... I'm not gay if you're trying to hit on me, though. Rene, is this you hiding behind a pseudonym? If not, you definitely have a fan defending your honor. Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • You're conducting yourself poorly in a community that values better conduct. My hope is that you choose to raise the quality of your participation, avoid personal attacks, and engage in productive discussion. None of what I wrote in the article was a personal attack against you or your choices. If you believe Android is a better deal for you, that's great. We're lucky to have a lot of choices these days.
  • Excuse me? That guy (who I seriously wonder if he isn't you) attacked ME on a personal level openly questioning my sexuality, and you say nothing to him? I was merely explaining that Google doesn't care if you get your nails done (a lot of guys get manicures) but might send you a coupon for the next time, and now you say I need to step it up? Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • "From the start, Apple knew it had to take control of software updates to make sure every iPhone, on every carrier, in every country got them on time and all at the same time. That continued as the iPhone expanded, and as iCloud allowed for over-the-air updates." Typical Rene BS. Apple ARE NOT updating the ip4, which they still sell in Europe on contract, to include Safari patches and other security fixes made to iOS. The ip4s they still support, but then again, they still sell that device as well, so of course they have to support it. People are today buying it on two and three year contracts that will end in 2017 and 2018 respectively.. And what comes to iCloud, the data are hosted on servers located in the USA, by Apples's conscious design, which makes all those data suscepticle for passive and/or active government spying. That is why local security experts advice iOS users, especially enterprise users, against storing any important data on iCloud. For this reason, local cloud storage providers are maiing NSA-free cloud storage their competitive advantage. "We are not hosted in the USA, like Apple" they promote boldly. "Store your photos with us, and no NSA employee will be oggling at those photos you took of your kids on the beach."
  • Can you show me a link to Apple selling iPhone 4 in Europe? I'm unable to find one. Could you possibly be conflating resellers clearing old stock? store.apple.com/(european countries) seem to all be selling iPhones 6, iPhones 5s, and iPhone 5c. Either way, Apple sold the iPhone 4 — a device that launched in 2010 — up until 2014 — only in China and India though — and guess what — they provided software updates for it until 2014. Which other company provided software and security updates for a 2010 era phone until 2014? Microsoft made Windows Phone 7 devices essentially binary obsolete months after selling them, so you'll find little purchase for your usual trolling on those grounds :)
  • Here in Finland, Apple only sell through third parties, since they have chosen not to invest in building their own stores. On-contract and SIM-free iP4 and 4S models are available in the 8GB edition from all carriers and on most retail outlets. Contrast this with iP5, whose operator sales stopped the very day that 5C became available locally. So Apple seem to be able to control exactly what is sold, at least on contract. Apple do not give a damn about iP4 owners' security. Most manufacturers do not support 2010-era phones in 2015 because they do not sell obsolote 2010-era phones in 2015, but rather sell 2014-era phones; and do so, as in the case of MS, with a promised 2+ year support cycle. Rene, if you cannot negate even a single point I raised in my original post, please do not charge me with trolling. You know, one might in that case think that your own post was nothing but a cheap trolling attempt.
  • @ Trappiste: You made no "points" at all as far as I can see.
    It was a long mis-leading ramble to me. I find it funny and sort of ironic that there are so many folks calling out Rene for being disingenuous or lying or trolling, when it's pretty clear that he is one of the only people here that isn't. Bringing up that Apple still sells the iPhone 4 in Europe, and then having to walk that statement back (because it isn't true), makes you quite definitely a "troll" it would seem.
  • Sorry, I missed where you linked to Apple selling the iPhone 4 in Europe? Also: Which 2010 or 2011 phone does Microsoft or Google support with recent updates in your country?
  • Difference is MS and Google aren't still selling 2010 phones, which is what the original poster was talking about and what sailed right over your head..
  • Galaxy nexus http://www.androidauthority.com/galaxy-nexus-lollipop-564905/
  • Well with android you don't necessarily need a full Os update to get the security patches, Google has been working on that with the play store services and more apps being updated through the play store. Sent from the iMore App
  • Unlike Apple where if you have an old device that can't be updated, you're basically screwed. The Google Play services is why version numbers don't matter anymore. With Material Design being enabled on KitKat devices via third party frameworks, and Google bringing their Material Design apps to older devices, who really needs to upgrade to Lollipop? ( Apple's not-needed "version usage" comparisons in the Keynotes have basically been rendered useless.
  • Yes, it's really encouraging. Sadly, it won't help the hundreds of millions of people who aren't being upgraded to Kitkat or Lollipop though.
  • @Rene:
    Thus the reason for Google releasing Play Services to the Play store. People who aren't being upgraded can just download Play Services and receive Security updates, Material Design from Google, etc. Did you even read my comment?
  • Um that will help those not getting updated. Did you even read the comment? Unlike Apple they don't need a full OS update to get many of the security patches, compared to where IOS where a full OS update is the only way to get those updates, and patches. Sent from the iMore App
  • Galaxy nexus has been around for 4 years now and it has received kit Kat from Google and is received custom lollipop now... In 2015 (Because people still care). http://www.androidauthority.com/galaxy-nexus-lollipop-564905/
  • I get it Rene, you are trying to make Google sound like the big bad ugly monster. The thing is you are paying for what you are getting, whether its monetarily or with your data. I personally prefer iPhones and iPads over Android devices because iOS is a much smoother experience. However, when it comes to apps, Google is the king of the roost. I pretty much use all google apps on my phone because you don't lose your experience if you switch between iOS and Android. I recognize that Google uses my data for advertising but that is a cost I'm willing to pay considering all the free great quality apps they produce. Apple may not use your data for advertising, however, they expect you to buy their high price products then they give you the apps to come along for the ride. The negative is that if you try jumping ship to Android then all your data is stuck in Apple's ecosystem. I prefer to avoid most of Apple's apps as much as possible.
  • That's essentially what I said, right? And everyone can choose differently. Money is easy to see and track as a form of payment, however, where attention and data can sometimes slip away from us.
  • Some of you are so silly. Sure, no one worries about privacy until they lose it. This is not fear mongering, it's a very real concern. Too many people have lost time and money because of computer crimes.
  • Computer crime have nothing to do with privacy
  • @Oletros: Now you are just being silly.
    " ...
    M: An argument isn't just contradiction.
    A: It can be.
    M: No it can't. An argument is a connected series of statements intended to establish a proposition.
    A: No it isn't.
    M: Yes it is! It's not just contradiction.
    A: Look, if I argue with you, I must take up a contrary position.
    M: Yes, but that's not just saying 'No it isn't.'
    A: Yes it is!
    M: No it isn't!
    ..."
  • Bingo!
  • So every one stop using Google services or android then? In the fear of someday something can happen. Will you lead by example by kicking Google out of your day to day workflow? It's all good to think about privacy, no denying that but that applies to using any service or hardware from any company. Posted via the iMore App
  • I'm not saying we shouldn't think of privacy. But I think a lot of people are TOO concerned to the point of just paranoia and labeling companies as bad or that they don't take these things seriously. Unless any of you work at any of these companies, you can't possibly know what they really do with the data, what security measures they take to secure it, or what there true motives are. The most we can do is parse and guess. Does good use data to target ads? Sure, but it's not like they are giving your personal address and contact info to advertisers. Again, your just a binary data stream. And Google im sure goes through extensive measures to protect this info in their servers in case there is a attack and it leaks: it would be the end of Google if that got out. You don't think they realize that? I think there is a danger of impeding progress and cool things by being too privacy conscious. You shoul be concerned, but you also need to make way for progress. Otherwise we're all just old men yelling at clouds.
  • Security and privacy are never a problem until they are. To me, having the company who makes the device consider privacy and security to be a feature is a huge selling point. Others can and will feel differently, of course.
  • I think that's a pretty good summation/statement
  • And that's a fine point that I don't really disagree with. I was just saying that there are times where we can be too concerned with it. If we were really over paranoid about this then we shouldn't have even invented the Internet. If you think about it privacy kinda died when that was created. But that didn't stop us from doing it and changing the world.
  • Google framed Apple for being closed and controlling the users when in fact Apple did take a lot of pain and responsibility in setting up an ecosystem that seams impossible to set up. Google said the danger was in "One man and one company" controlling the world, when in fact it was Google that had the goal to control the world's data. Now Google is getting framed for what is essentially a more valid perspective. Time to pay for your sins Google. I think Tim Cook has done a better job than even Steve Jobs in defending Google's cheap way to frame Apple. Well done Tim.
  • " Others saw it as recognition that the very idea of privacy threatens their data-collecting business models. " And by others it means people like Rene that is just spreading fear mongering
  • I'd argue calling it "fear mongering" is FUD. Apple makes money off device sales. Repatriation tax threatens that money. Google and Facebook and others make money off personal data. Privacy laws threaten that money. A company can choose any business model it wants. We just have to be informed about what choices they're making so we can make our choices.
  • I think people need to stop hating on Rene all hime doing is informing us. Any Android user on here can't deny the Rene speaks the truth about privacy and security, also when it comes to updates as well where for example the Galaxy S2 came out around the same time as the iPhone 4S yet it's last update was Jelly Bean I think and with the security vulnerability of Android Jelly Bean people using devices running Jelly Bean are at risk of malware because there is no security patch for Jelly Bean at present. Sent from the iMore App
  • You're only going to get malware if you check the little box and install apps from outside the play store. Sent from the iMore App
  • That is absolute horse****. Google Play store has plenty of apps that installment all kinds of vicious and malicious crap. I have several coworkers who ended up installing apps from the Google Playstore mind you, that ended up screwing up their phones big time. Google does a **** job screening the apps that make it to the Play store. I have years of experience with both Android and iOS, basically since both launched and I have seen some crazy **** happen with Android and malware My coworkers have zero idea on how to install apps outside of the Play store. They are the kind of people who buy the phone but never do anything outside of using it as a phone and installing a few apps.
  • Except if you put your pictures in iCloud which gets hacked every other week it seems.... Sent from the iMore App
  • I wouldn't put anything in icloud. Well, maybe some disinformation... Or all of renes personal information... Since he says it can't be hacked.. Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • I don't use iCloud, because for me, I like having the info on my device, just feels more secure. that and I back up regularly to my computer so in the event anything does happen, I can easily get all of my info back.
  • lmao nice
  • iCloud has never been "hacked" as far as I have heard. If you are referring to the dirty pictures thing, it was a targeted misogynist attack by an organized group on individual consumers (not iCloud) who failed to use the very privacy and security tools that Apple made available to them.
  • Read the post about two factor authentication a couple of days ago, and why apple is finally rolling it out... Icloud got hacked... Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • He's correcting you usage of the incorrect term :)
  • He was referring to the other guy... Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • iCloud, as far as I know, has never been hacked. There have been social engineering attacks that have gotten people's iCloud passwords, same as they've gotten people's Gmail and Yahoo! passwords, but that's the price we pay for having humans involved in the process. Because a lot of celebrities were using iCloud, iCloud got into the news. If they'd been using something else, it would have been that. Cybersecurity these days needs to be taken as seriously as real life security, and especially if you're a high value target.
  • Rene, I stumbled across this site & article and I have a question for you. How is Apple any more secure or private when leaked info was stolen from Apple's iCloud by an "obvious" flaw in their system? There is an article on IB Times that I can't post the link to addressing this very issue.
  • This should answer your question. I'm sure you can find a similar document from every one of Apple's competitors so you can compare them and decide for yourself. https://www.apple.com/privacy/docs/iOS_Security_Guide_Oct_2014.pdf
  • The rift between the average iOS/Android user is getting wider, not thiner. Both Apple and Google phones and devices are getting better and closer in line, in respect to size, software and features, to each other. As much as I am an Apple fanboy (commenting on an "iMore" post), I do see the quality available from other manufacturers and I understand a user sticking with (and indeed defending) the software and services that they are used too. But there are facts involved that are indisputable. Rene has brought up the facts from his point of view. Ignoring his point of view is fine, but the facts still stand. Data mining for profit is in fact Googles way of making money. And Apple sales hardware at a very high rate of profit with in its industry. Have a good day Rene. I am ready for you to get back to a full work schedule. I'm missing your voice on my podcasts. :-) Sent from the iMore App
  • Switch to the platform that let hackers leak nude celebrity photos, that logs developers into random accounts, and that has the most unreliable cloud service. In the 10 years I've used Google services, I've never lost a single file or document. Meanwhile, many of my photos and videos have gone into the iCloud and Photo Stream oblivion. Now you want me to use their Email. Yeah, right. You can't pay me to use Apple's services. Like their hardware though.
  • Bull.
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_celebrity_photo_hack http://9to5mac.com/2015/01/02/brute-force-dictionary-attack-icloud-passw...
  • And you've said it yourself.
    That HACKERS leaked. It could happen to any major corporation like what we saw with Sony etc. Posted via the iMore App for Android
  • "If you get an iPhone and use iCloud mail, Apple doesn't scan it so they can insert ads." No, what Apple does is far, far worse. As reported all over the blogosphere at least in 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014, including on this very site in 2013 ( http://www.imore.com/apple-filtering-emails-contain-certain-objectionabl... ) Apple scans your correspondance, and trashes emails without any notification that it ever came, or any notification to the sender that it was delivered. Those emails just disappear, with neither side ever knowing that it happened, or why. To my knowledge there has been no correction or explanation, much less a promise that it will not happen again. I may not like ads from my email, but, given the choice between an email provider that scans my email to put ads in the sidebar, and a provider that scans my email to decide what I might be permitted to read, I will side with the advertiser 100 times out of 100. What Apple does is not just an invasion of privacy, but an unconscionable breach of trust as an email provider.
  • I kept trying to remember exactly what it was about that icloud email scanning that I knew I had heard about a while back and that was it. It crossed my mind as I started reading the comments. Also, I think many people commenting and arguing with Rene are missing the biggest thing right in front of their eyes; it doesn't matter how much us enthusiasts know about this stuff. We can argue about it all day. The fact of the matter is that an average phone user who is looking to make a purchase will Google info on the iPhone and why they should buy it, come across this post, have it possibly be one of the deciding (if not, deciding) factor to make their purchase, buy the phone from Apple, Apple gets happy about it and iMore gets another invite to another iPhone event. And that's not even a bad thing. This site as well as the Mobile Nations sites are a business. Rene is just doing his job.
  • I'm sorry, but if that's true then that's no way to be a journalist. You can't just pander to a company because that destroys all credibility and integrity you have. I don't think that's the reason for the article. If it was, then that's disgusting.
  • I'm not quite that cynical about this site as you seem to be, yet.
  • Another article by Ritchie which starts as that company is not good this company is not good and ends with Apple is great nothing surprising.
  • There are no facts in this article,it's all just opinion and the words of Tim Cook. Fact is that Apple has purposely built a backdoor into the iPhone as verified by security experts. That backdoor means that any data can be removed from your device, in unencrypted form. Who cares what Tim Cook and Apple Marketing say? Its just words. It's deeds which count and in this case Apple's deed of putting a backdoor in its products speaks volumes about its true intent.
  • Maybe if you repeat such nonsense to yourself a thousand more times, it might come true... or not.
    Please site the reference for the iPhone back door that you speak of.
    Finally, every thing Tim Cook said is simply common sense. You can't even have a basic understanding of Google's business model and then deny what Tim has said. Meanwhile, the spokesman for Google is the "king of creepy" himself, Eric Schmidt.
  • Here you go:http://blackbag.gawker.com/apple-snuck-backdoor-surveillance-tools-into-...
  • So much anger and animosity here. Can't we all just enjoy the great picture of Georgia? :)
  • And once you've switched to iPhone for security, then switch to Blackberry for real security! (I have no idea what I'm talking about, just thought I would stick my nose in this flamewar too)
  • LOL Apple isn't secure at all! Just ask the hackers smh
  • And... Que the iWorshipers! Here's your back up for your BS argument, Rene.
  • Of Course! Sent from the iMore App
  • We just switched from Android to iPhone. One of the main reasons was the direct software updates from Apple. I had to wait 9 months to get an update on my Android tablet, and my wife's phone never received updates. My phone update came out a few months after the latest OS was released, and it was the highest end model available at the time.