Did you know your iPhone is watching/tracking you? Should you care?
Researchers have found what look like secret files on the iPhone that can track a user’s location then store it on the device, all without the permission of the owner. Pete Warden, and Alasdair Allan, a senior research fellow in astronomy at the University of Exeter, discovered the location log file and created a tool that lets users see a visualization of that data. Although there’s no evidence of the information being sent to Apple or being misused by anyone, many iPhone users have been up in arms over the news.
THE EXPLANATION
The iPhone has a built-in finder inside the device, which comes in handy whenever you’re looking for the nearest pizza restaurant or ATM. But this finder feature also comes in handy if your iPhone is lost or stolen. The interior finder can pinpoint the exact location of your lost or stolen iPhone, something no other mobile device offers.
Some iPhone users fear this data could be used against them at some point, perhaps giving law enforcement officials their exact location when they may not want that information known. But Apple is telling its users to calm down and release any conspiracy theories that they’re sitting in a dark room following your every move. The data is stored locally on the device, is encrypted and doesn’t appear to be a threat to anyone.
