iPhone Library Collects/Xfers Personal Info?

[exfileme]

An iPhone library provided by Pinch Media collects personal information.

iPhone Library Collects/Xfers Personal Info? : Read more

 

[Guest]

Don't be surprised when Apple see's no good reason to ban it from the app store. Apple users are the ultimate conformists.

 

[pakardbell486dx2]

I know it's hard, but if you care about your personal information getting leaked then buy devices that allow that. Especially from companies who sanction these kinds of tactics.

 

[pakardbell486dx2]

whops i meant don't buy

 

[Spanky Deluxe]

Doesn't sound too bad really. It should be modified so that the location information is far more general though, i.e. rounded to nearest 100 km or miles. Exact location's a bit too personal but nearest town isn't too bad. The unique ID should probably not be parsed either.

A lot of other services do this stuff already. Web browsers pass through system information to websites relating to your web browser version, operating system etc. Web sites see your IP address so are given your general location. They can time when you visit and if its a site with a profile (i.e. web forums or Facebook) then it has access to your gender, birth month, year, etc too.

As long as the location is made to be vague enough then I see no problem with this. Although the unique ID should probably be sent only to Apple and not to application developers. It can be used by developers to see the usage trends of their apps, see how many people are using their apps illegally, give location based adverts in ad-supported apps and generally get some good feedback.

The unique ID info could potentially be used if cracked or pirated apps turn out to be a real problem. Apple could use the unique IDs to blacklist certain bad offenders. Although since Apple takes a relatively lenient stance in terms of piracy, I don't think they'd ever need to use it.

If people are calling this spyware then pretty much every internet browser out there and every website out there is spyware too.

 

[hunter315]

And somehow this made it through the app approval process? Who ever is giving the thumbs up and thumbs down to apps recently really needs to be fired.

 

[Guest]

@ Spanky
While i agree that most of the info they're gathering isnt worrying, these parts are:
- your current latitude & longitude
- your gender (if facebook enabled)
- your birth month (if facebook enabled)
- your birth year (if facebook enabled)

ESPECIALLY since its taken without user knowledge. With this information someone could easily be stalked and/or have their identity stolen.

 

[matt87_50]

All I can think of when I here about the app store approval process is the tank of dugongs that write family guy episodes from south park.
I assume the app store approval process runs a similar setup.

(P.S. I love family guy!)

 

[techguy378]

This isn't spyware, it's Facebook.

 

[pocketdrummer]

Which apps do this exactly?

And who do I direct my lawyers to?

 

[Guest]

This is the last straw... I was going to buy a Touch as it seemed like a nice toy, but hey! I'm saving for a Pre now! BTW I don't need a music player, I need a handheld with a decent screen.

 

[neiroatopelcc]

[citation][nom]pocketdrummer[/nom]Which apps do this exactly?And who do I direct my lawyers to?[/citation]
Direct him at the media company providing the library ofcourse.

 

[doc70]

I think that except for the first 4 types of data mentioned in article and maybe the time and date you start/close the application, the rest of the data storing process has nothing to do with the application itself working properly; the app could use the info while it's running, but why store it? That's nobody's business... And some info is irrelevant even for the app runtime - like whether the phone is jailbroken or not... this whole cache thing is suspicious and it's spyware to me..
As far as the comparison to browsers, it does not really hold any water; the browser needs an unique ID and that's the IP address you're on at that time; that is not GPS coordinates and as far as I know, the browser does not cache that kind of info without you being able to control it or delete it as needed...

 

[Regulas]

Hell yes it's spyware. One key fact, third party software. As far as Facebook and those other worthless sites so many people find the need to tell the world about themselves, I say they are stupid. You have a freaking phone in your hand, call your friend and actually talk to them. Better yet meet them for lunch.

 

[o0RaidR0o]

[citation][nom]spanky deluxe[/nom]Doesn't sound too bad really. It should be modified so that the location information is far more general though, i.e. rounded to nearest 100 km or miles. Exact location's a bit too personal but nearest town isn't too bad. The unique ID should probably not be parsed either.A lot of other services do this stuff already. Web browsers pass through system information to websites relating to your web browser version, operating system etc. Web sites see your IP address so are given your general location. They can time when you visit and if its a site with a profile (i.e. web forums or Facebook) then it has access to your gender, birth month, year, etc too.As long as the location is made to be vague enough then I see no problem with this. Although the unique ID should probably be sent only to Apple and not to application developers. It can be used by developers to see the usage trends of their apps, see how many people are using their apps illegally, give location based adverts in ad-supported apps and generally get some good feedback.The unique ID info could potentially be used if cracked or pirated apps turn out to be a real problem. Apple could use the unique IDs to blacklist certain bad offenders. Although since Apple takes a relatively lenient stance in terms of piracy, I don't think they'd ever need to use it.If people are calling this spyware then pretty much every internet browser out there and every website out there is spyware too.[/citation]

Ah!, excue me my web browser doesn't provide websites with my gender, DOB, or facebook profile. Not if I don't want it to. And if it does it's called spyware. The difference here is choice, I can turn off any features in my browser that may allow that info to be leaked. I can use a proxy server if I want to remain anonymous. There is a host of useful tools that can keep me and my personal info from being accessed or recorded via my web browser. I don't think I have those very same choices or protection via the IPhone.

 

[bunz_of_steel]

spanky deluxe,techguy378 you are stupid!!! Go clean your room or back to the basement where mommy keeps you.... sheessh "not spy ware, not so bad,.... have you guys ever like sniffed anything on the wire? I guess it's not so bad spanky if they hold information on you even if it is available on smashface or whateva. Ever hear of HEPA or any other regulatory rules companies MUST follow. get a clue

 

[bunz_of_steel]

o0RaidR0o You go boy!! That was your clue spanky!
why don't you give me your IP/DOB and location so I can populate somebody's database with "Hey I want porn mail". Don't worry tho it's never going to get to ya since I don't have everything. One other note a browser is not needed to xfer information.

 

[frost7500]

have a iphone and i truly love it. not a apple guy been a pc user for a very long time but the exact location info is just wrong. come on apple!

 

[CChick]

Why bitch? I thought people love their iGarbage ?

This is what you get for using any iGarbage's garbage. dummy.

 

[Parrdacc]

"1984? Yeah right, that's a typo. Orwell is here now and he's living large."