Posted on 04/25/2011 8:36:38 AM PDT by Beowulf9
Minnesota Senator Al Franken has called out Apple after reports emerged that the company's products were keeping detailed records of the location data of their users.
In a two-page letter sent to Apple CEO Steve Jobs, Franken discusses what he calls the "worrisome" existence of data that presents the user's location in such detail. But the biggest risk, he says, is what can happen if that data, much of which is unencrypted, falls into the wrong hands.
"Anyone who gains access to this single file could likely determine the location of a user's home, the business he frequents, the doctors he visits, the schools his children attends, and the trips he has taken -- over the past months or even a year." he writes.
Franken speculates that wrongdoers could also rely on computer programs to scour the devices as well. "It is also entirely conceivable that malicious persons may create viruses to access this data from customers' iPhones, iPads, and desktop and laptop computers, "he writes, noting that there are many ways in which the collected information can be abused.
(Excerpt) Read more at ibtimes.com ...
Stuart Smalley would be OK with it if only it were the government doing the tracking.
I wish Apple would officially response to Senator Franken by telling him that there are far more pressing problems that Congress should be dealing with than a software feature on a luxury device.
How stupid would you have to be to not know that the phone needs to know your exact location and position to perform that function on a realtime basis?
So Franken is suggesting what? Every time someone tries to call your cellphone, it has to randomly search the entire world to find you?
Whatsamatter Al...you been sneaking over to Barney’s house?
Translation = The files could be used to prosecute a community organizer who visited voting machine locations for several months during protracted recount efforts.
Even a stopped clock is right twice a day.
However, I do see the advantage of having such a device in the case of a kidnapping. Even if the perps discarded the device, it would give priceless clues to where they were and might have been headed.
It would be nice if it were a feature you could enable and DISABLE at will.
The fact that this feature cannot be disabled makes it intrusive.
This is Franken’s own written record that he and Shiela Jackson Lee have much in common regarding intellect.
Haha! Good one!
worrisome if data falls into wrong hands...heheh, like the Republicans, hahah.
Yea but x raying you and feeling up your kids at airports is just fine,, lets face it the constitution is already shredded
Exactly
I really, really want to see the video of some future purse-slapping fight between Al Franken and a group of Apple fanboys distraught at hearing their idol attacked by the buck-toothed moron...
Socialists do not understand that the free market can take care of this,, congress need to do its job
And it will put on little bite on Apple, who deserve it for their actions.
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