Apple Fined $116 Million Over App Privacy Prompts (theverge.com) 24
Apple has been fined $116 million by Italy's antitrust regulator over the "excessively burdensome" privacy rules it imposes on third-party apps. From a report: The Italian Competition Authority (AGCM) says that Apple abused its dominant app store market position by burdening developers with "disproportionate" terms around data collection that exceed privacy law requirements, compared to rules for native iOS apps.
The fine specifically targets the App Tracking Transparency (ATT) policy Apple launched in 2021, which requires third-party developers to ask users for consent twice to track their data across other apps and websites. Apple's own apps can obtain this permission in a single tap. AGCM says that the burden of consenting twice led to a reduction in user consent rates for advertising profiling, thus harming developers whose business models depend upon revenue generated by personalized ads.
The fine specifically targets the App Tracking Transparency (ATT) policy Apple launched in 2021, which requires third-party developers to ask users for consent twice to track their data across other apps and websites. Apple's own apps can obtain this permission in a single tap. AGCM says that the burden of consenting twice led to a reduction in user consent rates for advertising profiling, thus harming developers whose business models depend upon revenue generated by personalized ads.
A Backwards Conclusion (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:A Backwards Conclusion (Score:5, Informative)
Personally requesting to collect data twice is better than once so Apple apps should ask twice too. All data collectors have prolifically abused the amount of data collected and the use of said data.
Except Apple does not do third party across app tracking, so they don't ask for that permission; and only apps that want to do it have to ask. Otherwise, they can collect the same data from their apps as Apple does and only show the EU GDPR popup.
Look who's talking! (Score:3, Insightful)
That's laughable.
It's also stupid. Two whole taps? God forbid.
My counterargument would be that the users have already granted the first consent to Apple during the setup process, so the same number of consent prompts occur for both 1st and 3rd party applications.
Re: (Score:3)
It sounds fine to me; they should get no special treatment when they setup themselves as the gatekeeper store. The change should be either be like everybody else or allow permissions to be company based instead of app based.
This punishment is like a speeding ticket to Apple. Furthermore, if you give them an inch and at the discretion of a judge or simply their own judgement, it's just asking for abuse at some point. They are 1 bad CEO away from self destruction, being a US company (which has idiotic corp
Re: Look who's talking! (Score:2)
If apple doesn't want to be in the middle of every transaction, they are welcome to stop doing that. No one is forcing them to gatekeep everything.
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We Need Privacy-by-Default Laws (Score:2)
Wrong direction... (Score:2)
We should make Apples' own apps follow these rules, not loosen them for the other guys!
Re: (Score:2)
We should make Apples' own apps follow these rules, not loosen them for the other guys!
They do. Apple does not do third party app tracking so the do not need the popup, the same for any non Apple app that doesn't do it.
This is Silly (Score:3)
Look, I'd understand if this was something Apple was exempting their own apps from but they are following the same rules, only they don't do cross-app tracking so users never see the pop-ups form Apple apps.
The regulator here is arguing that by abstaining from cross-app tracking they are giving themselves an unfair advantage.
Other developers have the option of not doing that kind of tracking which would result in not having the pop-ups.
Re: This is Silly (Score:1)
Strongly agree. I also wonder if this ruling is motivated by creating a government backdoor as well.
Re: (Score:2)
I assume Google and Apple have ways to roll out backdoors as both can push silent updates. But they would not require to not prompt users in regular use. And for the competition it doesn't even matter if Apple's apps secretly leak data to the government, they only care about Apple making more money than they do.
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah, but the regulators don't care about fine details like that.
And you
Let me guess ... (Score:4, Interesting)
That some people don't realize this is probaby due to their seeing T&C pop-ups as nothing more than a window full of gibberish with an "Accept" button on the bottom.
Framing issue (Score:3)
The problem is not Apple providing privacy. The problem is Apple not requiring the same for their own apps. The two solutions are: Prompt the user if they want to share data with Apple in Apple apps, or do not prompt them in other apps. Because Apple strongly prefers to keep using the data, they frame it as an issue with regulators, instead of an issue with them favoring their own apps.
Re: Framing issue (Score:3)
Re: (Score:1)
Apple has a suite of apps that all share the same Apple account. They can completely track what you're doing between these apps.
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Apple has a suite of apps that all share the same Apple account. They can completely track what you're doing between these apps.
Correct, but the key there is they are all Apple apps, not third party apps which is what the popup addresses. Meta, Goggle et. al. for example, can do the same and probably more invasive tracking across its suite of apps and should be able to do that without the second popup, just as Apple can. I do not know if tehy do since I avoid their apps, other than What's App due to it ubiquitous nature, especially in Europe. I have 80+ year old relatiives who use it on their handy and it's how we stay in touch.
Re: (Score:2)
Google had similar fines for that reason. You cannot favor your own apps as company of that size. Either everyone can track or noone.
Re: (Score:2)
Google had similar fines for that reason. You cannot favor your own apps as company of that size. Either everyone can track or noone.
Apple allows the exact same tracking within a developer's own apps, and does not do third party tracking so everyone can track, the same way Apple does, in their own apps. They aren't favoring their own apps since every developer can do the same and skip third party tracking and not show a popup. It's third party tracking that is the issue. It appears Meta, who seems to be the complainant, wants easier third party tracking.
Re: (Score:2)
It seems that the court found there an unfair advantage.
Don't ask me to take sides, I take the side of users and want both to stop tracking. But antitrust laws are not about the user, they are about the companies.
Re: (Score:2)
It seems that the court found there an unfair advantage.
Actually, a court hasn't ruled, IIRC, only the regulatory agency so the outcome is still in question.
Don't ask me to take sides, I take the side of users and want both to stop tracking. But antitrust laws are not about the user, they are about the companies.
Same here, but it's a bit disingenuous for companies to complain about Apple's policy when they can do the same thing by tracking less. It's a bad sign when regulatory agencies side against privacy.