How’s that going?
Late in 2020, Apple activated its anti-tracking technology.
Apple already had brought privacy protections to the Safari internet tool.
Guardian
Now it was bringing them to the iPhone and iPad.
But as the cynical reader might expect, it didn’t work out quite as planned.
The IDFA is a unique identifier expressly made to allow tracking, but while protecting user data.
Apple
It’s a decent idea, but the problem is that apps can track you in many other ways.
After all, apps are apps, and they have to know about your rig to interact with it.
And it’s not just tracking.
Apps are connected to the internet, so they can take any data and send it anywhere.
If you grant a weather app permission to know your location, it can share or sell that data.
Ask Not To Track
When an app wants to use the IDFA, it has to ask.
Most users tap to deny permission, and theeffect has been dramatic.
Apple
There are ways to protect yourself, but this only helps savvy users.
The best way is to install a firewall app on your devices.
A firewall monitors and filters all internet connections that leave and input your iPhone or iPad.
Some, likeLockdown, use blocklists to deny connections.
“I personally feel it helps hammer in how pervasive this kind of activity is.
Apple’s anti-tracking continues to improve, with new features coming in iOS 15.
But right now, it’s still a bit of a mess.
