Business and Technology

A new app being introduced by Apple is aimed at improving data privacy

An update to the software powering some billion iPhones around the world kicks in Monday with an enhanced privacy feature critics fear will roil the internet advertising world.

Apple will begin requiring app makers to tell users what tracking information they want to gather and get permission to do so, displaying what have been referred to as “privacy nutrition labels. The move by Apple, which has been in the works for months, has sparked a major rift with Facebook and other tech rivals and could have major implications for data privacy and the mobile ecosystem.

Digital ads are the lifeblood of internet giants such as Google and Facebook, and are credited with paying for the cornucopia of free online content and services.

An update to the iOS software that powers iPhone, iPad, and iPod devices brings with it an “App Tracking Transparency framework” that stops apps from tracking users or accessing device identifying information without permission. Unless you receive permission from the user to enable tracking, the device’s advertising identifier value will be all zeros and you may not track them,” Apple said this week in an online message to developers.

Apple

 

The requirement, which some developers adopted early, will apply to all iOS apps as of Monday, according to Apple. Seufert said in a blog post, “It’s impossible to dismiss the fact that digital advertising on mobile is conducted through what Apple defines as ‘tracking’: explicitly purging this activity from the ecosystem will require the mobile operating model to change.

With more than a billion iOS powered devices in active use around the world, a change to the mobile operating system that potentially hampers the effectiveness of digital ads could be significant.

Platforms such as Facebook or Google that rely on advertising typically get paid only when someone takes an action such as clicking on a marketing message. Ads made irrelevant because less is known about users could mean fewer clicks and, by extension, less revenue.

In other news – Photos: Inside Babes Wodumo and Mampintsha’s beautiful traditional wedding

Babes Wodumo and Mampintsha are finally husband and wife! The controversial qgom stars put Durban to a standstill with their traditional wedding today.

Babes Wodumo and Mampintsha beautiful traditional wedding

The two whose real names are Bongekile Simelane and Mandla Maphumulo tied the knot in their traditional wedding held at Ebandla hotel, Ballito in Durban, KZN. Learn more

Source: eNCA