Google taken to Court over data collection on iPhones.

[Andyni]

Article can be found here https://eandt.theiet.org/content/articles/2018/05/google-taken-to-uk-court-over-claims-of-improper-data-collection/?utm_source=Adestra&utm_campaign=New EandT News - Automation FINAL - MEMBER&utm_medium=Newsletters - E%26T News&utm_content=E%26T News - Members&utm_term=https%3A%2F%2Feandt.theiet.org%2Fcontent%2Farticles%2F2018%2F05%2Fgoogle-taken-to-uk-court-over-claims-of-improper-data-collection%2F

 

“An advocacy group is taking legal action against Google on behalf of UK iPhone users, arguing that the company illegally collected data from their iPhones while they used Apple’s Safari browser.”

 

‘The Guardian reports that at the opening of two-day hearing in London, representatives for the group stated that data collected includes not just shopping preferences and location data, but also race, health (including mental health), political views, sexual orientation, class and financial situation.’ 

 

Even more disturbing is the fact that the data was then used to create subdivisions of users that could be used to target adds etc

[ItsMitch]

What?

[GoldenLag]

Soo google is doing what google does? Arent they providing 3 billion each year to be apples go to search engine? Arent also Apple users more valuable than Android Users? 

[SansVarnic]

@Andyni Please adjust your post to meet the guidelines of The News and Reviews section.

 

Needed;

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Quote

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Source: 

 

 

[SpaceGhostC2C]

15 minutes ago, SC2Mitch said:

What?

 

15 minutes ago, GoldenLag said:

Soo google is doing what google does? Arent they providing 3 billion each year to be apples go to search engine? Arent also Apple users more valuable than Android Users? 

 

I'll try to improve OP's clarity. The meat of the accusation seems to reside in the following paragraph:

 

Quote

According to a consumer group, Google You Owe Us, the search giant has been illegally collecting personal details from iPhone users by exploiting default privacy settings found on Apple iPhones, which block third-party tracking on the Safari browser via cookies. The group has said that in 2011 and 2012 Google used an algorithm to get around this restriction, track iPhone users’ browsing and collect personal data. This is known as the “Safari Workaround”.

 

Google's line of defense seems to be summarized in this excerpt: 

Quote

Google has denied the allegations, argued that the Safari Workaround was not used to collect data for sharing with third parties, and that it is not possible to state with certainty who may have been affected by the algorithm. The company has also argued that the legal dispute should not take place in London.

 

The article cites a potential precedent in the US (if the situation is confirmed to be similar, which Google apparently denies):

Quote

According to Hugh Tomlinson QC, who represents Lloyd, Google has already been forced to pay out $39.5m (£29.4m) in the US due to complaints regarding the Safari Workaround.  In 2012, the US Federal Trade Commission fined the search giant $22.5m (£16.7m) for monitoring Safari users, even after they had chosen a privacy setting which disallows tracking.

 

[D13H4RD]

Well, this isn't going to go well

[Nocte]

27 minutes ago, GoldenLag said:

Arent also Apple users more valuable than Android Users?

Why?

iOS has a much smaller market share than Android.

[GoldenLag]

2 minutes ago, Eibe said:

Why?

iOS has a much smaller market share than Android.

Marketshare yed, but i believe they actualy earn more from the 25% Apple users than the 75% android users. Correct me if im wrong

 

Believe its this where i got from. Cant double check now as it will tear through my mobile data

[DildorTheDecent]

£750 compensation sounds pretty tasty tho.

35 minutes ago, Andyni said:

Even more disturbing is the fact that the data was then used to create subdivisions of users that could be used to target adds etc

That's pretty much standard practice.

[Nocte]

10 minutes ago, GoldenLag said:

-snip-

I will have a look at it this evening!

[dtaflorida]

How does this work? Safari? But what if I don't open safari? Does it work with the microsoft browser?

 

I knew google was collecting my location data cuz but I had no idea how it was doing it. They weekly ask me questions via the Rewards app on android about where I've been and if I spent any money. How they know where I've been when I don't carry an android device was a mystery. 

[DrMacintosh]

46 minutes ago, Eibe said:

Why?

iOS has a much smaller market share than Android.

iOS Users spend way more on phones, games, and in app purchases, they also buy more movies, music, and everything in between. 

Apple captures almost all the profit in the industry despite not having many users.  

[Jito463]

21 minutes ago, dtaflorida said:

How does this work? Safari? But what if I don't open safari? Does it work with the microsoft browser?

On iOS, all browsers are Safari (just re-skinned).  Just as on Android, all browsers are a re-skinned Chrome.

[samcool55]

4 minutes ago, Jito463 said:

On iOS, all browsers are Safari (just re-skinned).  Just as on Android, all browsers are a re-skinned Chrome.

For android, I don't think Firefox is a re-skinned version of Chrome...

Same goes for Edge and Opera.

[suicidalfranco]

4 minutes ago, Jito463 said:

On iOS, all browsers are Safari (just re-skinned).  While on Android, browsers have whatever engine the dev decides to use.

Fify

[dtaflorida]

Hmm, for me most of the surveys in the Rewards app appear to be google validating data they got from apple. At least they're paying for the validation with a little Google Play credit. 

 

 

[2FA]

2 hours ago, DildorTheDecent said:

That's pretty much standard practice.

Exactly, that's how advertisers make ads that are relevant to you.

[Jito463]

1 hour ago, samcool55 said:

For android, I don't think Firefox is a re-skinned version of Chrome...

Same goes for Edge and Opera.

 

1 hour ago, suicidalfranco said:

Fify

I just checked, and you're correct.  I was mistaken.  Thanks for the correction.