Chinese State-Run Media Labels iPhone's Location Tracking a 'National Security Concern'

[dragje]

I don't think its the map itself that their concerned about. But if certain officials are seen traveling regularly between specific locations, it might be enough for foreign spies (using data collected legally or illegally from Apple) to build a dossier that leads to uncovering specific government/business links.

Or maybe I've just read too much Jean Le Carre and Tom Clancy.

ghehe Thanks for the reply, I think you're right. You can subtract more information by gathering all kinds of locations together. But as someone else rightfully said, maps are not only used in Apple phones so I don't get the excitement about it really......

Anyway, Tom Clancy or not it might as well has just a pure political agenda to protest against Apple with this in order to achieve a totally other objective here for the Chinese government....

Yes I know, this is maybe the time to start the Twilight Zone melody, but that claim from the Chinese is quite vague, you can make out everything of it.

 

[Swytch]

Major fail on the Chinese governments part, now the US government knows they have secrets they dont want us to find out about and will make more effort to find them out (and they even told us that its as easy as tracking the location of a few citizens to find these secrets), good job China...

seriously, why have the secrets in the first place if you are so worried people will find out?

 

[iOSaddict]

When was that? Before 1989 when actually their human rights record was worse?

----------



China is much freer than the communist states used to be.

Is that supposed to make Chinese Communist regime sound better or to make Western governments sound worse?

 

[RolyPolyBird]

I posted elsewhere (with a link to the source) that China has already been contemplating an outright ban of Apple and Google products allegedly due to fears of NSA spying. Anandtech also mentions, however, that China is encouraging its own companies to copy and reproduce products sold by Apple and Google, hardware and software (their homebrew OS already looks a lot like OS X). I believe the NSA spying debacle is only a smokescreen for their real reasons, which are likely many.

I hope they do that, I really hope they do that. Everyday the CPC hold their people back, the day comes closer that they will be brought down.

 

[Eraserhead]

Major fail on the Chinese governments part, now the US government knows they have secrets they dont want us to find out about and will make more effort to find them out (and they even told us that its as easy as tracking the location of a few citizens to find these secrets), good job China...

seriously, why have the secrets in the first place if you are so worried people will find out?

Every country has secrets they don't want revealed.

I posted elsewhere (with a link to the source) that China has already been contemplating an outright ban of Apple and Google products allegedly due to fears of NSA spying. Anandtech also mentions, however, that China is encouraging its own companies to copy and reproduce products sold by Apple and Google, hardware and software (their homebrew OS already looks a lot like OS X). I believe the NSA spying debacle is only a smokescreen for their real reasons, which are likely many.

What are those reasons in your view?

 

[darkplanets]

Translation: We want control of the location data so we can track users/citizens. We're bitching about Apple because they won't give us the data, whereas on Android (conveniently not mentioned) we can obtain any location data we require.

I mean seriously though, there's location services settings for every app as well as a global GPS on/off button. Location tracking shouldn't be that much of a concern as long as people aren't stupid, and those of particular espionage interest should know not to be a dumbass.

Besides, cell providers already have fairly decent location data, so the whole thing seems pretty moot.

 

[lostngone]

Even without location data turned on the phone companies and the government can track your location.

So, it is good when they can do it but bad when consumers can do it as well?