Apple Privacy Push, Euro Bills, and India Debate

Tech and privacy perspectives from around the globe By Jeremy Wagstaff

How sincere is Apple about privacy? Nikhil Vemu took a look at what Steve Jobs had to say about it in 2010, what got him all riled up in the first place, and how the Apple co-founder insisted on a simple definition of privacy. Twelve years later, Facebook may lose $10 billion in revenue in 2022 because of Apple’s app tracking transparency privacy feature, and more consumers are placing trust in the company when buying iPhones. And Apple’s move may also have created a public appetite for more: Fast Company has listed 10 privacy features Apple should add next, from encrypting data end-to-end to creating a secure hidden photos folder. 

While the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation is seen as the most comprehensive regulation in the world on the issue of privacy, there’s a slew of other legislation pending, such as the Digital Markets Act and the soon-to-be-voted-on Digital Services Act and plans by the EU to regulate AI, a move that may cost companies up to 6 percent of global revenues. The U.K. is proposing fair-play rules for tech platforms’ use of news, which would require big tech firms such as Facebook and Google to be clear about deals with publishers, similar to rules introduced by Australia in 2020. Britain has also been looking in particular at app security and privacy interventions and has just issued a new call for public views before making any further intervention.

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