iOS tracking allegedly denied by Steve Jobs

Last week we reported about your iOS device keeping tabs on you wherever you go, and how easy it was to read the database containing your location data. As usual, this location-storing issue caused a huge stir among the internet and the media, leading to a new controversy surrounding iOS and the devices that run it.

Concerned about the whole issue, a reader from the site MacRumors sent an email to Steve Jobs asking him about it. According to the reply he received, Jobs says the tracking claims are false. Here’s the email exchange:

Reader: Steve,

Could you please explain the necessity of the passive location-tracking tool embedded in my iPhone? It’s kind of unnerving knowing that my exact location is being recorded at all times. Maybe you could shed some light on this for me before I switch to a Droid. They don’t track me.

Jobs: Oh yes they do. We don’t track anyone. The info circulating around is false.

Sent from my iPhone

While there’s no proof if this was a fabricated email, Apple have yet to publicly respond to the whole issue which is causing consumers and the media to jump to their own conclusions. With an experiment recently performed by the Wall Street Journal showing that the iPhone even recorded data collected location when the phone was off, we’re leaning towards it being a bug more than intentional. What do you think?

George Wong
Categories: Apple
Tags: Apple Inc, iOS, Steve Jobs, tracking