Apple has denied allegations from the Chinese state broadcaster that the location-tracking function of its iPhones poses a ‘national security threat’.
Apple issued a response on its Chinese website stating that the firm has never “worked with any government agency from any country to create a backdoor in any of our products or services".
“We have also never allowed access to our servers. And we never will. It’s something we feel very strongly about,” said Apple.
Frequent locations could leak state secrets
Ma Ding, head of the online security institute at People’s Public Security University of China, reported on Friday via China Central Television – the state-owned television broadcaster – that Apple’s iPhone location functions can collect data and may result in a leak of state secrets.
The iPhone’s "frequent locations" tracking function is used to record frequently visited locations in order to speed up applications that show a user’s location or for driving directions that avoid traffic. The function was introduced as part of the iOS 7 software update last autumn and can be turned off.
Apple states that personal location information is stored solely on the smartphone and protected by a user password. The data is not shared with third parties.
'Apple does not track users’ locations'
“We appreciate CCTV’s effort to help educate customers on a topic we think is very important,” Apple said in the statement on its Chinese website. “We want to make sure all of our customers in China are clear about what we do and we don’t do when it comes to privacy and your personal data.”
“Apple does not track users’ locations – Apple has never done so and has no plans to ever do so,” said the company.
Apple officially began selling the iPhone in China in January through the world’s largest mobile phone carrier China Mobile, which has more than 760 million subscribers in one of the world’s fastest-growing markets.
Before the China Mobile deal was struck, sales of the iPhone 5S was comprised 12% of smartphone sales in the country, sold through smaller carrier China Unicom, during October, according to data from research firm Counterpoint. China Mobile recorded 1.2m iPhone pre-orders before its release on the network, which Apple chief executive Tim Cook labelled a “watershed moment".
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