MacRumors

When Background App Refresh is enabled, some iOS apps are using the feature to regularly send data to tracking companies, according to a privacy experiment from The Washington Post that explores the relationship between apps and tracking companies.

The Washington Post's Geoffrey Fowler teamed up with privacy firm Disconnect and used specialized software to see what his iPhone was doing and when. And while it's no surprise that apps are using trackers and sharing user data, the frequency with which apps took advantage of background refresh to send data off to tracking companies is surprising, as is some of the data shared.

Fowler found that apps were sending data like phone number, email, location, IP address, and more.

On a recent Monday night, a dozen marketing companies, research firms and other personal data guzzlers got reports from my iPhone. At 11:43 p.m., a company called Amplitude learned my phone number, email and exact location. At 3:58 a.m., another called Appboy got a digital fingerprint of my phone. At 6:25 a.m., a tracker called Demdex received a way to identify my phone and sent back a list of other trackers to pair up with.

Apps that were found passing data along included Microsoft OneDrive, Mint, Nike, Spotify, The Weather Channel, DoorDash, Yelp, Citizen, and even The Washington Post's own iOS app. Citizen shared personally identifiable information that violated its privacy policy (the tracker was later removed), and Yelp was sending data every five minutes, something the company later said was a bug.

During the course of a week of testing, Fowler ran into 5,400 trackers, mostly found within apps, which Disconnect told him would likely send 1.5 gigabytes of data over the course of a month.

Trackers within apps, for those unfamiliar, serve different purposes. Some analyze user behavior to let apps streamline advertising campaigns, combat fraud, or create targeted ads. Delivery app DoorDash, for example, was found using a whopping nine trackers in its apps, sharing data like device name, ad identifier, accelerometer data, delivery address, name, email, and cellular phone carrier.

DoorDash also has trackers from Facebook and Google Ad Services, which means Facebook and DoorDash are notified whenever you're using the DoorDash service. DoorDash is not alone in sending tracking data, nor are the apps listed above - using tracking information is standard practice - but most people aren't aware that it's happening.

Not all data collection is bad, such as when it's anonymized and stored for a limited period of time, but some trackers are collecting specific user information and don't provide clear information on how long that data is stored nor who it's shared with.

As Fowler points out, there is no way to know which apps are using trackers and when that data is being sent from your ‌iPhone‌, nor does Apple have tools in place that give ‌iPhone‌ users a way to see which apps are using trackers and for what purpose. Apple was contacted for comment, but provided a standardized privacy response.

"At Apple we do a great deal to help users keep their data private," the company says in a statement. "Apple hardware and software are designed to provide advanced security and privacy at every level of the system."

"For the data and services that apps create on their own, our App Store Guidelines require developers to have clearly posted privacy policies and to ask users for permission to collect data before doing so. When we learn that apps have not followed our Guidelines in these areas, we either make apps change their practice or keep those apps from being on the store," Apple says.

Fowler suggests Apple could require apps to label when they're using third-party trackers, while privacy company Disconnect suggests greater privacy controls in iOS to give users more control over their data.

iOS users concerned about the data apps are sending, especially at night and without user knowledge, can turn off Background App Refresh in the Settings app and can use a VPN like Disconnect's Privacy Pro to limit the data apps are able to send to third-party sources.

Apple today seeded the third beta of an upcoming iOS 12.4 update to developers, almost one week after seeding the second iOS 12.4 beta, and two weeks after releasing iOS 12.3, a major update that introduced a revamped TV app.

Registered developers can download the new iOS 12.4 beta from Apple's Developer Center or over-the-air once the proper configuration profile has been installed from the Developer Center.

There were no new features discovered in the first two iOS 12.4 betas, so it's not entirely clear what's coming in the update. As a more significant 12.x update, it's possible that the update is focusing on a feature that's not yet available - the Apple Card.

Apple is planning to release the ‌Apple Card‌ in the summer, so iOS 12.4 could be the update that prepares the iOS operating system for that launch, adding hidden features that will be unlocked when the update becomes available to the public.

If we find new features in the third beta of iOS 12.4, we'll update this post.

iOS 12.4 may be one of the last updates to the iOS 12 operating system as Apple transitions to iOS 13, which is expected to be introduced at WWDC in June.

Just days ahead of Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference, 9to5Mac's Guilherme Rambo has shared what he says are legitimate iOS 13 screenshots, revealing the software update's rumored systemwide Dark Mode, revamped Reminders app, new merged "Find My" app, and more.

‌Dark Mode‌ can be enabled in the Settings app or in Control Center. On the home screen, the only noticeable change is the dock, which has a darker appearance. In apps, it appears that backgrounds will be true black under ‌Dark Mode‌, which should lead to battery savings on iPhones with OLED displays.

A redesigned Reminders app on iPad is shown with a large sidebar with separate categories for Today, Scheduled, All, and Flagged. This new layout was first reported by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

The report claims the new "‌Find My‌" app has a large map, a list of the user's family and friends, and a separate tab for the user's own devices. The new icon and additional screenshots can be seen over at 9to5Mac.

WWDC 2019 kicks off with Apple's opening keynote on Monday at 10 a.m. Pacific Time, where the company is widely expected to take the wraps off iOS 13, macOS 10.15, watchOS 6, and tvOS 13. MacRumors will have full coverage of the event, including a live blog, so be sure to follow along next week.

Apple is set to launch its own credit card this summer in the United States in partnership with investment bank Goldman Sachs and Mastercard. The aptly named Apple Card will be built into the Wallet app on the iPhone, with a physical version available for use at stores that do not accept contactless payments.

Apple is aiming to shake up the credit card industry by collecting no fees whatsoever, offering one to three percent cash back paid out on a daily basis, and providing consumers with interactive features such as color-coded spending summaries in the Wallet app to assist with spending and budgeting.

Now, a report says those consumer-friendly plans led some other banks to ultimately pass over the Apple Card opportunity.

According to CNBC, Citigroup was in advanced negotiations with Apple over the card, but pulled out amid doubts that it could earn an acceptable profit on the partnership. The report claims that other banks, including J.P. Morgan Chase, Barclays, and Synchrony, also bid on the ‌Apple Card‌ business.

Goldman Sachs has an advantage over those other banks since it does not already offer its own consumer credit cards, so it does not have to worry about potentially cannibalizing one of its own businesses.

"Goldman Sachs seeks to disrupt consumer finance by putting the customer first. We are excited for customers to use ‌Apple Card‌, which is designed to help people take control of their financial lives," a spokesperson for the bank told CNBC.

‌Apple Card‌ support will likely be added in iOS 12.4, with some Apple employees already receiving their physical version of the card.

Apple today announced a new iPod touch with headline features being a faster A10 Fusion chip and a new 256GB storage option.

The seventh-generation iPod touch has the same design as the sixth-generation model, including a 4-inch Retina display, a home button without Touch ID, a 3.5mm headphone jack, a Lightning connector, and a single speaker and microphone. The device remains 6.1mm thick and continues to weigh 3.1 ounces.

The new iPod touch also has the same battery life of up to 40 hours for music playback and up to eight hours for video playback, and the same 8-megapixel rear camera and 1.2-megapixel front camera, as the previous iPod touch.

With the A10 Fusion chip, Apple says the new iPod touch has up to two times faster performance and up to three times faster graphics compared to the previous-generation iPod touch. The A10 Fusion chip also enables support for Group FaceTime and ARKit on the iPod touch for the first time ever.

The A10 Fusion chip is also found in the iPhone 7 and ‌iPhone‌ 7 Plus and the sixth-generation iPad.

Greg Joswiak, Apple's Vice President of Product Marketing:

We're making the most affordable iOS device even better with performance that is twice as fast as before, Group FaceTime and augmented reality starting at just $199. The ultra-thin and lightweight design of iPod touch has always made it ideal for enjoying games, music and so much more wherever you go.

The new iPod touch is available to order on Apple.com and in the Apple Store app starting today with in-store availability at Apple Stores and authorized resellers starting later this week. U.S. pricing is set at $199 for 32GB of storage, $299 for 128GB, and $399 for the new 256GB option. The previous iPod touch also started at $199.

Today's launch countries include the U.S., Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the UAE, and the United Kingdom.

The same six colors are available, including space gray, silver, gold, blue, pink, and (PRODUCT)RED in support of the Global Fund.

The previous iPod touch was released in July 2015 with an A8 chip and up to 128GB of storage. With the new iPod touch with an A10 Fusion chip now available, it is possible that the sixth-generation model might not support iOS 13, which Apple is expected to introduce at WWDC 2019 on Monday.

Despite the update, the iPod touch remains a niche product, with Apple positioning it primarily as a device for Apple Music and the upcoming Apple Arcade.

Four years after 3D Touch debuted on the iPhone 6s, the pressure-sensitive feature appears to be on the chopping block.

Last week, in a research note shared with MacRumors, a team of Barclays analysts "confirmed" that 3D Touch "will be eliminated" in all 2019 iPhones, as they predicted back in August 2018. The analysts gathered this information from Apple suppliers following a trip to Asia earlier this month.

This isn't the first time we've heard this rumor. The Wall Street Journal said the same thing back in January.

Apple already replaced ‌3D Touch‌ with Haptic Touch on the iPhone XR in order to achieve a nearly edge-to-edge LCD on the device, and it is likely the feature will be expanded to all 2019 iPhones. Haptic Touch is simply a marketing name for a long press combined with haptic feedback from the Taptic Engine.

It's unclear why Apple would remove ‌3D Touch‌ from the next-generation ‌iPhone‌ XS and ‌iPhone‌ XS Max, since Apple has already proven that it can integrate the feature into edge-to-edge OLED displays without issue.

‌Haptic Touch‌ on the ‌iPhone‌ XR works in fewer places than ‌3D Touch‌, including the flashlight and camera shortcuts on the lock screen, in Control Center to view hidden toggles, and to expand notifications. ‌Haptic Touch‌ does not support Quick Actions app menus or Peek and Pop for previewing content.

Perhaps we'll see some hints that ‌3D Touch‌ is going away entirely in iOS 13, which Apple is expected to unveil at its WWDC 2019 keynote next Monday. That should be followed by new iPhones in September as usual.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration added Huawei to a trade blacklist over national security concerns, effectively forbidding U.S. companies from doing business with the Chinese smartphone and telecom giant.

As the U.S.-China trade war continues to escalate, it has been suggested that China could retaliate to the Huawei ban by enforcing a similar ban on a large American company like Apple. However, even Huawei's own founder Ren Zhengfei admitted that he would oppose such a move, offering praise for the iPhone maker.

Speaking through a translator, Ren told Bloomberg that Apple is both the "world's leading company" and his "teacher":

That will not happen, first of all. And second of all, if that happens, I'll be the first to protest. Apple is the world's leading company. If there was no Apple, there would be no mobile internet. If there was no Apple to help show us the world, we would not see the beauty of this world. Apple is my teacher — it's advancing in front of us. As a student, why should I oppose my teacher? I would never do that.

Last week, investment firm Goldman Sachs warned that Apple's per-share earnings could take a 29 percent hit if China stops importing its products.

Ren appeared confident that Huawei can prevail despite the U.S. trade ban, suggesting that the company will ramp up its in-house technologies if necessary. Huawei already designs its own Kirin processors for some smartphones, but that relies on ARM, which severed ties with Huawei after the U.S. trade ban.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

In a recent op-ed for The New York Times, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said that "privacy cannot be a luxury good offered only to people who can afford to buy premium products and services," a comment that some viewed as a dig at Apple.

Apple's software engineering chief Craig Federighi has unsurprisingly disagreed with that position. In an interview with The Independent, he said that Apple aspires to offer great product experiences that "everyone should have," while cautioning that the values and business models of other companies "don't change overnight."

"I don't buy into the luxury good dig," says Federighi, giving the impression he was genuinely surprised by the public attack.

"On the one hand gratifying that other companies in space over the last few months, seemed to be making a lot of positive noises about caring about privacy. I think it's a deeper issue than then, what a couple of months and a couple of press releases would make. I think you've got to look fundamentally at company cultures and values and business model. And those don't change overnight.

"But we certainly seek to both set a great example for the world to show what's possible to raise people's expectations about what they should expect the products, whether they get them from us or from other people. And of course, we love, ultimately, to sell Apple products to everyone we possibly could certainly not just a luxury, we think a great product experience is something everyone should have. So we aspire to develop those."

Federighi emphasizes Apple's commitment to privacy throughout the interview, noting that the company aims to collect as little data as possible. When it does collect data, Apple uses technologies like Differential Privacy to ensure that the data cannot be associated with any individual user.

Federighi also refutes criticism about Apple's products and services being worse off because of its pro-privacy position:

"I think we're pretty proud that we are able to deliver the best experiences, we think in the industry without creating this false trade off that to get a good experience, you need to give up your privacy," says Federighi. "And so we challenge ourselves to do that sometimes that's extra work. But that's worth it."

As an example of Apple's privacy efforts, the article provides a look inside Apple's "top secret testing facilities" where its Secure Enclave chips for devices like the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch are said to be "stress tested" based on "extreme scenarios" like ice-cold -40ºF or blazing-hot 230ºF temperatures.

Within these testing facilities near Apple Park is said to be "a huge room" with "highly advanced machines" that heat, cool, push, shock, and abuse chips before they make their way inside Apple devices, but no further details were shared.

The lengthy interview goes on to discuss Apple's dispute with the FBI over its refusal to unlock an ‌iPhone‌ used by the shooter in the 2015 San Bernardino attack, as well as Apple's decision to store the iCloud data of Chinese accounts on servers overseen by GCBD, a company with close ties to the Chinese government.

Apple today announced that its Apple Maps vehicles are now surveying Canada for the first time over the summer months.

The vehicles will drive across all 10 provinces between May and November, including British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Québec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island. The vehicles have already been spotted in the Toronto area.

Absent from Apple's list are the northern territories of Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut, which are sparsely populated.

The data collected, including the likes of road details, signage, and landmarks, will be used to improve ‌Apple Maps‌ as part of Apple's efforts to rebuild the service, which began in the United States.

Apple's full statement:

Beginning in May, Apple Maps will be driving across Canada throughout the summer. We'll be capturing road details, signage and landmarks — all to make the most accurate and useful Maps experience possible. The information collected will be worked on by our teams in Cupertino, California. We plan to publish this data in a future product update.

We always have your privacy in mind, so we're working closely with local regulators to ensure we follow all laws and regulations. All of our vehicles are marked Apple Maps, so you'll always know it's us.

Privacy is a fundamental Apple principle, so we're proud to build it into everything we do.

Apple Maps vehicles have also surveyed parts of the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Italy, France, Spain, Sweden, Slovenia, Portugal, Croatia, Japan, Andorra, and Puerto Rico since data collection began in 2015.

Beyond improvements to ‌Apple Maps‌, it has long been speculated that the data collected could benefit Apple's development of self-driving technologies or pave the way for Apple to launch its own Street View, but there is no concrete evidence at this point to suggest that either of those possibilities are true.

Apple's next iPhone could allow users to connect two pairs of Bluetooth headphones at the same time, claims a report this morning from Japanese tech blog Mac Otakara.

Citing an Asian supply chain source, the blog says the function will be similar to Samsung's Dual Audio Feature, which lets users play music or other audio from their Galaxy phone or tablet to two connected bluetooth devices.

In the same vein, an ‌iPhone‌ user could pair two sets of earphones – AirPods and Powerbeats Pro, for example – and share what they're listening to with a friend.

In another example, Mac Otakara suggests a usage scenario in which an ‌iPhone‌ could be connected to a car as well as wireless headphones, transmitting GPS directions to the in-car audio system and audio to the headphones.

Current iPhones can connect to multiple Bluetooth devices (and multiple speakers via AirPlay 2), but only one Bluetooth audio profile, so the ability to connect to two audio-based BT devices would certainly be a new, welcome addition to the feature set.

Samsung's dual audio feature is an implementation of Bluetooth 5.0 technology, suggesting Apple's function could be of similar origin. If that turned out to be the case, Apple could potentially bring the feature to ‌iPhone‌ 8, ‌iPhone‌ X, ‌iPhone‌ XS, and ‌iPhone‌ XS models via a software update.

When it comes to its original content, ‌Mac Otakara‌ is largely accurate, making it a widely trusted source for Apple product rumors. That said, the site doesn't have a perfect record and does share inaccurate info on occasion.

• How to Share One Pair of AirPods With a Friend

Apple is expected to debut refreshed iPhones in September 2019. Rumors suggest we'll see 5.8 and 6.5-inch OLED iPhones equipped with triple lens cameras, along with a 6.1-inch LCD ‌iPhone‌ with a dual-lens camera. We don't yet know what Apple will call the new iPhones, but ‌iPhone‌ XI or ‌iPhone‌ 11 are possibilities for the ‌iPhone‌ XS successors.

This Monday, May 27 is Memorial Day, a federal holiday in the United States that honors individuals who have died while serving in the Armed Forces. Marking the unofficial beginning of the summer, the holiday also comes with numerous shopping discounts and sales from many companies that sell Apple products and related accessories.

Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.

Twelve South

At Twelve South you can save 25 percent site-wide on any purchase of $50 or more. Twelve South sells a large variety of products designed specifically for Apple devices, including popular MacBook cases like the BookBook, the HiRise Duet stand for iPhone and Apple Watch charging, and more.

This sale will last through Monday, May 27, so be sure to visit Twelve South this weekend to place your order.

Pad & Quill

Pad & Quill is offering up to 25 percent off all iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch accessories this weekend. The sale includes markdowns on iPad leather sleeves, iPhone cases, Apple Watch stands, travel organizers, Apple Pencil accessories, and more.

To see the discount, head to Pad & Quill's website, shop through the retailer's accessories, and enter the coupon code MemorialDay at checkout.

Best Buy

Best Buy has one of the bigger sales going on this weekend, discounting everything from refrigerators to the HomePod. Other Apple device savings include the MacBook Pro (up to $400 off), MacBook Air (up to $250 off), Apple Watch Series 4 ($50 off), various iPad models, and more.

Check out some of the sales below and then head to Best Buy to see the full collection before the event ends on Monday, May 27 at 11:59 p.m. CT. Best Buy is also offering free shipping for My Best Buy members.

• HomePod - $249.99, down from $299.99
• Apple Watch Series 4 - Starting at $349.00 for 38mm aluminum
• Non-Touch Bar 13-inch MacBook Pro - Starting at $999.99 for 128GB
• iPhone XR - Save up to $150 with qualified activation
• Nanoleaf - Save 10 percent on select products
• Philips Hue - Save up to 15 percent on select products
• UE Blast Bluetooth Speaker - $79.99, down from $179.99

Mophie

Popular battery accessory company Mophie has a new Memorial Day sale that provides up to 50 percent off Juice Pack iPhone cases, wireless charging mats, Powerstation battery packs, and more.

You'll be limited to ordering three items during the sale, which will last through Tuesday, May 28. Head to Mophie's website to browse the full sale.

Miscellaneous

• Apple Pay - Get $1 tacos from the Taco Bell app through May 29
• JBL - Up to 60 percent off speakers, headphones, and more
• Newegg - Save on TVs, PCs, laptops, Nest devices, and more
• Scosche - Save on Scosche's iPhone car mounts, Bluetooth speakers, and more
• Speck - 30 percent off sitewide
• StackSocial - Up to 60 percent off Mac software like PDF Expert and Adobe apps
• Zagg - Up to 50 percent off sitewide

Our full Deals Roundup has more information on the latest Apple-related sales and discounts as we head into the summer season.