Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Over Apple's Location Tracking in iOS

mapsU.S. District Judge Lucy Koh has dismissed a privacy lawsuit against Apple alleging that the company was collecting location data through iPhones and iPads even when the devices' geo-location data was turned off, reports Reuters. Koh found that the plaintiffs had not adequately shown that they relied on Apple's alleged misrepresentations, writing in her ruling:

Plaintiffs must be able to provide some evidence that they saw one or more of Apple's alleged misrepresentations, that they actually relied on those misrepresentations, and that they were harmed thereby.

The plaintiffs alleged that Apple was collecting location data in violation of its own privacy policy and also claimed Apple lured them into spending more money on their devices than they would have if they had known about the sort of data that Apple had been collecting.

The case is one part of a nationwide litigation that combines 19 related lawsuits. This specific lawsuit was first filed in 2011 and was one of the first of many lawsuits against Apple and other tech companies regarding location data and privacy.

Concerns regarding location data have have ramped up in recent months following news of a U.S. government program called PRISM allowing the National Security Agency direct access to user data on corporate servers from Internet companies like Apple, Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, Facebook and more. Since then, Apple and other companies have reiterated statements on customer privacy.

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

10 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Thursday October 31, 2024 9:42 am PDT by
Apple is set to release iOS 18.2 in December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. There are a handful of new non-AI related feature controls incoming as well. ...
best early black friday deals

The Best Early Black Friday Apple Deals

Friday November 1, 2024 8:21 am PDT by
We're officially in the month of Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 29 in 2024. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment,...
M4 Pro on Blue

M4 Pro Chip Benchmark Results Reveal an Extremely Impressive Performance Feat

Thursday October 31, 2024 7:06 pm PDT by
The first Geekbench 6 benchmark results for the M4 Pro chip surfaced today. Impressively, the results that are available so far show that the highest-end M4 Pro chip is faster than the highest-end M2 Ultra chip in terms of peak multi-core CPU performance. Here is a comparison of the results: Mac mini with M4 Pro (14-core CPU): 22,094 multi-core score (average of 11 results) Mac Studio...
Apple iPhone SE 4 5G Modem 1

iPhone SE 4 First to Get Apple-Designed 5G Modem, iPhone 17 Pro to Add Custom Wi-Fi 7 Chip

Friday November 1, 2024 4:04 am PDT by
The iPhone SE 4 that's set to come out early next year is expected to debut Apple's first in-house 5G modem, according to Jeff Pu, an analyst who covers companies within Apple's supply chain. In a research note this week with Hong Kong-based investment firm Haitong International Securities, Pu said Apple is expected to roll out its custom-made 5G modem starting with the next-generation...
ios 18 2 chatgpt plus

iOS 18.2 Beta 2 Shows Siri ChatGPT Limit, Offers 'Plus' Upgrade Option

Monday November 4, 2024 10:54 am PST by
With the second beta of iOS 18.2 that's available for developers today, Apple has further fleshed out the ChatGPT integration that's available with Siri. In the Settings app, there's now a section that shows the ChatGPT daily limit, and offers an option to upgrade to the paid ChatGPT Plus plan. The beta includes an Advanced Capabilities section with a "Daily Limit" reading that shows up as...
M3 Pro Max vs M4 Pro Max Feature

Here's How Much Faster M4 Pro/Max Are for Graphics vs. M3 Pro/Max

Friday November 1, 2024 8:04 am PDT by
Apple's new M4 Pro and M4 Max chips are impressively fast in terms of CPU performance, topping the M2 Ultra, but what about graphics performance? The first Geekbench 6 results for GPU performance are now available for the M4 Pro and M4 Max, and the Metal scores reveal some impressive year-over-year gains. Based on the Metal scores that are available so far, the M4 Pro and M4 Max are up to...
imac video apple feature

What to Expect From Apple This November

Friday November 1, 2024 9:40 am PDT by
After a busy October in which Apple announced new Macs and Apple Intelligence launched, the calendar has now turned to November. Below, we outline what to expect from Apple this month as the slower-but-still-busy holiday season approaches. After seeding the first betas of iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, and macOS Sequoia 15.2 with additional Apple Intelligence features last month, Apple will likely...

Top Rated Comments

Snowshiro Avatar
143 months ago
Ahh, good to see Apple's pet judge doing her work again.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Illusion986 Avatar
143 months ago
Privacy soon will be a myth and out great grandchildren will read stories about the last generation that got to see it.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Terrin Avatar
143 months ago
Or, you know, they bought an Apple device assuming it would not present a privacy concern; otherwise, they might have bought another manufacturer's device.

Like who? Please do not say any Android manufacturer.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Chatter Avatar
143 months ago
Oh shush

Yes, I also wonder how much Apple pays for these little favors...

Would posting intelligent comments hurt you? You live to post baseless crap eh? :rolleyes:
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Winni Avatar
143 months ago
Ahh, good to see Apple's pet judge doing her work again.

Yes, I also wonder how much Apple pays for these little favors...
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
proline Avatar
143 months ago
Or, you know, they bought an Apple device assuming it would not present a privacy concern; otherwise, they might have bought another manufacturer's device.
If that's the case, they should have to prove that the Apple device actually did present a privacy concern, that there were more private alternatives, and that they would have selected such an alternative were it not for the allegedly false statement Apple made. They have not proven any of the three necessary postulates.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)