Who has access to yours personal data? Apple thinks you should be you and you alone. In recent years, the tech titan has rolled out a range of anti-tracking tools to help you out take back control of your personal data: This includes your activity, location and other sensitive data.
Apple's app tracking transparency feature gives Apple users a simple choice to allow apps to track their activity or not. If you choose to opt out, Apple will prevent the app from accessing the identifiers link your device to your app activityusually shared with advertisers to create targeted ads. Unless you give explicit permission for an app to track you (including apps made by Apple), it can't use your data for targeted advertising, including sharing your location data, advertising ID or any other identifiers with advertisers or third parties.
The feature was first introduced in Apple Worldwide Developers Conference 2020 and it was subsequently introduced to users later that year iOS 14.5. Since then, Apple has built on these efforts to increase transparency and privacy. In new iOS 17Apple has made a change that allows users choose their default browser when in private browsing mode, giving users the option to select a search engine other than Google while in a private Safari tab. Coming in a future iOS update, Apple recently previewed a feature that will make it harder for thieves access to sensitive information on stolen devices.
The impact of Apple's “App Tracking Transparency” feature is far-reaching across the tech industry. The feature attracted support from privacy advocates but reviews from companies such as Metawho said the move would hurt its ad business. Metta's concern manifests itself across social media platforms, with a 2021 investigation by the Financial Times estimating that the feature cost Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube a combined $9.85 billion in lost ad sales as most Apple users unfollowed.
Even if you did not initially opt out, you can change whether or not to allow tracking at any time. Here's how to use the App Tracking Transparency feature.
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How to turn off app tracking on new apps
When you download and open a new app, you'll get a pop-up notification asking if you want to allow the app to track your activity across other companies' apps and websites. You will also see information about what the application will do next. You can tap Ask the app not to track you to block that activity or Allow.
When you download an app, you'll see a prompt that gives you the choice of whether you want to give the app permission to track you.
You can also opt out of app tracking on each app you download by going to Settings > Privacy & Security > Tracking and disconnection Allow apps to request tracking. This means that any app that tries to ask for your permission will automatically be blocked from asking and will be informed that you have asked not to be tracked. All apps (except those you've given permission to track in the past) will be blocked from accessing information on your device used for advertising, according to Apple.
It's important to note that this doesn't mean that ads will go away. It just means you're more likely to see generic ads rather than one for that pair of shoes you clicked on once.
How to turn off app tracking on already downloaded apps
You can too turn app tracking permissions on or off on a per application basis.
To do that, go to Settings > Privacy & Security > Tracking. You should see a list of apps that have requested to follow you. Tap the switch next to the apps you want to stop tracking you.
All app developers are required to request tracking permission. If Apple learns that a developer is tracking users who have requested not to be tracked, they will either need to update their tracking practices or face a potential rejection from the app store.
Apple believes that privacy features like these differentiate its products, compared to other tech giants like Google and Samsung. Cook said that because of the company's business model it's not built on selling adscan focus on privacy, which he called “a basic human right.
Even so, it's important to keep in mind that when you ask apps not to track you, what you're saying is that you don't want app developers to have access to your unique identifier that Apple creates specifically for advertisers — your IDFA. Denying access to IDFA on your iPhone doesn't necessarily mean that app developers won't track you in other ways, so it's critical to be mindful of the apps you use and how you interact with them.
For more on security and privacy, check out the best VPNs of 2024 and how to stop google from tracking your location.