Privacy statements are usually pretty dry, boring stuff. There's a lot of vague assurances and a lot of talk about valuing your privacy, which gets boring fast. It's rare that I'm able to read one all the way through on the first try, and I do this for a living.
Apple's new privacy statement is different. It comes direct from Tim Cook, and it's got some spark to it, some personality. Even better, it takes specific shots at specific programs — and if you look closely, most of those turn out to be shots at Google.
Exhibit A:
A few years ago, users of Internet services began to realize that when an online service is free, you’re not the customer. You’re the product. But at Apple, we believe a great customer experience shouldn’t come at the expense of your privacy.
At this point, Cook could be talking about Facebook, Google or any number of smaller fish, but it doesn't stop there. Exhibit B:
We don’t build a profile based on your email content or web browsing habits to sell to advertisers. We don’t "monetize" the information you store on your iPhone or in iCloud. And we don’t read your email or your messages to get information to market to you.
If you had to sum up how Google makes money in three sentences, this is basically what you would say, which goes a long way towards explaining why Apple's privacy page is so different from your average we-respect-our-users boilerplate. This isn't just a privacy report, it's a manifesto, a 500-word Scroogled campaign. With celebgate and goto fail just a few months behind us, Tim Cook is making an aggressive case that you should trust Apple over Google. If nothing else, it takes guts.
In some sense, it's also fair play. Between the new permission structure and the new anti-tracking provisions, Apple really has gotten a lot better on privacy with iOS 8. Even if the new promises will be hard to keep, Cook is still taking a stand, challenging government requests and standing up for user privacy. Just last week, I was complaining that Cook didn't talk more about security — wasn't this exactly what I was looking for?
But here's the real surprise: this is good news even if you don't agree with Apple's case. Googlers will see it as a cheap shot and get mad. Good! Let them get angry, and then let them try to one-up Apple when the next Android OS comes out next month (my money's on "Lollipop"), adding even stronger protections than iOS 8. Then Apple can strike back at WWDC 2015, and so on. Everybody wins. For years, the free-web crowd has been hoping iOS and Android would start competing on privacy, and now, finally, it might actually be happening. If Tim Cook wants to throw some strong language as part of the deal, I'll take it.
In some sense, it's also fair play. Between the new permission structure and the new anti-tracking provisions, Apple really has gotten a lot better on privacy with iOS 8. Even if the new promises will be hard to keep, Cook is still taking a stand, challenging government requests and standing up for user privacy. Just last week, I was complaining that Cook didn't talk more about security — wasn't this exactly what I was looking for?
But here's the real surprise: this is good news even if you don't agree with Apple's case. Googlers will see it as a cheap shot and get mad. Good! Let them get angry, and then let them try to one-up Apple when the next Android OS comes out next month (my money's on "Lollipop"), adding even stronger protections than iOS 8. Then Apple can strike back at WWDC 2015, and so on. Everybody wins. For years, the free-web crowd has been hoping iOS and Android would start competing on privacy, and now, finally, it might actually be happening. If Tim Cook wants to throw some strong language as part of the deal, I'll take it.
Copyright 2014 http://www.theverge.com/2014/9/18/6409915/apples-privacy-statement-is-a-direct-shot-at-google-and-i-love-it
