iPhone tracks users' movements

Tank · April 21, 2011, 07:51:24 AM

QuoteApple iPhones and 3G iPads are secretly recording and storing details of all their owners' movements, researchers claim.

Location data is kept in a hidden, unencrypted file according to security experts Alasdair Allan and Pete Warden.

With the right software, it can be used to map exactly where a person has been.

Apple has yet to comment on the revelation, however there is no suggestion that it has been uploading or using the information...

Steve Jobs is watching you!

Velma · April 21, 2011, 09:50:27 AM

Glad I don't have an Iphone.

fester30 · April 21, 2011, 09:54:00 AM

I'm sure my whereabouts are a matter of national security!

Asmodean · April 21, 2011, 11:26:09 AM

You know, if I had an iPhone and they wanted to know where I am, they'd be wrong most of the time as my cell phone largely sits on my PC table.

Still, if they wanted to find me, they could just like... Ask. I see no reason to keep my whereabouts a secret from large and nosey commercial entities.

SSY · April 21, 2011, 12:18:12 PM

I do. No point in giving them that information for free. Sell it to them.

Asmodean · April 21, 2011, 12:22:26 PM

Quote from: "SSY"I do. No point in giving them that information for free. Sell it to them.

It's not worth anything at all, I fear... I don't go on shopping sprees, don't sit on any interesting secrets, my hide would make a crappy chair or a leaky jacket and my movements are commercially boring.

Tank · April 21, 2011, 02:22:04 PM

Perfect way to create an alibi. Give your mate your iPhone. Tell him to go for a drive with his iPhone and your iPhone. Go commit a crime and the iPhone evidence backs up your claim that you were with your mate all the time.

fester30 · April 21, 2011, 02:29:09 PM

Almost as air-tight as "I was at home last night at 2am. Alone. No, nobody knew I was there, I'm sort of a loner. I live a private life."

fester30 · April 21, 2011, 02:59:43 PM

I just re-read the story. Apparently, the only way Steve Jobs or "they" will find out where you've been is if "they" have access to your computer. The iphone downloads this secret file when you sync your iphone on itunes. Someone with the right software could then get your computer and check that file to find out where you've been. So if you have a jealous, suspicious spouse, they could check that file on your computer and use it to accuse you of cheating. "Who are you cheating on me with at... Krogers! I know that's where you went last night!"

By the way, "they" can already track your movements with your cell phone if "they" have your phone number, just not retroactively.

Whitney · April 21, 2011, 03:58:40 PM

I kinda doubt that they are spending tons of money on storage for location data in a central server room as I don't see how it would be profitable for them. All gps enabled devices have the capacity to provide someone with your location data if hacked.

Tank · April 21, 2011, 07:30:14 PM

Quote from: "Whitney"I kinda doubt that they are spending tons of money on storage for location data in a central server room as I don't see how it would be profitable for them. All gps enabled devices have the capacity to provide someone with your location data if hacked.

I would have thought petrol suppliers would be very interested in who pass their stations on their way to and from work. My Tom Tom satnav is set up so when I sync the maps all my journey details are uploaded so Tom Tom can create better estimated journey time at different times of day.

hismikeness · April 22, 2011, 10:07:54 PM

I saw this post on another board that I frequent. I can't vouch for the accuracy or original source of the material.

QuoteI figure this thread is as good a place as any to brain dump on this. I went to WWDC last year where the new Core Location system was discussed in great detail. If you went as well, or have the videos, look at the video for session 115, "Using Core Location in iOS". Skip to around 13:45 for the discussion of "Course Cell Positioning" where they discuss the cache in detail.

The purpose of this is offline GPS. Normally, each cell tower has an identifier and Core Location sends that identifier to Apple and asks for the lat/lon for that tower. This requires a data connection, and the use of data. Since cell towers don't move, however, it's inefficient to keep going back to Apple for that information so they cache it. Now if a tower appears with the same ID as the cache, tada! you have a cache hit and a faster fix with no data use. Which also means you can get a "course location" (as in rough) if you are near known towers and don't have a data connection.

That's all this is. It's a cache of identifiers (cell and wifi), locations, and their age (it's a cache, after all). Someone made the decision to never clean it out so they would have more and more information about those GPS "assists" (you know, A-GPS) and so they'd use less and less power and data over time for the places you frequent. It's a great idea, technically.

Practically, yes, you can track location over time. The file is readable only by root and you're free to encrypt your backups for now. I'm sure Apple will either encrypt the file or truncate the data in a future update (I would prefer encryption as I think it's technically sound, but I know many will disagree). I'm also sure someone is considering a toggle for the feature or a button to clear the database. Both are great ideas.

This isn't nefarious, this isn't being sent anywhere, and this isn't as bad as everyone is making it. This is a real feature with a major oversight. That's it.

I guess I have a hard time believing that any company would risk their reputation and potentially losing customers just to track someone for whatever reasons. This explanation seems to make sense of why it is happening, at least.

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iPhone tracks users' movements