Taking Back Our Privacy From Smartphones (Final Version)

-- By DahwitBerhanu - 27 Nov 2024

Introduction

Present day, more than ninety percent of the American population owns a smartphone. Of the millions of Americans who own smartphones, more than half use the Apple IOS operating system. Though the reasons behind the preference of the Apple IOS operating system over its competitors are varied — the iPhone as a status symbol, the exclusivity of the Apple ecosystem, and perhaps even aesthetic concerns — the problem remains the same. That is, regardless of the brand or particular device smart-phone owning Americans chose to own, they are still subject to surveillance and tracking. Accordingly, the question then becomes how can Americans restore and perhaps even enhance their privacy without giving up their ‘beloved’ smartphone devices. For the purposes of this paper, the discussion on the possible measures users can take will be limited to a device we are all too familiar with as consumers — the Apple iPhone.

What’s Being Tracked

In order to get a sense of the sheer amount of unknowing surveillance our Apple iPhone device carries out every second of each day, one needs to only open up the ‘settings’ app and look for the ‘privacy & security’ function. Using myself as an example, my settings quickly reveal that out of the 70 applications on my iPhone, 37 different applications are using GPS, bluetooth, crowd-sourced Wi-Fi, and cell tower locations to determine my location at any given time of day. Moreover, the device has full access to my calendar, my internet history, my photos, my microphone, and even my contacts list. Perhaps most troubling is the ‘motion & fitness’ function which estimates the user’s body motion, mobility, step counts, stairs climbed, and heart rate. Indisputably, the tracking and surveillance capabilities of the iPhone encompasses a wide spectrum of different areas, from the user’s locations, frequent contacts, health data, the user’s daily schedule, and even the user’s private conversations.

Another such feature on iPhone which many utilize is known as iCloud, a service from Apple that stores all the data from the respective user’s device in a cloud so that it is available across all Apple devices (iPhone, iPad, and Mac). Problematically, such a service is not very secure. In fact, Apple can see every single thing you store in the cloud. Apple is able to see all your information for the simple reason that they encrypt all of the user’s data using its own keys, both in transit and on the company’s servers. Simply put, by controlling the encryption, Apple is able to control who is able to access the data, which, unsurprisingly, is themselves.

Actionable Steps

To remedy the gross violation of individual privacy and autonomy, one of the first steps an individual can take is to review the ‘settings’ application to see which applications and programs are conducting such tracking. To get rid of the location tracking capabilities of the iPhone, one needs to only disable the location tracking feature in the ‘settings’ application. By disabling the location tracking feature, applications no longer can use GPS, bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and cell tower locations to pinpoint the user’s exact geographical location. Under the ‘advertising’ section in the ‘settings’ application, one can disable personalized ads from appearing, thereby preventing Apple from using personal information to curate advertisements. To disable the iPhone from listening in on the user’s conversations, one need only to disable the ‘Siri’ function which is Apple’s voice assistance feature that constantly listens to conversations in the hopes that the user will trigger its use. Likewise, Apple’s access to a user’s photos, calendar, and health data can also be turned off through the ‘settings’ application.

Moreover, iPhone users should immediately cease using ‘Face Id’ to unlock their devices. By allowing Apple to retain such intimate biometric data in its facial recognition technology, users are permitting Apple to access numerous data points such as eye distance, the space between nose and mouth, and overall head length to list a few. Such a feature compromises individual privacy by creating data vulnerabilities, infringing on personal freedoms, and providing opportunities for fraud among other crimes. Disabling facial recognition in favor of a numerical and alphabetical password provides far more security to not just the individual but also to the data stored on the device.

Concerning iCloud, a user can enhance its security by turning on a feature found in ‘settings’ known as Advanced Data Protection. By doing so, iPhone data will now be secured by end-to-end encryption as opposed to Apple’s standard encryption. Because using Advanced Data Protection takes away Apple’s keys to decrypt a user’s data, a user will be solely responsible for the recovery of their data should they lose their device. Accordingly, a user must have the technical expertise to set up alternative recovery mechanisms in order to fully take advantage of Apple’s Advanced Data Protection feature.

Conclusion

That said, it is clear that there exists a plethora of different measures a user can take to enhance privacy without compromising their choice to own an iPhone. Though some measures are easier than others to incorporate, it is important that every iPhone user take proactive steps to better protect themselves from the surveillance their ‘beloved’ iPhones are conducting on them each and every second. Ultimately, though such steps can ameliorate the harmful surveillance capabilities ever present in the iPhone, they are not perfect and there are still ways in which Apple monitors its devices. Thus, for those truly concerned about surveillance and tracking, the solution is rather simple — don’t buy an iPhone.