It’s all kicking off these days with what seems like the whole internet, nay they whole planet going into meltdown over the fact the iPhone and even Android phones are tracking our every move. Thankfully however not everyone is jumping on the hysteria bandwagon.
In a post over at ComputerWorld, Mike Elgan argues that some good old fashioned common sense should be employed and that there are more important things to worry about, such as all the passwords our phones see.
The biggest reason LocationGate is a non-issue is that it’s far less of a privacy concern than other aspects of owning and using a smartphone.
Let’s be clear about what’s going on here. The scandal around the iPhone’s user-tracking capability is that "you" should be the only one in possession of your own location data. Fears center around the "potential" for evil-doers to get their greasy mitts on that data — something that has not actually happened, as far as I know.
If some shady hacker type steals my iPhone or hacks my laptop, the last thing I’m worried about is a database that shows where I went last month. I’m far more concerned about passwords, financial information, private e-mails, my list of contacts, information that would enable hardcore identity theft, and so on. Who cares if they know I went to Whole Foods last month or that I entered a Starbucks at 2:36 p.m. last Wednesday?
Privacy is always a hot button issue and is something that is guaranteed to get headlines and page views, but we can’t help but think that we tend to get a little carried away as soon as location is mentioned. It’s great to hear we’re not alone!
Head on over to ComputerWorld and check out the full post.
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