Apple has responded to Facebook’s critiques of its upcoming privacy changes by saying that is “standing up for our users,” in a statement shared with The Verge. Facebook has been criticizing the company ahead of a future iOS update that will require users to give their permission for apps to collect data about them. Facebook took out full-page newspaper ads today attacking Apple, claiming that the changes will “limit businesses’ ability to run personalized ads and reach their customers effectively.”
Here is Apple’s full statement:
We believe that this is a simple matter of standing up for our users. Users should know when their data is being collected and shared across other apps and websites — and they should have the choice to allow that or not. App Tracking Transparency in iOS 14 does not require Facebook to change its approach to tracking users and creating targeted advertising, it simply requires they give users a choice.
Apple’s statement comes as Facebook reportedly plans to run another anti-Apple ad on Friday, according to BuzzFeed News editor John Paczkowski. This new ad will reportedly claim that Apple’s software update will “change the internet as we know it for the worse” because places like blogs and cooking sites will have to charge for subscriptions or in-app purchases instead of running personalized ads that would allow them to offer content for free.
Apps won’t be required to ask for users’ permission until sometime early next year. The change has already been delayed once — it was originally supposed to kick in with the release of iOS 14 this fall.
The spat between the two companies comes on the heels of Apple adding new App Store privacy labels that spell out how iOS apps use your data.
