Click to Skip Ad
Closing in...

China says iPhone’s location-tracking could compromise state secrets

Published Jul 11th, 2014 5:50PM EDT
iPhone Location Tracking
Image: Zach Epstein, BGR

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

We saw plenty of complaints arise when it was first discovered that Apple’s iOS 7 software included a “frequent locations” function in the iPhone. The feature, which can be easily disabled, tracks users’ locations in order to determine the locations they visit most frequently. All sorts of privacy concerns arose, naturally, but none were quite as intense as the warnings issued on Friday morning by state broadcasters in China.

According to the broadcast, Apple’s iPhone has been deemed a “national security concern” by state-sponsored media. China Central Television issued the broadcast and said that according to Chinese researchers, data collected by the iPhone’s frequent locations feature could compromise “state secrets” if accessed by unauthorized people.

The Wall Street Journal noted that in the past, companies have changed their policies or even recalled products following critical reports from the China Central Television, because the network is so influential.

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 10 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.