Getting back to
tracking cookies that track our browsing history. Ever heard of UDID? If you are an owner of any Apple device you
may have. It stands for “unique device
identifier,” and is what Apple initially used to track and collect information
on their users. It basically acts as a
network to collect data on user preferences, not so much personal
information. Well, it turns out that
UDID hasn’t been working well for Apple in the growing app ad market, and within
this last year has caused a large group of app developers who are interested in
user interaction with app ads, to reject apps that use the UDID technology. So
what are app developers who want to work with Apple doing as an
alternative? When Safari is opened, it
now uses a tracking cookie-like technology called HTML5. It’s a little different then desktop cookies
on your mobile devices because developers can an identifier on your device and
retrieve it later. So you have to
wonder why Apple even has UDID. And to
make it more confusing, it’s because Apple rejects tracking cookies! This is a problem considering many big companies heavily or only rely on the tracking cookie method.
Where does this bring us? To the iOS 6 settings. Apple somehow, always comes out on top. They want to have their own Ad Identifier
technology, and you know once this happens, all mobile devices will want to
follow. However, there appears to still
be some controversy over how Apple is handling this transition with developers,
but developers also can admit that having Safari open and close before an app
is loaded in the user's face can seem sketchy compared to what Apple is envisioning. As a user you acknowledge tracking through their own setting and tracking system. Currently, Apple has rejected quiet a few big consumer brands that get over a million downloads, just because they rely on the cookie method. Developers seem to not want all of their apps to be attached to the same technology, at least for now. Like with anything, sometimes it is better to play it safe and see what happens. But, then again we are talking about Apple here!
How do you feel about Apple having their own setting? Do you feel Apple products are more secure vs other mobile devices? Have you experienced tracking through Safari?
Perez,
Sarah. "Apple Rejecting Apps Using Cookie-Tracking Methods, Signaling
Push To Its Own Ad Identifier Technology Is Now Underway." TechCrunch.
25 2 2013: n. page. Web. 18 Jun. 2013.
<http://techcrunch.com/2013/02/25/apple-rejecting-apps-using-cookie-tracking-methods-signaling-push-to-its-own-ad-identifier-technology-is-now-underway/>.
Personally I have always appreciated the control that Apple maintains over its propriety technology. This adds benefits to the consumer and for Apple itself. Apple benefits by maintaining propriety ownership and therefore securing any revenue generated by its technology. The consumer benefits by receiving a conforming product that maintains security, consistent features and similar user interfaces. Ive used Droid products before and sometimes the apps the come from the Google marketplace are so jumbled and confusing it can be very frustrating to use!
ReplyDeleteI like how Apple has their own settings. With this I can personalize my experience with my Apple products. I don't think Apple products are to much more secure than other mobile devices but I have only had a Blackberry and an IPhone so I do not have much device knowledge to know. I do not use Safari on my IPhone. I downloaded Google Chrome for my internet services on my phone and haven't and problems with it nor have I noticed any tracking that I know of.
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