Should users be concerned about iPhone/Android tracking questions ?

With the recent news that both Apple products and Android products could be tracking and storing your movements, many people have become concerned and wary of both lines of products. News 4's tech contributor Quincey Hobbs stopped by to explain some of the details behind location tracking.

For those that are not familiar with the term, what exactly is location tracking?

Location tracking is the process of using the GPS in a device to determine the approximate location of the device. This generally applies to items such as some mobile phones handset, some laptops, some vehicles, and other devices. There are a multitude of apps Hp hstnn-lb42 battery Hp pavilion dv4 battery that use the gps in a device to provide services like telling you where the nearest bank is to the nearest restroom or even navigation directions.

How are the location incidents that Apple & Android experienced similar and different?

As I understand it, Apple's troubles revolved around iPhones creating a database of where the phone had been over the previous 12 months. Devices that used the Android operating system reported the location of the device back to Google multiple times a minute.

So they were similar in that they both tracked your location. They are different in that I don't believe that Apple intended to secretly track iPhone Hp pavilion dv2000 battery Hp pavilion dv6 battery users. This is what's sometimes referred to as ghosts in the code. Meaning that sometimes a sequence of code may have an unintended and unforeseen affect once put in to use.

Google on the other hand did intend to track users. In their defense, they did ask permission before they did so. The problem is that when many people were downloading the latest trendy location based app like Layar, Where, or Poynt they likely just clicked through to get the app installed and paid no attention to notice that the GPS would report back to Google.

Should users be concerned?

I don't think that users should be concerned, but I do think that they should be aware. Location based services are becoming more of the norm and these types of tracking can be a byproduct of that. Users are not without options. If they are truly concerned, they can not use location based features, disable the gps in their phone, or they can power of their phone when they want it reporting back.
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