CEO Tim Cook was the messenger for Apple’s advocacy, which leant authenticity to the move, given his long history of supporting privacy. He issued his call for tighter security in a speech to the 40th International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners.
“Our own information — from the everyday to the deeply personal — is being weaponized against us with military efficiency,” warned Cook. “These scraps of data, each one harmless enough on its own, are carefully assembled, synthesized, traded and sold.“Taken to the extreme this process creates an enduring digital profile and lets companies know you better than you may know yourself. Your profile is a bunch of algorithms that serve up increasingly extreme content, pounding our harmless preferences into harm.”
“We shouldn’t sugarcoat the consequences. This is surveillance,” he added.
Consumers want their favorite organizations to take a stand on important issues. Companies such as Patagonia and REI have seen success advocating for natural conservation efforts. Others win fans by providing aid during hurricanes or highlighting diversity and inclusion efforts.
For tech customers (which is basically everyone), data protection and security has become a hot topic as major companies have fallen prey to hackers. Data broker Equifax was the victim of the biggest data breach in history in 2017. Facebook enraged customers when it revealed data was misused in the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
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An homage to Ike
Cook hoped to highlight the dangers posed by the greater data industry by coining them the “data industrial complex,” an allusion to the “military industrial complex” that President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned about in his farewell address.
TechCrunch noted that Cook didn’t point a finger at other Silicon Valley companies, specifically Google and Facebook, which greatly profit as data brokers.
The speech was shared on YouTube:
Apple also has a history of advocating for data privacy and protection.
Apple has long positioned itself as a protector of user privacy, notably declining to cooperate with the FBI in 2016 when authorities sought to unlock an encrypted iPhone belonging to one of the San Bernardino shooters.While Facebook and Google have faced scrutiny this year for their data collection practices, Cook has sought to position Apple as the face of “responsible tech,” adding more privacy controls for users, including secure password management; and bolstering its intelligent tracking feature in Safari, preventing companies from tracking users as they browse the internet.
Tweeted excerpts
Cook also shared parts of his speech on Twitter, notably his endorsement of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), adopted this year by the European Union:
GDPR has shown us all that good policy and political will can come together to protect the rights of everyone.
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) October 24, 2018
We believe that privacy is a fundamental human right. No matter what country you live in, that right should be protected in keeping with four essential principles:
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) October 24, 2018
First, companies should challenge themselves to de-identify customer data or not collect that data in the first place.
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) October 24, 2018
Second, users should always know what data is being collected from them and what it’s being collected for. This is the only way to empower users to decide what collection is legitimate and what isn’t. Anything less is a sham.
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) October 24, 2018
Third, companies should recognize that data belongs to users and we should make it easy for people to get a copy of their personal data, as well as correct and delete it.
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) October 24, 2018
And fourth, everyone has a right to the security of their data. Security is at the heart of all data privacy and privacy rights.
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) October 24, 2018
Technology is capable of doing great things. But it doesn’t want to do great things. It doesn’t want anything. That part takes all of us. We are optimistic about technology’s awesome potential for good — but we know that it won’t happen on its own.
— Tim Cook (@tim_cook) October 24, 2018
Mixed responses
Some weren’t ready to see Apple—or its CEO—as an ethical beacon:
. @Tim_Cook While I'm glad Apple's business model is aligned with privacy rights, any moral leadership you offer will be suspect until you address the problem of tax evasion.
— Abudabu 🍩 ✊🏾 (@leftistcoward) October 24, 2018
If data belongs to users, so do taxes belong to the countries which nourished and protected your IP... https://t.co/3JWbP4iAew
Privacy advocates have applauded the speech, urging other companies to follow suit:
One of the most significant aspects of Tim Cook’s speech at the #ICDPP2018 was his support for the US to adopt a “comprehensive privacy law based on rights”, including the right to data minimisation.
— Privacy Matters (@PrivacyMatters) October 24, 2018
The speech was received with guarded optimism at the event:
Cook's speech went down very well, ppl appreciated candour about tech's threats to democracy (tho not via its tax-dodging hollowing out public services, mind you). So quite a power play and a 'we're not like the other (bad) guys' play from Apple. Let's see if they mean it. 7/7
— Maria Farrell (@mariafarrell) October 24, 2018
What do you think of Cook’s call for a U.S. version of the GDPR?
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