[gunapologist99]

Apple’s analytics data include an ID called “dsId”. We were able to verify that “dsId” is the “Directory Services Identifier”, an ID that uniquely identifies an iCloud account. Meaning, Apple’s analytics can personally identify you. Apple states in their Device Analytics & Privacy statement that the collected data does not identify you personally.

Even if legal, this is obviously a very bad look for a company that claimed they were all about privacy and took actions against competitors to protect users' privacy.

[sneak]

Apple is only about privacy as a marketing differentiator.

Apple's software clearly demonstrates that they do not place a high value on user privacy. iPhones and Macs phone home constantly with all sorts of information even if you never use iCloud or the App Store or Apple's service offerings. It's ridiculous.

[user3939382]

Yep. Set up Charles Proxy (GUI) or mitmproxy (CLI) if you want to take a look at the actual data. It's huge and non-stop. Some of this even Little Snitch can't stop because it's sent to random IPs inside huge blocks belonging to Apple with no DNS. Unless you go to extraordinary lengths it's the same with Firefox FYI.

These companies' privacy concerns are a marketing gimmick, and the situation is so out of control we have to be thankful even for those crumbs.

[sneak]

Little Snitch can still block those.

The huge block is 17./8 and is easily identified.

[gcanyon]

I'm curious: do you think Apple is exactly as invasive as the companies they compare themselves to? Or are they not as invasive, but still not as non-invasive as their marketing materials claim?

[sneak]

The issue for me is location tracking. Apple always knows what city I am in, linked constantly to unchangeable hardware identifiers, which for me is the same level of invasive.