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New iPhones, new Watches, new spyware, oh my!
The typically quiet conversation around Apple security threats got loud on Monday when the company pushed out an emergency software update to deal with some very scary spyware that can infect iPhones, iPads, Watches, and Macs. This happened less than 24 hours before Apple’s annual pre-holiday hardware event, where the company announced the iPhone 13, a new Watch and iPad, as well as the release date for iOS 15: September 20. While we don’t know if the timing of the crisis and the celebration of new products is coincidental, it serves as a reminder that Apple’s ironclad control over its devices is increasingly on trial.
Pun intended, of course. Days before Apple’s security scare and big iPhone event, the company made headlines for its overall victory in a contentious court battle with Epic Games. A federal judge ruled that Apple’s App Store does not represent a monopoly, effectively dashing Epic’s home to prevent Apple from continuing to collect a 30 percent commission on subscriptions and in-app purchases. (The judge did say this amount was “potentially anticompetitive.”) Apple had already addressed some of Epic’s complaints by letting developers accept payment outside of the App Store, though critics argue that this still doesn’t let the company off the hook for alleged antitrust violations. After all, which apps are allowed in its app store and under what terms is still up to Apple, and the user has no choice in where they get their apps. There is only one App Store for iPhones, and Apple controls it.
So Apple has had quite the week. A verdict in an antitrust case, a spyware scare, and a huge product release amount to a tremendous amount of attention on a company that’s notorious for maintaining tight control over its public image. Apple has obviously faced crises before. (Who could forget Antennagate and the iPhone 4?) But it feels as though the stakes have shifted in recent months, leading Apple to do things like change its App Store policy ahead of the ruling on the Epic case. The company is bound to endure further antitrust scrutiny, so as it releases new products, including new operating systems for its phones, watches, and computers, maybe the world is watching and waiting for Apple to slip up.
What feels more obvious is that Apple is trying to get ahead of these problems. The fact that Apple changed how its App Store works in the face of pressure from the Epic Games case is one example. Another is a feature in iOS 15: iPhone users will be able to send FaceTime links to anyone, including people on non-Apple devices. That means you’ll soon be able to FaceTime your mom who refuses to ditch her Android phone even though the rest of the family has an iPhone and loves to FaceTime. (It also means Apple can better compete with Zoom.) You could argue that Apple didn’t want to do this, since getting a whole family to buy iPhones and use FaceTime is good for its business. But to regulators, it’s not good that Apple makes it hard for people to leave the Apple ecosystem.
The iOS 15 release is not without controversy, though. There’s ongoing debate over its new feature that scans for child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in photos users upload to iCloud. This sort of scanning is commonplace at companies like Facebook and Google, both of which scan every photo uploaded to their servers for CSAM. Many users look to Apple, however, to offer superior privacy in its products. When the new feature was announced in early August, users, developers, and even Apple employees reacted with outrage, some accusing the company of building a back door into its products. People protested against Apple’s phone-scanning plans outside of Apple Stores across the United States this week.
Nevertheless, Apple will probably sell millions of new iPhones. The new iPhone 13, by the way, looks just like the old iPhone 12. The cameras are a little bit better. The notch is a little bit smaller. The chip is a little bit faster. But the real changes are still to come in the operating system updates. Starting on September 20, many iPhone users will be able to upgrade to iOS 15, and thanks to all kinds of pressure, iPhones should offer users slightly more choice over how their devices work.
In the meantime, if you have an iPhone, you should update your operating system right now. That scary spyware is no joke.
—Adam Clark Estes, deputy editor
Millions of people got Covid-19 tests through Walgreens. Their information wasn’t adequately protected.
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