Apple Responds to iPhone Tracking News - Apple Q&A on Location Data

Apple responds to calm the fears over iPhone tracking, in a question and answer format:

Apple would like to respond to the questions we have recently received about the gathering and use of location information by our devices.

1. Why is Apple tracking the location of my iPhone?
Apple is not tracking the location of your iPhone. Apple has never done so and has no plans to ever do so.


2. Then why is everyone so concerned about this?
Providing mobile users with fast and accurate location information while preserving their security and privacy has raised some very complex technical issues which are hard to communicate in a soundbite. Users are confused, partly because the creators of this new technology (including Apple) have not provided enough education about these issues to date.

3. Why is my iPhone logging my location?
The iPhone is not logging your location. Rather, it’s maintaining a database of Wi-Fi hotspots and cell towers around your current location, some of which may be located more than one hundred miles away from your iPhone, to help your iPhone rapidly and accurately calculate its location when requested. Calculating a phone’s location using just GPS satellite data can take up to several minutes. iPhone can reduce this time to just a few seconds by using Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data to quickly find GPS satellites, and even triangulate its location using just Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data when GPS is not available (such as indoors or in basements). These calculations are performed live on the iPhone using a crowd-sourced database of Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data that is generated by tens of millions of iPhones sending the geo-tagged locations of nearby Wi-Fi hotspots and cell towers in an anonymous and encrypted form to Apple.

4. Is this crowd-sourced database stored on the iPhone?
The entire crowd-sourced database is too big to store on an iPhone, so we download an appropriate subset (cache) onto each iPhone. This cache is protected but not encrypted, and is backed up in iTunes whenever you back up your iPhone. The backup is encrypted or not, depending on the user settings in iTunes. The location data that researchers are seeing on the iPhone is not the past or present location of the iPhone, but rather the locations of Wi-Fi hotspots and cell towers surrounding the iPhone’s location, which can be more than one hundred miles away from the iPhone. We plan to cease backing up this cache in a software update coming soon (see Software Update section below).

5. Can Apple locate me based on my geo-tagged Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data?
No. This data is sent to Apple in an anonymous and encrypted form. Apple cannot identify the source of this data.

6. People have identified up to a year’s worth of location data being stored on the iPhone. Why does my iPhone need so much data in order to assist it in finding my location today?
This data is not the iPhone’s location data—it is a subset (cache) of the crowd-sourced Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower database which is downloaded from Apple into the iPhone to assist the iPhone in rapidly and accurately calculating location. The reason the iPhone stores so much data is a bug we uncovered and plan to fix shortly (see Software Update section below). We don’t think the iPhone needs to store more than seven days of this data.

7. When I turn off Location Services, why does my iPhone sometimes continue updating its Wi-Fi and cell tower data from Apple’s crowd-sourced database? 
It shouldn’t. This is a bug, which we plan to fix shortly (see Software Update section below).

8. What other location data is Apple collecting from the iPhone besides crowd-sourced Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower data?
Apple is now collecting anonymous traffic data to build a crowd-sourced traffic database with the goal of providing iPhone users an improved traffic service in the next couple of years.

9. Does Apple currently provide any data collected from iPhones to third parties? 
We provide anonymous crash logs from users that have opted in to third-party developers to help them debug their apps. Our iAds advertising system can use location as a factor in targeting ads. Location is not shared with any third party or ad unless the user explicitly approves giving the current location to the current ad (for example, to request the ad locate the Target store nearest them).

10. Does Apple believe that personal information security and privacy are important?
Yes, we strongly do. For example, iPhone was the first to ask users to give their permission for each and every app that wanted to use location. Apple will continue to be one of the leaders in strengthening personal information security and privacy.

Software Update
Sometime in the next few weeks Apple will release a free iOS software update that:

• reduces the size of the crowd-sourced Wi-Fi hotspot and cell tower database cached on the iPhone,
• ceases backing up this cache, and
• deletes this cache entirely when Location Services is turned off.

In the next major iOS software release the cache will also be encrypted on the iPhone.

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iPod Touch as 3G Phone,

I found this post on slickdeals and I know it works. I have used skype on wifi to make calls from my ipod, so having the 3g from the peel will work. If you want a fake iphone conversion this is what you can do:

Virgin Mobile introduced the ZTE PEEL 3200 [virginmobileusa.com], a casing for iPod Touch 2nd and 3rd generation models (1st and 4th models are out of luck for now). The case costs $100 and has a no contract 500MB plan (Appx. 25hrs of 3G access) for $20/Month on the Virgin Mobile network.

In order to turn your iPod Touch into an actual phone, download the Talkatone [apple.com] Application from the Appstore and set up a free Google Voice [google.com] Account from your computer. You will be able to make free phone calls to the US and Canada via your iPod Touch where ever you have WiFi or 3G access.

This a good way to cheat paying $40+ a month for contracted phones and eliminates the need to bring both your iPod and phone with you wherever you go. All and all, it's like having an iPhone on a $20/Month plan.

Edit: Sprint [sprint.com] also has the PEEL on 1GB/Month no contract. Sprint is selling the PEEL for $80 and costs $30 per month. - Thanks tparks
Virigin Mobile is a part of the Sprint network so service should be about the same.

Edit 2: Made a comparison chart for Sprint and Virgin Mobile plans, see attached image.

Edit 3: Forgot that the 2nd and 3rd gen iPods didn't have a mic built in. You can use any set of earphones with a built-in mic [amazon.com] OR a plug-in microphone [amazon.com] (Between $2-15) as a Microphone and use the iPod's Speakers to make calls. The Virgin Mobile PEEL comes with a "Headset Adapter" if you already have a headset.

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How to Jailbreak Your iPod Touch 3G Using PwnageTool (Mac) [4.3.2]

These are instructions on how to jailbreak your iPod Touch 3G on iOS 4.3.2 using PwnageTool for Mac.

Step One
Make a folder called "Pwnage" on the desktop. In it, you will need a couple of things. PwnageTool 4.3.2, found here

You will also need the 4.3.2 iPod Touch firmware.

4.3.2 (3G): iPod3,1_4.3.2_8H7_Restore.ipsw

When downloading the IPSW file, it is best to download it with Firefox since Safari often auto extracts it!


Step Two
Double click to mount PwnageTool then drag the PwnageTool icon into the Pwnage folder.


Then from the Pwnage folder double click to launch the PwnageTool application.


Click Ok if presented with a warning.


Step Three
Click to select Expert Mode from the top menu bar


Step Four
Click to select your iPod. A check-mark will appear over the image of the phone. Click the blue arrow button to continue.


Step Five
You will be brought to the "Browse for IPSW" page. Click the Browse for IPSW... button.


From the popup window select your firmware from the Pwnage folder then click the Open button.


Step Six
You will then be brought to a menu with several choices. Click to select General then click the blue arrow button.


The General settings allows you to decide the partition size.


The Cydia settings menu allows you to create custom packages so you do not have to manually install the necessary them later.


Click to select the Download packages tab. Then click the Refresh button to display all the available packages. Double clicking the package you want will download it and make it available in the Select Packages tab.


Checkmark the ones you want then Click the blue arrow button.


The Custom Packages Settings menu displays listed package settings for your custom IPSW. For know leave these settings as is. Click the blue arrow button to continue.


Step Seven
You are now ready to begin the pwnage process! Click the Build button to select it then click the Blue arrow button to begin.


Step Eight
You will be asked to save your custom .ipsw file. Save it to your Pwnage folder you created on your Desktop.


Your IPSW is now being built. Please allow up to 10 minutes.


You will be asked to enter your administrator password. Do this then click the OK button.


Step Nine
Once your ipsw has been built you will be asked to connect your iPod to the computer. Once it detects your device PwnageTool will guide your through the steps to putting your iPod into DFU mode.


Press and hold the power and home buttons for 10 seconds.


Then release the power button and continue holding the home button for 10 seconds.


Once your iPhone is successfully in DFU mode, PwnageTool will prompt you to launch iTunes.


Step Ten
Once In iTunes, hold the Alt/Option key and click Restore.


Step Eleven
Navigate to the Pwnage folder on your desktop using the dialog window that appears. Select the custom IPSW that was created and click the Choose button.


Step Twelve
iTunes will now restore the firmware on your iPod. This can also take up to 10 minutes. Once done you will be rebooted into jailbroken iPod OS 4.3.2!

***THANKS: Thank you to Dev-Team and I0n1c for their hard work in making this jailbreak and tutorial possible!

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How to Jailbreak Your iPod Touch 4G Using PwnageTool (Mac) [4.3.2]

These are instructions on how to jailbreak your iPod Touch 4G on iOS 4.3.2 using PwnageTool for Mac.

Step One
Make a folder called "Pwnage" on the desktop. In it, you will need a couple of things. PwnageTool 4.3.2, found here

You will also need the 4.3.2 iPod Touch firmware.

4.3.2 (4G): iPod4,1_4.3.2_8H7_Restore.ipsw

When downloading the IPSW file, it is best to download it with Firefox since Safari often auto extracts it!


Step Two
Double click to mount PwnageTool then drag the PwnageTool icon into the Pwnage folder.


Then from the Pwnage folder double click to launch the PwnageTool application.


Click Ok if presented with a warning.


Step Three
Click to select Expert Mode from the top menu bar


Step Four
Click to select your iPod. A check-mark will appear over the image of the phone. Click the blue arrow button to continue.


Step Five
You will be brought to the "Browse for IPSW" page. Click the Browse for IPSW... button.


From the popup window select your firmware from the Pwnage folder then click the Open button.


Step Six
You will then be brought to a menu with several choices. Click to select General then click the blue arrow button.


The General settings allows you to decide the partition size.


The Cydia settings menu allows you to create custom packages so you do not have to manually install the necessary them later.


Click to select the Download packages tab. Then click the Refresh button to display all the available packages. Double clicking the package you want will download it and make it available in the Select Packages tab.


Checkmark the ones you want then Click the blue arrow button.


The Custom Packages Settings menu displays listed package settings for your custom IPSW. For know leave these settings as is. Click the blue arrow button to continue.


Step Seven
You are now ready to begin the pwnage process! Click the Build button to select it then click the Blue arrow button to begin.


Step Eight
You will be asked to save your custom .ipsw file. Save it to your Pwnage folder you created on your Desktop.


Your IPSW is now being built. Please allow up to 10 minutes.


You will be asked to enter your administrator password. Do this then click the OK button.


Step Nine
Once your ipsw has been built you will be asked to connect your iPod to the computer. Once it detects your device PwnageTool will guide your through the steps to putting your iPod into DFU mode.


Press and hold the power and home buttons for 10 seconds.


Then release the power button and continue holding the home button for 10 seconds.


Once your iPhone is successfully in DFU mode, PwnageTool will prompt you to launch iTunes.


Step Ten
Once In iTunes, hold the Alt/Option key and click Restore.


Step Eleven
Navigate to the Pwnage folder on your desktop using the dialog window that appears. Select the custom IPSW that was created and click the Choose button.


Step Twelve
iTunes will now restore the firmware on your iPod. This can also take up to 10 minutes. Once done you will be rebooted into jailbroken iPod OS 4.3.2!

***THANKS: Thank you to Dev-Team and I0n1c for their hard work in making this jailbreak and tutorial possible!

Read more »