'Why don't you mind your own business?' Apple does

! This advert maybe not available because the video is not working

Apple hit the headlines by announcing their new privacy approach, illustrated in arresting visuals through this ad. What do you think of the ad? Job done in terms of alerting iPhone / iPad users of the new settings and possibly even luring in some former Androids? Clever portrayal of how we're all being monitored, tracked, traced, sold to and commoditised by our online apps and habits? Or just disingenuous? When we ran a straw poll on this, responses varied from 'Are we so naive that we think they've suddenly developed a conscience about data privacy?' to 'It was great because all the items I left in my shopping cart stopped following me round the internet!' to 'They're just tying people further into the Apple closed-off space'. One pointed out that Apple has a virtual monopoly on search via its agreement with Google through Safari, making this truly a case of 'minding their own business'. And the highest percentage of respondents - 39% - in our poll believed that Apple will 'find a way to monetise me somehow' regardless of what appears to be a move in favour of personal privacy. "Apple’s more than 160,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it," says the tech giant itself. Your thoughts on the campaign and the new approach are invited.

Keywords: Apple privacy 2021, iPhone privacy settings, personal data, online privacy, Big Tech