We’ve all had the unnerving experience of being followed by ads for the same shoes on every site we visit after a brief moment of shoe-shopping interest. Thankfully, one feature in iOS 14.5 and subsequent upgrades on your iPhone can help you protect your online privacy by allowing you to turn off ad tracking within apps you use. (You can also have a look at all of the new features in the iOS 15 update.)
The App Tracking Transparency feature was introduced with iOS 14.5 in April. An app (including those produced by Apple) cannot utilize your data for targeted adverts, share your location data with advertisers, or disclose your advertising ID or any other identifiers with third parties unless you grant it explicit permission. Privacy groups have praised the change, which was first announced at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference in June 2020, but companies like Facebook have criticized it, claiming it will hamper their ad business.
Also Read: Chinese Hackers Just Broke IOS 15.0.2 Security To Hack iPhone 13 Pro
The move coincides with Apple’s ongoing attempts to promote openness and privacy, which CEO Tim Cook referred to as a “basic human right” in April. Users began viewing app “nutrition labels” advising them of the data an app seeks before downloading it from the App Store with the release of iOS 14.3 in December.
How to turn off app tracking on new apps
You’ll get a notification when you download and launch a new app asking if you want the app to track your activities across other companies’ apps and websites. You’ll also get details regarding the app’s tracking capabilities. To restrict or allow that activity, tap Ask App, not to Track.
When you download an app, you’ll see a notification asking if you want to allow the app to follow your location.
How to turn off app tracking on already-downloaded apps
You may still change tracking permissions on or off for apps that you’ve previously downloaded and have tracking permissions set up for them on a per-app basis.
Tap an app in Settings, then tap to switch off Allow Tracking. Alternatively, go to Settings > Privacy > Tracking and tap on each app in the list of applications that have requested permission to track your activities to turn it on or off.
You can likewise quit app following across each app you download by going to Settings > Privacy > Tracking, and flipping off Allow Apps to Request to Track. This implies any app that attempts to request your authorization will be consequently impeded from asking and informed that you have mentioned not to be followed. And all apps (other than those you’ve allowed following previously) will be hindered from getting to your gadget’s data utilized for publicizing, as per Apple.
It’s critical to take note that this doesn’t mean ads will disappear. It simply implies that you’ll be bound to see conventional ads, not one for that pair of shoes you tapped on one time.
Apple accepts that privacy features like these are a differentiator for their items. Apple’s CEO Tim Cook has said that on the grounds that the company’s plan of action isn’t based on selling promotions, it can zero in on privacy.
