Facebook has announced plans to counter Apple’s new enhanced privacy features by requesting users’ permission for certain types of data acquisition.
Beginning on Feb. 1, Facebook will introduce a test urging some users to respond “Allow” or “Don’t Allow” to prompts that appear when they open the social media app on iOS devices, according to CNBC.
Facebook said its prompt requesting information is designed to “provide a better ads experience.” Whether users choose to allow or disallow tracking, the selection will remain final and will be respected by Facebook.
The move mirrors a recent privacy update that Apple is introducing in iOS 14, which will allow users to opt in to tracking from third-party app developers, including Facebook. Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering, announced the new feature last Wednesday in a press release.
“Privacy means peace of mind,” Federighi said. “Our goal is to create technology that keeps people’s information safe and protected. We believe privacy is a fundamental human right, and our teams work every day to embed it in everything we make.”
The measure from Apple aims to put the company’s technology users “in the driver’s seat” when it comes to selecting which apps to share data and information, though the policy change prompted pushback from Facebook.
While Facebook and Apple have been competing for years in the technology market, the latest measure by the iPhone creators prompted condemnation over the social media giant’s data collecting practices, in which Facebook sells user data to advertisers for recommending relevant ads to users.
“If a business is built on misleading users, on data exploitation, on choices that are no choices at all, it does not deserve our praise. It deserves scorn,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, returned fire at Apple over its latest updates focused on fortifying users’ privacy, saying Apple’s privacy changes would hurt the growth of “millions of businesses around the world.”
Facebook argued that its financial data proves Apple’s moves could hurt its bottom line. The social media company reported 2020 fourth-quarter revenue in Facebook’s “Other” category at $885 million in its latest financial readout, up 156% from 2019. The company has warned investors that the latest privacy initiative from Apple, coupled with pandemic struggles, could affect revenue in the first quarter of 2021.
Apple has said its privacy update will begin in “early spring.” Facebook’s parallel move has no timeline in terms of a broader rollout.
