Apple has announced that it is going to take a hard stance on online privacy with a new anti-tracking policy in Safari.
The iPhone maker has published a “WebKit Tracking Prevention Policy” that goes into specifics about the types of anti-tracking methods it has developed, the practices it believes are harmful to users, and the unintended consequences of those preventive countermeasures.
Publishers and companies rely heavily on online tracking — collecting data about a user’s activity on the web — to keep tabs on your every move as you hop from one site to the other.
Thanks everyone who attended my talk on web privacy at #usesec19. My demos worked – yay!
By the way, we *just* announced the WebKit Tracking Prevention Policy: https://t.co/jo5MPkNAAs
— John Wilander (@johnwilander) August 14, 2019
Apple began to crack down on web-tracking two years ago with Intelligent Tracking Protection (ITP). The technology aims to limit advertisers cross-site tracking on iOS and macOS Safari browsers, at the same time, measure the effectiveness of their ad campaigns on the web without compromising on your privacy.
The anti-tracking policy
The anti-tracking policy introduced by Apple is a clear extension of its privacy-by-design philosophy. This approach places user privacy at the forefront of the company’s design decisions, ensuring that features and technologies are built with privacy considerations from the ground up. Apple aims to eliminate all forms of covert tracking methods, such as cross-site tracking and other forms of data collection that occur without the user’s knowledge or consent. If complete prevention of these tracking techniques is not possible, the company will require users to provide informed consent before any tracking can take place.
Apple has also issued a strong warning to those who attempt to bypass its anti-tracking technologies in Safari. The company states that any efforts to circumvent these privacy measures will be treated with the same level of seriousness as exploiting security vulnerabilities. This means that companies or individuals who try to find loopholes or workarounds in Apple’s privacy protections could face significant consequences. Additionally, Apple has made it clear that it may introduce further restrictions without prior notice if it detects ongoing efforts to undermine user privacy. This proactive stance reinforces Apple’s commitment to continually improving its privacy measures to stay ahead of potential threats.