Apple's supply chain is China-based. If Apple doesn't pull app, then China's leadership probably shuts down that supply chain. China's leadership doesn't give a damn about Apple or Foxcomm or even the NBA. It's probably a real blow to Tim Cook since he is famous for setting up such an amazing supply chain. He put Apple in such a dangerous position. He caved and made up an excuse.
Tim Cook’s Company-Wide Email on Hkmap.live Doesn’t Add Up
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Re: Tim Cook’s Company-Wide Email on Hkmap.live Doesn’t Add Up
#32Just say you've been asked by the authorities in the territory to remove the app, and you've complied. Full stop.
There are lots of apps missing from the China app store.
This whole thing about removing the app to protect users strains credibility.
Re: Tim Cook’s Company-Wide Email on Hkmap.live Doesn’t Add Up
#33Can I play devil's advocate for just a moment? Gruber asks for evidence. His only complaints seems to be the lack of evidence and a question of whether the app violates local (Hong Kong) law. Cook's memo directly addresses both of those issues: > However, over the past several days we received credible information, from the Hong Kong Cybersecurity and Technology Crime Bureau, as well as from users in Hong Kong, that…
Even if the alleged crimes allegedly abused the app (something certainly not endorsed by the app makers), the same can be said for a lot of other apps. Thieves use facebook to look for people who give details on when they are on vacation for example. Snapchat and Skype and kik and whatapp and every other social messaging and social media app and service is abused by pedo criminals grooming their victims. etc
But those alleged crimes could not have possibly helped by the app, as has been pointed out: you don't get to see individual officers' locations and it does not show areas with no police at all either, just police hotspots (and technically, most areas even in a dense city like Hong Kong are without immediate police presence most of the time, anyway).
But even if we played devil's advocate and took the allegations of criminal activity that abused the app at face value, and assumed Tim Cook is not free to share specifics as the information might be confidential, he could at least answer what local laws were allegedly violated by the app itself. Those laws certainly are not confidential information.
Re: Tim Cook’s Company-Wide Email on Hkmap.live Doesn’t Add Up
#34It's already known that iCloud in China is operated by a state-owned telecom (GCBD) see https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21217920 so they could use the data to track the protestors.
And iPhone usages is comparatively small according to https://gs.statcounter.com/os-market-share/mobile/china (Android 79% and iPhone 20%)
Then https://hkmap.live/ is available as a website.
So why the outcry about this? In the end, for-profit companies will do what gives them profit. You should not rely on them for anything that won't give them profits.
Re: Tim Cook’s Company-Wide Email on Hkmap.live Doesn’t Add Up
#35hacker news admins should investigate the downvote patterns on articles critical of china ...there seems to be a very strong downward pressure on articles critical of china — so much that i suspect there may be a down vote ring..
Among other things, you can't downvote articles.
You can flag articles.
Re: Tim Cook’s Company-Wide Email on Hkmap.live Doesn’t Add Up
#36Apple caved under pressure from China. The explanation Cook gave is not just an embarrassment, it calls into question the veracity of all of his other statements. Why should users believe that (closed source) iMessage encryption is free from backdoors when we know that Cook will dance around sensitive truths? And why should the US government be satisfied with a fully encrypted iMessage given that Apple will cave to d…
I agree that Apple's stated rationale for removing the HKmap.live app is embarrassing and the removal is a capitulation to China's government. The reasons China's government has decried the app are bogus, but those false reports and allegations do not originate with Apple. However, Apple appears to be accepting those reasons at face value and probably because Apple is kowtowing. Regarding whether iMessage is free fro…
> Regarding whether iMessage is free from backdoors, Apple has given no reason for anyone to believe they are outright lying about the technical features of their software and hardware or their position regarding privacy.
Except if you live in China and have backups/storage on iCloud used by the various things you do with your iPhone.
Re: Tim Cook’s Company-Wide Email on Hkmap.live Doesn’t Add Up
#37Nvm
.
Re: Tim Cook’s Company-Wide Email on Hkmap.live Doesn’t Add Up
#38The silver lining here is that a lot of people are thinking hard for the first time about what it means to give up the right to install whatever software you want on your own hardware.
A devil's bargain always seems like a good deal until the bill comes due.
Re: Tim Cook’s Company-Wide Email on Hkmap.live Doesn’t Add Up
#39Doesn’t Waze show where the police are?