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TikTok wants to keep tracking iPhone users with state-backed workaround

arstechnica.com

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Re: TikTok wants to keep tracking iPhone users with state-backed workaround

#51

Post by anon9001 »

danShumway wrote: post #3

So, what is CAID? How does it work? Is it a composite fingerprint based on how the device works, or an alternate ID that Apple isn't restricting yet? Would be nice to get some details about what exactly TikTok plans to do beyond "they found a way to get around it". Or is that information just not available yet? I can't find anything online detailing what the attack is.

It appears to be like branch.io, firebase, or the facebook SDK but for Chinese ad companies.

Here's a breakdown the changes in iOS 14 that likely caused this:

* https://blog.branch.io/attribution-ios-14-survive-if-you-mis...

* https://blog.branch.io/attribution-ios-14-cannot-wait-any-lo...

Re: TikTok wants to keep tracking iPhone users with state-backed workaround

#52

Post by pityJuke »

anon9001 wrote: post #38

Technically, what's going on here? "CAID" isn't a public iOS technology, and the article doesn't say what it means. Some googling returns: https://mmachina.cn/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/MMA%E4%B8%AD%... Apparently it means "CAA Advertising Id", where "CAA" appears to be the "Creative Artists Agency", some sort of Chinese advertising group. (edit: wrong organization, it's actually "Chinese Anonymization ID", not a gro…

> Creative Artists Agency

This is wrong. Creative Artists Agency is a talent agency, based in the US, with the same abbreviation.

Re: TikTok wants to keep tracking iPhone users with state-backed workaround

#53

Post by [deleted] »

pityJuke wrote: post #52
anon9001 wrote: post #38

Technically, what's going on here? "CAID" isn't a public iOS technology, and the article doesn't say what it means. Some googling returns: https://mmachina.cn/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/MMA%E4%B8%AD%... Apparently it means "CAA Advertising Id", where "CAA" appears to be the "Creative Artists Agency", some sort of Chinese advertising group. (edit: wrong organization, it's actually "Chinese Anonymization ID", not a gro…

> Creative Artists Agency This is wrong. Creative Artists Agency is a talent agency, based in the US, with the same abbreviation.

[deleted]

Re: TikTok wants to keep tracking iPhone users with state-backed workaround

#54

Post by schiang »

tediousdemise wrote: post #28

As much as I like Apple products, it looks like the privacy buck stops at China. The western world needs to desperately work on making their supply chains independent of the CCP, lest they'd like their supply chains to be poisoned at some point in the future. I'm a big fan of Purism and everything that they are doing. I hope their software and hardware matures with the same level of polish we've come to know and expe…

China doesn't just provide supply chain anymore. They are also a huge market now because of its growing middle class. China has money to spend and US companies need to tap into that market.

Re: TikTok wants to keep tracking iPhone users with state-backed workaround

#55

Post by aroman »

CerealFounder wrote: post #40
tediousdemise wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

China is their bottom line when it comes to fab. If China kicks Apple out, we can expect 50k dollar iPhones soon thereafter. It's sad that China has outcompeted the western world, but it makes sense when you consider the fact that they engage in human rights abuses to do so.

Say it with me. You cant be a mature service economy AND an ultra cheap manufacturing economy. It's not said, its far more lucrative to to be the former than the latter. This is just an odd consequence that their investments are so concentrated in a single place. and that place is peak antithetical to fair economic fights.

> Say it with me. You cant be a mature service economy AND an ultra cheap manufacturing economy.

What immutable law prevents this from being true?

Re: TikTok wants to keep tracking iPhone users with state-backed workaround

#56

Post by some1else »

anon9001 wrote: post #38

Technically, what's going on here? "CAID" isn't a public iOS technology, and the article doesn't say what it means. Some googling returns: https://mmachina.cn/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/MMA%E4%B8%AD%... Apparently it means "CAA Advertising Id", where "CAA" appears to be the "Creative Artists Agency", some sort of Chinese advertising group. (edit: wrong organization, it's actually "Chinese Anonymization ID", not a gro…

This reminds me of how Linkedin and many others used to upload entire phonebooks to unecrypted endpoints, making it simple for US agencies to analyze social networks of foreigners with impunity.

Re: TikTok wants to keep tracking iPhone users with state-backed workaround

#57

Post by Jonanin »

anon9001 wrote: post #38

Technically, what's going on here? "CAID" isn't a public iOS technology, and the article doesn't say what it means. Some googling returns: https://mmachina.cn/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/MMA%E4%B8%AD%... Apparently it means "CAA Advertising Id", where "CAA" appears to be the "Creative Artists Agency", some sort of Chinese advertising group. (edit: wrong organization, it's actually "Chinese Anonymization ID", not a gro…

The story is that major Chinese companies and the state are working together to develop an alternative to Apple’s IDFA. While aggressively pushing back against companies in the U.S. tracking users, Apple seemingly doesn’t mind having a double standard for China.

Re: TikTok wants to keep tracking iPhone users with state-backed workaround

#58

Post by DLay »

seniorgarcia wrote: post #14
danShumway wrote: post #3

So, what is CAID? How does it work? Is it a composite fingerprint based on how the device works, or an alternate ID that Apple isn't restricting yet? Would be nice to get some details about what exactly TikTok plans to do beyond "they found a way to get around it". Or is that information just not available yet? I can't find anything online detailing what the attack is.

I don't think there are any details on the implementation out yet. Judging by this article https://www.sohu.com/a/415394669_344262 (in Chinese) the company behind CAID is https://www.reyun.com/ . Pretty hard to find info on them and their product in englisch though. The only quick result I got was this: https://bloomgamer.com/2020/10/reyun-data-completed-its-c-ro...

CAID spec:

https://web.archive.org/web/20210316035745/docs.trackingio.c...

Re: TikTok wants to keep tracking iPhone users with state-backed workaround

#60

Post by reaperducer »

anon9001 wrote: post #38

Technically, what's going on here? "CAID" isn't a public iOS technology, and the article doesn't say what it means. Some googling returns: https://mmachina.cn/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/MMA%E4%B8%AD%... Apparently it means "CAA Advertising Id", where "CAA" appears to be the "Creative Artists Agency", some sort of Chinese advertising group. (edit: wrong organization, it's actually "Chinese Anonymization ID", not a gro…

In the US, the analogy would be if apps had tracking SDKs in them, that fingerprinted users across apps, in order to better target them for advertisements, and then the US government can pick up that data and do whatever they'd like with it.

I've never really thought about it before, but it would be pretty easy for a three-letter agency to set up an online advertising company for this purpose.

They start their own airlines (Air America, JANET, etc.), so starting an adtech company should be a walk in the park.

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