Yet another disappointment - these beacons will (of course) be closed off to Apple devices only. I don't think we'll see another widely-used standard like GPS for a long time.
Android already does something similar using wifi signals.
Why Apple's 'indoor GPS' plan is brilliant
11–14 of 14 posts
Re: Why Apple's 'indoor GPS' plan is brilliant
#12Yet another disappointment - these beacons will (of course) be closed off to Apple devices only. I don't think we'll see another widely-used standard like GPS for a long time.
Android already does something similar using wifi signals.
Re: Why Apple's 'indoor GPS' plan is brilliant
#13Earlier quoted context omitted.
>But start using your fingerprint to unlock it and suddenly it's oh no the gubmint is going to steal our precious bodily fluids! It makes no sense. It kind of makes sense. Biometrics are a whole different discipline in security and identification. It's harder to spoof, and while not really necessary for the lowly consumer, will increase their device security. That said, you can't just say it makes no sense for any ou…
Even taking into account all the factors you say, it still makes no sense. A modern smartphone is basically a mobile spy device, ready and able to be subverted by organizations such as the NSA to spy on you 24/7. Adding a fingerprint scanner to it is so incredibly minor compared to what they can already do that it boggles the mind why anyone would care about that specific bit. I'm completely sympathetic to concerns a…
Good point. I would guess it's just one more pound to the weight of surveillance.
Re: Why Apple's 'indoor GPS' plan is brilliant
#14Earlier quoted context omitted.
I agree 100%. First of all, I highly doubt that one of the largest tech companies in the world would blatantly _lie_ in their marketing material. Apple claims that fingerprint data never leaves the SoC and is not even accessible by the OS. I don't think they would say this if it wasn't true. Second, what use would the government have for a persons fingerprint anyway? With regards to this iBeacon tech, my main concern…
> we for once just be excited about a new piece of technology instead of hypothesizing how the government will misuse it? Not this year at least, no.
Yup. I'd be happy if we all as an industry took a year or two to evaluate all our current technology and fixed as much as possible to make everything resistant to eavesdropping by intelligence agencies all over the world. Until I have confidence that I can trust the device in my pocket, I don't really want to be granting it even more privacy invading features ripe for abuse.