Mozilla urges users to support Apple's anti-tracking plans

The mobile operating system Apple's iOS 14 will require applications, starting early next year, get the user's permission to collect their ad ID Random, which advertisers use to run personalized ads and monitor the effectiveness of their campaigns.

Given this, the people of Mozilla said it fully supports Apple's plans to limit user tracking on iOS and asks users to sign the post to show their support for the initiative.

In your post, the company said:

“In 2019, Mozilla asked Apple to increase user privacy by automatically resetting the Advertiser Identifier (IDFA) on iPhones. IDFA allows advertisers to track user actions as they use applications, much like a salesperson following you from store to store as you shop, logging every item they see. It's scary, isn't it?

“In early 2020, Apple went even further than Mozilla supporters were demanding when it announced that it would give consumers the option to opt out of tracking across all apps, essentially turning off IDFA and providing millions of consumers. more privacy online. Apple's announcement also made a strong statement: Massive data collection and widespread advertising don't have to be the norm online. "

Mozilla praised Apple for not backing down from reactions from companies like Facebook, but cautioned against Apple's delay in implementing this feature. In fact, this new requirement was supposed to go into effect in September 2020 with the release of iOS 14, but Apple has postponed the introduction of the new feature until early 2021 to give developers more time to make the necessary changes.

Many advertisers, especially Facebook, were unhappy with Apple's initiative. Facebook, which uses IDFA to track user activity in different apps and match them to ad profiles, says its advertising partners will be hit hard by the change.

Facebook claimed in a report that this could cause ad revenue to drop by at least 40% and even 50%. Either way, some companies like Facebook are still unhappy with the change when it affects their interests, online advertising.

A group representing various organizations and advertising interests also called for a "dialogue" on the implementation of this new feature. Another group of advertising and publishing companies in France has even filed an antitrust complaint in this regard.

It is this pressure from some advertisers that has led Mozilla to launch a new page inviting people to show their support for Apple's decision, so that it is not delayed any more. "This is where you come in: we need massive support for Apple's decision to strengthen its determination to protect consumer privacy," Mozilla wrote.

The new measures will mean that users will have to choose to be tracked by apps and websites in iOS 14 starting next year, a move Mozilla has called a "huge win for consumers," many of whom "didn't even know. that IDFA existed and the continuous collection of data by applications ”.

And "consumers who knew it still didn't know how to reset it," Mozilla said, citing a survey it conducted in 2019.

Mozilla is asking consumers to sign a thank you message to Apple, telling the company that "consumers are eagerly awaiting tracking protection on the iPhone."

Mozilla's support comes at a time when the Apple App Store now allows users to better understand the privacy practices of an application before downloading it from an Apple platform.

Mozilla not the first to encourage Apple to go ahead with its iOS 14 feature which is making life difficult for online advertising companies. Eight civil society organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the Electronic Frontier Foundation, recently sent a letter to the company to support it in its efforts and ask it not to delay the implementation of the reform too long. . Critics also abound, accusing Apple of distracting customers with its privacy rhetoric and acting in its own interests.

Source: https://foundation.mozilla.org