Apple will limit tracking on kids apps soon

Apple is working on new tools and policies to limit ad tracking in kid-focused apps this year, as per a report in the Wall Street Journal.

In fact, Apple will limit third-party tracking in apps in the Kids category of the App Store, according to a person familiar with the matter. Apple declined to comment on this, but a spokeswoman provided a statement:
“For privacy and security reasons, Apple does not see what data users choose to share with developers and we can’t see what developers do on their servers.”

Apple currently allows developers to embed all sorts of apps and trackers in apps for data collection. Unlike with a browser and a web-app, you are unable to easily see what data is being collected and even less able to block it. As phones are commonly handed to children to placate them, the less tech-savvy of them may end up giving up all sorts of data away by sheer naivete.
Apple’s move makes sense for a company that has built its brand on being the safer and more secure option on the one hand. On the other hand, lawsuits are expensive and prevention is often much better than a cure.

Source: Wall Street Journal, Via: MacRumors