Tech UPTechnologyWhat is the app tracking transparency privacy feature on...

What is the app tracking transparency privacy feature on iOS

In early February Apple decided to release the first beta versions of the new updates for both iOS and iPadOS corresponding to its next update 14.5 , shortly after the release of the iOS 14.4 update (which included bug fixes and feature updates) .

While it is true that the arrival of iOS 14 was a milestone by becoming one of the last major updates of this operating system, it seems that something similar will happen with the future arrival of version 14.5, mainly because, from that point on At this point, Apple will begin applying the App Tracking Transparency (ATT) . Or, what is the same, the application tracking transparency privacy function.

The arrival of this new function will require that the different application developers must request and receive the specific permission of a user to be able to access their random advertising identifier (known as IDFA), and that allows them to track the activity that the user does on apps and websites .

In this way, once iOS version 14.5 is launched and installed, when an application wants to access the IDFA, users will see a pop-up message with different options, such as Allow tracking or Request the app not to track .

Although it is true that these functions were originally implemented in iOS 14, already available to developers, with the arrival of iOS 14.5 they will become necessary , rather than voluntary (as it was until now).

What happens if the user chooses the option Ask the app not to track?

When the user selects the option Ask the application not to track , the developer of the application for which this functionality has not been allowed will not be able to access the user’s IDFA, so they must respect the user’s tracking preference and refrain from use other methods for the purpose of tracking users.

It seems that Apple will be very attentive to possible abusive practices, since disobeying this user rule could cause an app to be officially removed from the App Store .

Although, as we will see later, it is already possible to prevent apps from being able to track our advertising identifier , what will change with the arrival of the next iOS update is that Apple will deactivate the identifier by default on all its devices.

How You Can Customize Your Tracking Preferences

While we wait for the arrival and official launch of iOS 14.5, you may not know that it is already possible to modify and customize the tracking preferences of the apps. In fact, accessing this functionality is quite straightforward and simple, and it has been possible to do so for a few years.

You just have to open the Settings app, which you will find located on your home screen, touch Privacy and, finally, go to the Tracking option to open the section related to Tracking .

Although at the moment it is not possible to disable the permissions already provided to the apps so that they can access our data, you can enable or not the option Allow apps to request to track you . In this way, once disabled or enabled, it will be applied to all installed apps.

As we can see, it is a simple but extremely useful option, which will allow users to grant or deny permission to applications so that they can track their data both in other apps and on other companies’ websites.

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