Here’s a question to ask yourself: Would you let Apple collect more of your data to improve its services? The company already collects some stuff, but it doesn’t seem to be enough for services like Siri. Mark Sullivan’s answer to that question is yes.
Everyone is waking up to the fact that big tech companies have been skimming personal data for years and not saying much about it. And don’t get me wrong, the tech companies deserve all the mistrust and scrutiny they’re getting. But I hope they get a second chance with user data, because there’s so much cool stuff they could do with it, especially in the age of AI. I think they might find that many of us would be fine with giving up more of our personal data–if we get more in return.
I think my answer is yes as well. I would love for Apple’s services to be more personalized to me. I just don’t want my data to be used for advertising. The premium price I pay in lieu of ads is for the hardware.
Check It Out: Would You Give Apple More of Your Data?
Andrew:
This is a great question, but not one that most people can answer meaningfully in the abstract, as some of the comments below indicate.
Social scientists have known for years that people will share nothing at all or go through extraordinary lengths to share, even at sacrificial cost, depending on the relationship. Leaving aside personal relationships, when it comes to professional relationships, such was with a physician or attorney, or even more amorphous impersonal relationships, like a company, a community or country, relationship is everything. Two of the most important features of that relationship are trust and identity; Do we trust the entity, do we identify in some way with the entity? Further, inherent in the question of trust, although some may separate this out as distinct, is control; how much control do we have over the relationship. I favour bundling trust and control together for the following reason below.
As for trust, when it comes to professional or even more impersonal relationships, this is built built around the concept of consent; is the relationship consensual, are its terms and conditions clearly understood, and can one walk away from it on one’s own terms unscathed and unharmed. Importantly, are one’s expectations met as advertised consistently at an acceptable personal cost? This requires that we both understand, and voluntarily accept the terms of the relationship. In technical terms, this is referred to as ‘informed consent’; with equal emphasis on being ‘informed’ and voluntarily providing ‘consent’.
As for identity, do we share a common set of values, principles, practices, objectives or in any other way, see ourselves in that entity, or gain a sense of fulfilment by it, such that we are spontaneously moved to support it. Some refer to this as ‘brand loyalty’, ‘patriotism’, ‘party affiliation or membership’, and the like.
Case studies, such as willingness to sue for lapses in met expectations, like malpractice, have shown that if these two conditions are met, people are willing allow far greater licence and latitude to a professional, company, party or community than if those conditions are not met.
Any company that seeks client support should engage in trust building through informed consent, and building a relationship of client loyalty, particularly if they seek even more data from the user in these times. Legislation to insure this may be on the horizon. Whether it is imminent or not, as users we need to insist upon it, by speaking in a language the tech giants understand; our wallets.
This is HILARIOUS. I’ve said all along nobody cares about data collection in the big picture. If you read books, magazines, watch cable, make phone calls, shop at big box stores your data is tracked and collated. It was Apple being cute as usual with marketing because they aren’t even close to the AR and AI that Google and others can provide so now it’s the usual CATCH-UP and “they”apparently agree with me. – Again SIRI can’t answer when the SF earthquake of 1906 was – literally that stupid useless unless you turn on Wi-Fi – which I’ve never needed in my computing life of design and music. Why would ANY database need to know your location to answer a general knowledge question with the answer IN the damn question? Apple should just stay quiet and keep making the only thing they can do well- toy smart-phones.
For me it really depends of WHAT company wants more of my data. FaceBook, Google, Amazon? Nope. I don’t want them to have what they have now. Apple? Yeah maybe, if I got some idea of what they are going to do with it.
I would transparency on what they are taking, how it would be used, and with whom they are sharing. Then I want to be able opt in on a line by line basis, not opt out, opt in.