With the advent of digital media along with file sharing websites and applications such as The Pirate Bay and Napster, the television, film and music industry over the past 10 years has changed dramatically. When Apple introduced the iTunes Music Store which was later renamed the iTunes Store, it provided consumers with a more convenient way with which to purchase music and movies legally. The enormous success of the iTunes Store has allowed consumers to purchase music anytime and anywhere, such as from the comfort of one’s home. With millions of online transactions occurring everyday on the iTunes Store, the importance of protecting the consumer’s privacy and personal information has become a major issue. Many consumers do not pay attention to a product or service’s terms of use or privacy policy as they find them tedious and time consuming to review. A lack of knowledge and understanding of how companies are collecting and managing their personal data can lead to serious financial implications for the user. As Apple continue to provide various services and features within their iTunes application, such as the MiniStore, Genius and the upcoming iTunes Cloud, concerns about the privacy of the consumer’s information and data are being brought forth. With every new feature that is introduced by Apple, the effect that it has on the existing privacy policies that are provided by Apple should be reviewed to ensure that consumers are protected. Apple’s privacy policy can determine the success of each new service or product that is introduced to the consumer. While Apple’s partnership with third party internet privacy companies such as TRUSTe is one of the ways Apple has assuaged consumers’ privacy concerns to a certain degree, the security issues that were brought up by consumers when the MiniStore was first introduced greatly impacted Apple’s standing within the technological community.
The iTunes application which was introduced by Apple back in 2003, allowed consumers to purchase individual music tracks in an à la carte style without having to purchase the full album. It allowed users to sample various music tracks prior to making a purchase of the individual track. With Apple’s competitive price point of $0.99 per song, it was a formula for great success for Apple. Each user is required to register for an Apple ID, which acts as a personal profile for the user. The Apple ID contains information such as a person’s name, phone number, email address, mailing address and credit card number. Each time a transaction is made, Apple stores the user’s purchasing history, which according to their privacy policy is used to provide better customer service and to give users better access to their other products and services that may interest them (Apple Inc.). Apple also supports security initiatives such as TRUSTe to ensure that a user’s privacy rights are protected. TRUSTe is a non-profit organization that provides various services such as privacy policy generation and enforcement, as well as a set of customer data management practices for companies to abide by to ensure that they conform to industry standards and provide full disclosure to their users about how they collect, use and manage their data (Boutin, 2002). Apple currently displays TRUSTe’s privacy seal on their privacy policy. The TRUSTe seal along with their stated disclosure on how they protect their customer’s private information is an effective way to assuage any fears or concerns that users may have regarding the security of their information.
Although TRUSTe is a reputable organization that works with companies and organizations to administer and enforce their own privacy policies, there are concerns as to how much influence TRUSTe can exercise to ensure companies are following their own policies. While a threat of an FTC investigation is only one of a few options that TRUSTe can use to keep companies in line with their policy, there are some who view TRUSTe’s privacy seal as a meaningless symbol (Boutin). When RealNetworks, the makers of RealPlayer, sent users’ video selection information back to their servers in Seattle, TRUSTe stated that the situation fell outside the scope of their current privacy seal (Boutin). This is one example that illustrates the need for users to actively be aware of how their information is being collected and to not fall under a false sense of security behind a company’s various security seals.
While Apple strives to provide the best services and products to better serve the public’s need for all forms of digital media, they too have come under public scrutiny with regards to some of their services and applications. When Apple launched the MiniStore back in 2006, it allowed the iTunes program to actively provide users with song recommendations based on what songs they played or selected within their iTunes playlist. Privacy advocates were actively questioning the technology behind Apple’s MiniStore which sent information regarding the song’s artist, title and genre back to Apple’s servers (Borland). It was discovered that not only was the name, the artist and the genre of the song being sent, but a numerical equivalent of the user’s Apple ID was also being transmitted by the MiniStore back to Apple’s servers (McElhearn). Apple was fearful from all the criticisms made by privacy advocates as well as other industry analysts, that within a week of introducing the MiniStore feature, they reversed its plan of having the feature switched on by default (Posen). By presenting informative images and tool tips within iTunes on how to switch the feature on or off, Apple was hopeful that they could avoid a public relations disaster (Posen). The MiniStore’s intentions of marketing and promoting their various songs and musical artists while appearing to be helpful to the consumer in recommending songs that they may be interested in, is an example of how a company’s best intentions can turn into an infringement of a user’s privacy. Many users will blindly install the latest updates for their most frequently used products and services, while unknowingly giving away their personal information. Consumers must be mindful of how their favourite products and services are changing and how this may affect them in terms of personal security and privacy on the internet. Apple’s more recent features such as Genius within iTunes, which replaced the MiniStore, is another service that Apple provides to their consumers to help them purchase music, movies, and TV shows that are more likely to match their interests and tastes. Apple will scan a user’s entire iTunes library and various playlists to recommend new playlists and movie selections based on existing media that is stored within their iTunes library. Given that Apple’s Genius service is free of charge many users are willing to sacrifice their privacy and personal information more than ever (Evans).
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At a time when digital media and online services are available to anyone with just a click of a mouse, consumers neglect to take the time to protect their personal information. Consumer negligence and a lack of education regarding the technology or service that they are using, plays a significant part in the many cases of identity theft and substantial financial losses. Privacy protection should not just be left up to the companies who provide us with our favourite products and services, individual consumers need to be more active and alert to how their personal information is being collected and shared online.
