Apple chief attacks tech giants for “gobbling up" users' personal data

Apple’s supreme leader has indirectly criticised Facebook and Google for “gobbling up” users’ personal data.

While not naming Facebook and Google explicitly, Apple chief Cook attacked companies that “built their businesses by lulling their customers into complacency”.

People should not have to “make trade-offs between privacy and security”, he added.

Addressing an audience in Washington DC, Mr Cook said: “I’m speaking to you from Silicon Valley, where some of the most prominent and successful companies have built their businesses by lulling their customers into complacency about their personal information.

“They’re gobbling up everything they can learn about you and trying to monetise it. We think that’s wrong. And it’s not the kind of company that Apple wants to be.”

However, Apple itself faces similar criticism from rights activists Privacy International over the businesses data collection software.

“It is encouraging to see Apple making the claim that they collect less information on us than their competitors,” Privacy International’s technologist Dr Richard Tynan said.

“However, we have yet to see verifiable evidence of the implementation of these claims with regard to their hardware, firmware, software or online services.

“It is crucial that our devices do not betray us.”