Apple Pays Fine In South Korea For Collection Of User Location Data

Apple is in hot water in South Korea as the Korean Communications Commission (KCC) levied a fine of three million won for violating the country’s location information laws. No worries if you own Apple stock, it shouldn’t be affected. Three million won translates to $2,833. This is probably less than the daily electric bill at the Cupertino, California Apple campus, so the fine seems relatively insignificant. According to the Associated Press, the hope is that this fine imposed by the KCC may help influence regulators elsewhere. This isn’t the first time Apple has had legal issues in South Korea. Last May, they paid out a measly $944 to a lawyer who won a lawsuit claiming violations over user location information. In the U.S., Apple has faced complaints that iPhones were storing the locations of nearby cell phone towers and Wi-Fi hotspots. This information could be used to map and track the user's travel and movements. Steve Park, an Apple spokesman said after the release of the KCC Statement: “Apple is not tracking the location of your iPhone, Apple has never done so and has no plans to ever do so."

Both Apple, and Google (who also tracks user location data) say they only track the location of Wi-Fi hot spots and cell towers to improve their service. This tracking supposedly can be turned off and disabled in the device. Apple claims a “bug” caused the iPhone to keep the location data even when it was turned off. Funny how those mysterious little “bugs” strike again. Google was let off the hook on this one, as they were not fined (Google provides phones that run the Android software). Google is reviewing the KCC’s decision and is working closely with the commission. With Samsung being South Korea’s baby, I imagine they will protect their Android device manufacturer as much as they can. The KCC also requires that both Apple and Google encrypt any location information that is saved on user's mobile phones. Hopefully this trivial fine will be a huge warning for both Apple and Google, and they will make better decisions about tracking any kind of user information.