(Image: ZDNet)
iPhone or iPad users, if you update to iOS 11.3 now, you'll have new features[1] and a bunch of security updates[2]. But you'll still be just as vulnerable to on-device phishing attacks as you ever were.
A long-expected privacy icon[3] debuts in the software update out Thursday which help users identify when Apple requests more of their personal information. The update doesn't change how much data Apple collects, but it helps show what data will be collected when Apple apps and features are used for the first time.
"You won't see this icon with every feature since Apple only collects this information when it's needed to enable features, to secure our services, or to personalize your experience," a screen says, once you update.
Maybe the timing is a coincidence, but this seems like a way to grab some good headlines[4] amid Facebook's recent data sharing controversy.
Will Strafach, a security researcher with a focus on mobile, knows iOS better than most. He told ZDNet that the privacy icon will have some benefits.
"Although the purpose was misinterpreted as some kind of indicator -- it is not -- the actual purpose of giving information on how data is used is a very good thing I believe," he said. "Many people these days wonder about how their data is used and just have no idea, so if Apple is going to ask for something sensitive, it seems very helpful to give information to the user on data management -- and users can then hold them to it instead of it being ambiguous."
The downside is that, contrary[5] to several[6] reports[7], the privacy icon