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Posted By: joemikeb Apple to destroy device fingerprinting? - 07/21/21 09:32 PM
Mobile Advertisers Expect Apple to destroy device fingerprinting with iCloud Private Relay There is too much money involved for this to be the final say in the matter but it tells advertisers how UN-popular their ads have become.

ADDENDUM: It is evident that Apple's privacy emphasis is having an impact. Was just playing an App Store game, and growing more and more irritated by the ads for other games, after every round of play. Then as I once again clicked on the almost invisible "x" to kill the promo when my browser launched and this Google page opened. I firmly believe game developers, like other software developers, deserve fair compensation for their creativity, but this is going too far.
Posted By: ryck Re: Apple to destroy device fingerprinting? - 07/22/21 01:48 PM
I've always been somewhat leery of iCloud (uncertain about storing private information anywhere other than drives I control) but I find this quite interesting....did a quick look around and see that Private Relay will be part of a paid subscription called iCloud+, which will have other security benefits. It seems to be headed for iOS 15....it'd be good if it was also ported over to OS (and very nice if it started in OS 14).

EDIT: Found the following at another site.

"Cloud Private Relay is a service that lets you connect to virtually any network and browse with Safari in an even more secure and private way. It ensures that the traffic leaving your device is encrypted and uses two separate internet relays so no one can use your IP address, location, and browsing activity to create a detailed profile about you.

iCloud Private Relay is automatically enabled on your Mac, iPhone, and iPad when using Safari – no other browser – and when logged into your iCloud Plus account.

iCloud Private Relay first sends web traffic to a server maintained by Apple, where the IP address is stripped. Next, Apple sends the traffic to a second server maintained by a third-party operator who assigns the user a temporary IP address and sends the traffic onward to its destination website.

The use of an outside party in the second hop of the relay system is designed to prevent even Apple from knowing both the user’s identity and what website the user is visiting. Apple will disclose which outside partners it will use in the system in the future, likely when the service comes online this fall."
Posted By: joemikeb Re: Apple to destroy device fingerprinting? - 07/22/21 05:14 PM
Originally Posted by ryck
I've always been somewhat leery of iCloud (uncertain about storing private information anywhere other than drives I control) but I find this quite interesting....did a quick look around and see that Private Relay will be part of a paid subscription called iCloud+, which will have other security benefits. It seems to be headed for iOS 15....it'd be good if it was also ported over to OS (and very nice if it started in OS 14).

PRIVATE RELAY is already online in macOS 12 b3 (Monterey), as well as iOS 15 b3, and iPadOS 15 b3. As it is a MAJOR FEATURE of these next generation Apple operating systems, I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for it to be retrofitted into the current macOS 11, iOS 14, or iPadOS 14.

Private Relay works quite well, has no appreciable impact on download or upload speed, and in general is totally unobtrusive. The only problem I have encountered was when I chose the option to use "Country and Time Zone" location, I ran into problems with Amazon and one other e-commerce site that wanted to charge the tax rate where my IP address had me located and would not accept my destination address (which is weird as there is no problem if I am traveling and log onto a site in that time zone). Switching to "Maintain general Location" solved the problem neatly. In both settings my IP address and Whois data belonged to Apple's service partner and had no link back to my actual IP address, physical address, or actual ID. 😎 For example my current IP address places me in Bedford, Texas (several miles away) and WhoIS identifies me as a company in Amsterdam.

Private Relay enables another iCloud+ feature Hide My Email that permits you to log onto internet accounts with an email address that is only valid for that single site and can be turned off at any time. Emails from that site are routed to a Private Relay address and from there rerouted to your Apple email address, so your email and you remain hidden behind the Private Relay wall. The downside is the site has to be setup to support Apple login (similar to sites that allow login with your Google or Facebook account). In practice when you log onto the site you enter your logon password — which never goes beyond your device — and Private Relay handles everything else.
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