What you need to know
- Apple CEO Tim Cook says the company is "deeply concerned" about laws that could force Apple to allow sideloading on iPhone.
- He says the company is concerned about the impact this could have on user privacy.
- He said that Apple believed in competition, but that it had a responsibility to speak up.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has told attendees of the IAPP Global Privacy Summit that Apple is "deeply concerned" about laws that could force the company to allow sideloading apps on its iOS platform.
Cook was addressing attendees as the headline keynote speaker on day one of IAPP's Summit, broadcast live online.
Opening his speech, Cook said that Apple was inspired by the possibilities of technology, but knew that technology was neither inherently good nor bad. He reiterated Apple's mantra that privacy is a fundamental human right, highlighting Apple's work in three key areas.
Cook said that Apple was "deeply concerned" about "regulations that would undermine privacy and security in service of some other aim," citing politicians in the U.S. and elsewhere working on regulations that would force Apple to allow sideloading on devices like the iPhone 13 and all of its best iPhones.
Cook warned the process would let "data-hungry companies" avoid Apple's privacy rules and "once again track our users against their will" while giving bad actors access to its users.
Cook said the company believed in competition and the role it played in innovation and said that he believed those behind such ideas has "good intentions", but that the ideas would have "profound" and unintended consequences.
He said Apple would continue to make its voice heard on the issue and would advocate for its users. He called upon those listening, stating he hoped they would join Apple in this quest, warning "we all stand to lose in a world without privacy."
