- Facebook will start asking users for permission to track their data so it can target them with ads.
- The change comes as Apple prepares to release a privacy update that will force developers to ask users for permission to track them.
- Apple and Facebook have been fighting over the next iOS privacy update.
- Visit the Business Insider home page for more stories.
Facebook is trying to flank Apple in a six-month privacy battle.
Facebook announced on Monday that it will send a pop-up notification to iOS users, asking for permission to track their activities so that they can be targeted to ads.
The pop-up informs users that allowing trackers means that they “will get more personalized ads” and “support companies that depend on ads to reach customers”.
The pop-up will look like this.
Facebook
Facebook is testing the pop-up on only a few users for now, but eventually it will reach all iOS users before an update that Apple announced it would launch in early spring.
The Apple update will force app developers to ask users for permission to be able to collect their data for targeted advertising. Apple has not confirmed the date, but Insider previously said it is planning for March.
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The update was announced in the summer and originally scheduled for September 2020, but Apple postponed the launch after Facebook protested and said the update would affect developers’ advertising revenue.
Apple and Facebook have publicly fought over the update, with Facebook claiming that Apple is preparing to enter the advertising industry, while Apple argues that Facebook does not respect the privacy of its users.
The rivalry intensified last week. In a results conference call, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that Apple is becoming one of Facebook’s “biggest competitors” and accused it of using privacy as a front to eliminate competition.
Apple CEO Tim Cook responded with veiled criticism of Facebook during a speech at a data privacy conference the next day.
Information also reported that Facebook is preparing to file an antitrust lawsuit against Apple.