G'day Mate: Don't Let Your iPhone Catch You Unawares with Those Colored Dots
- by Malty McPhee
- ⏱️ 3 mins
If your iPhone emits a yellow glow, exercise caution with your words. - Checking for presence of a yellow button or indicator on iPhone devices.
From surfing the web to chatting with mates, our smartphones are an essential part of our daily lives. It's easy to forget that these devices are packed with a camera, microphone, and GPS, and they allow apps to tap into these features. Your iPhone is designed to alert you when apps access such functions, but many folks don't pay heed.
Apple introduced this feature with iOS 14 to beef up user privacy by adding tiny cues on the system. They appear in the top corner of the screen, separate from Wi-Fi or cellular reception symbols. Instead, these cues signal when apps get up in your grill, so to speak.
What's the Story with Green, Yellow, and Blue Blinkies?
If you spot a green fella, it's a sign: A currently active app has got its mitts on the camera. Upon opening the camera, apps can lay claim to the microphone as well, enabling them to record audio and video clips.
If it's just the microphone in use, a yellow fellow will appear. This happens when you're on the telephone, zooming in on a voice message, or asking Siri to fetch the news. The camera stays in its box during these scenarios.
Unlike camera and microphone indicators, Apple's chosen a more distinct symbol for GPS: a large, left-leaning blue dot with an arrow, evoking memories of navigation apps. This symbol signals that an app is currently prying into your location data.
Are Blinkies Always a Bad Sign?
Dunno, mate. Often, the reason behind a blinky lighting up isn't much of a shocker: When you open the camera or other camera-related activities in Insta, for example, you anticipate the app to snap a pic.
However, an active blinky doesn't guarantee that something's being recorded but rather that an app has requested access to record stuff. For example, when you fire up the camera app, you'll see a green blinky even if you don't take a shot.
Still, when a yellow or green blinky appears outta the blue, it's a bloomin' warning: Assume that someone, somehow might be spying on or listening to what you're up to, and adjust your actions accordingly.
Hey, Who's Behind the Snooping?
Forgot a hint, or it vanished too quickly? You can check apps' recent shenanigans later. Swipe down the control center from the top right corner. If an app has asked for access to one of the three data sources in the past few minutes, it'll show up there. Even Apple's in-house apps come under scrutiny.
You can also examine the data hunger of apps in the settings. Navigate to "Privacy and Security," and discover which app has access to what feature. To boot them off, revoke their permission when necessary.
The "App Privacy Report" dished up an even more thorough investigation. If you activate the function, your iPhone keeps track of which app wants a taste of which data and serves it to you in a neat, organized manner.
Regarding location, the iPhone gives you a heads-up beforehand: If an app lurks in the background, checking your location too frequently, the system will eventually quiz you if you're clued in on this, offering to limit the app with a simple tap.
Why the Warnings?
Apple's got a valid reason for wearing the alarmist hat. Back in the days of the Wild Wild App Store, developers had carte blanche to rifle through users' data[1]. Apple and Google, the OS providers, were eager to please developers by granting them access to an eye-watering number of data points[2]. At that time, some developers took advantage, mercilessly mining users' data for cash[3].
With Apple's privacy measures, it's getting increasingly tricky for data traders to ply their trade[4]. They're able to do this without crippling functions that users actually want to use.
- iPhone
- Apps
- Camera
- Apple
- GPS
- Wild West
- Data traders
- Apple iOS
- Siri
[1] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-03/juicy-potatoes-the-sex-videos-behind-apples-newer-privacy-code[2] https://www.wired.com/story/the-app-store-was-the-wild-west-now-its-getting-less-out-of-control/[3] https://www.engadget.com/apple-iphone-tracking-apps-035156777.html[4] https://techcrunch.com/2021/06/08/what-happens-when-apple-removes-a-tracker-from-the-app-store/
In the early days of smartphones, the app market was like the Wild West. Operating system providers Apple and Google granted developers a ton of options and seemingly endless access to data points[1]. Some developers took advantage, mercilessly harvesting user data for profit[2].
Nowadays, Apple's privacy measures have made it more challenging for data traders to continue their dodgy activities without impeding features that users desire to utilize[3].
The green, yellow, and blue dots you're referring to are indicators for privacy features on iPhones. Here's what they usually represent:
- Green Dot: This symbol indicates that an app is using the camera. Historically, the green dot was displayed inside the Dynamic Island or status bar when the camera was active[4].
- Orange Dot: Originally, this indicated that an app was using the microphone. In recent updates, the orange dot was moved to the side of the Dynamic Island for better visibility[4].
- Blue Dot: There's no standard blue dot indicator for GPS use. It's typically signaled by a location icon in the status bar[1][5].
In recent updates, the privacy indicators' locations have shifted. For instance, iOS updates relocated such indicators to the side of the Dynamic Island for better visibility[4]. Nevertheless, the specific mention of a blue dot for GPS access doesn't align with standard iPhone status bar icons.
[1] https://www.engadget.com/google-location-data-privacy- concerns-033046400.html[2] https://www.wired.com/story/the-app-store-was-the-wild-west-now-its-getting-less-out-of-control/[3] https://techcrunch.com/2021/06/08/what-happens-when-apple-removes-a-tracker-from-the-app-store/[4] https://www.macworld.com/article/621025/how-to-understand-the-iphone-privacy-dots.html[5] https://support.apple.com/en-gb/ht211703
- The iPhone, featuring Apple's iOS, uses privacy indicators to alert users when apps access certain functions like the camera (green dot), microphone (orange dot), or GPS (location icon).
- By paying attention to these privacy indicators and adjusting permissions, users can protect their data and restrict apps from accessing sensitive information, making their technology experience more secure and private.
