AllThingsD reports that Apple has issued a statement responding to this week's leak of one million unique device identifiers (UDIDs) for iOS devices, noting that it did not provide the FBI with the information. An FBI computer was claimed by the hackers to be the source of the information, but the FBI has denied any involvement in the situation.
“The FBI has not requested this information from Apple, nor have we provided it to the FBI or any organization. Additionally, with iOS 6 we introduced a new set of APIs meant to replace the use of the UDID and will soon be banning the use of UDID,” Apple spokesperson Natalie Kerris told AllThingsD.
With the AntiSec hackers claiming to be in possession of 12 million UDIDs as well as additional personal information tied to some of the numbers, it remains unclear exactly where the data came from.
Apple has been working to phase out use of the UDID, creating new tools to allow developers to track usage of their apps on a per-device basis. With the UDID being a universal identifier, it has been used by advertisers and others to collect information across apps and other usage to develop user profiles for marketing persons, and Apple's new system will seek to improve user privacy.
Saturday February 7, 2026 9:26 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple today shared an ad that shows how the upgraded Center Stage front camera on the latest iPhones improves the process of taking a group selfie.
"Watch how the new front facing camera on iPhone 17 Pro takes group selfies that automatically expand and rotate as more people come into frame," says Apple. While the ad is focused on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, the regular iPhone...
Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld.
The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld.
Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
Thursday February 5, 2026 12:54 pm PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple turns 50 this year, and its CEO Tim Cook has promised to celebrate the milestone. The big day falls on April 1, 2026.
"I've been unusually reflective lately about Apple because we have been working on what do we do to mark this moment," Cook told employees today, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "When you really stop and pause and think about the last 50 years, it makes your heart ...
Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by Juli Clover
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do.
The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up.
Upgraded Architecture
The next-generation...
Tuesday February 3, 2026 7:47 am PST by Joe Rossignol
While the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate is now available ahead of a public release, the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April.
Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far.
iOS 26.3
iPhone to Android Transfer Tool
iOS 26.3 makes it easier...
This is the US of A, after all, the "land of the free" with Patriot Acts galore.
A classic case of "plausible deniability" - what else would they say to the public? Or do you think agencies like the CIA also admit publicly to having secret prisons all over the world?
"Oh yes, we got this information as part of our secret national security efforts"?
Gimme a break, Sirs. Hackers are the harmless factor here; it's the FBI and other illegally-mandated agencies that have a lot to respond to the usually-benighted US citizens. And I am sure we will still read here some supportive comments stating that "No problem, they must have had some fine reason for doing so; after all, they fight every day to save our poor lives".
That is my best guess as well. If the FBI nor Apple had anything to do with it, the next logical source would be an app developer. Which now leads us to wonder what app(s) specifically could be the source.
1)They are the number one downloaded app of all time. 2)they have so much personal data of yours that it will make your head spin.
Imagine facial recognition software. Now imagine it with a database of self varified(tagged)photos in their system. We gave them everything they needed to create profiles on all of us. I am completely aware of how conspiracy theorist this sounds. I'm my opinion, Facebook is very dangerous. If I knew then what I know now I would never have signed up for an account. We basically gave them the keys to the castle. It might not be facebook directly. Maybe an employee collecting information for different agencies.
