Apple has dropped out of the State Privacy and Security Coalition (SPSC), which is the coalition lobbying for industry-friendly privacy legislation in the United States. The Cupertino firm dropped out of the Coalition after expressing that the bills do not adequately protect user privacy.
The SPSC bills itself as “a coalition of major Internet, communications, retail, and media companies that works for robust and consistent data security, security breach notice, privacy and consumer protection regulation,” according to a letter the group penned to the Federal Trade Commission in 2016.
Politico’s Emily Birnbaum reports that the group includes tech giants like AT&T, Google, Meta, and formerly, Apple.
Birnbaum reports that privacy advocates have noted that the SPSC is “pushing for weak privacy laws in the states as efforts to pass a federal privacy bill stall in Congress.” Her report also highlights the SPSC’s hand in passing legislation that favors the industry rather than the consumer.
Apple has a long record of putting privacy first for its ecosystem of devices and services. Apple uses end-to-end encryption in its apps while also offering features like App Tracking Transparency.
Apple’s leaving the group comes a week before CEO Tim Cook is scheduled to deliver the keynote for IAPP’s Global Privacy Summit.
(Via AppleInsider)