Meta seeking unfettered access to iPhone user data via EU DMA

Meta trying to use the EU DMA to gain access to iPhone user data

On its face, the EU DMA is meant to stop monopolies from abusing their market position, but Meta appears to be abusing this legislation in an attempt to gather unprecedented access to iPhone user data.

Meta, Facebook’s parent company, has reportedly filed 15 interoperability requests through the European Union’s Digital Market Act (DMA). These requests are meant to provide competitors access to technologies to give them an equal footing, but it seems Meta is going a step further.

According to a report from Reuters, Apple has shared a statement suggesting Meta is abusing the DMA’s interoperability request system. Meta has filed more requests than any other company, seeking deep access to Apple’s proprietary systems.

The DMA is set up so Apple could face fines if it doesn’t comply with lawful interoperability requests. Apple released a statement saying that Meta is overreaching.

“In many cases, Meta is seeking to alter functionality in a way that raises concerns about the privacy and security of users, and that appears to be completely unrelated to the actual use of Meta external devices, such as Meta smart glasses and Meta Quests,” Apple said in the statement. “If Apple were to have to grant all of these requests, Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp could enable Meta to read on a user’s device all of their messages and emails, see every phone call they make or receive, track every app that they use, scan all of their photos, look at their files and calendar events, log all of their passwords, and more.”

Apple built the iPhone with a promise of privacy and has increasingly locked down user data over the years. Each new feature, like App Tracking Transparency, has caused Facebook to publicly protest Apple’s efforts, calling them a direct attack on the company’s business model.

Facebook/Meta has always seen the iPhone as a data treasure trove waiting to be plundered. It even attempted to scan all internet communications through a VPN it offered users that clearly violated Apple’s guidelines.

There hasn’t been any public statement from Meta or the European Union over Apple’s report. As the EU contemplates fining Apple over DMA violations, it isn’t clear how it might rule on Meta’s attempts to violate user privacy.

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