How much responsibility do you think Apple has, as gatekeepers on the App Store, to keep phones safe? When you download apps from the App Store or Play Store or wherever, how confident are you that the App will not harm your device.
I like to think of myself as mildly tech-savvy; I know enough to get by, especially when it comes to Apple and iPhones.
I think that’s true for a lot of us in this class. We grew up right beside the invention of the iPhone. But, for every new version or update made, we were right there with it. I still remember the first time I used to App Store. I was around the age of 13 without any hassle or need for adult permission. All I had to do was click “yes,” enter my “super creative” password, and that was it. I was on my way. I had no worries or concerns for my privacy and didn’t think about what the App could do to my phone for a second. Which, looking back, is crazy. Back then, so many of us didn’t think twice about the apps we downloaded onto our phones and the potential danger to which we are leaving ourselves vulnerable. I still think that rings true to this day. Why? Because a lot of us (maybe, not all, but a lot of us) wouldn’t even know what to look for. We wouldn’t know the red flags to look out for, whether it be a scam or a virus, until it’s too late.
To me, that’s Apple’s job. As the “gatekeepers of the App Store,” it’s Apple’s utmost responsibility to not only keep phones safe but to keep its users safe. Yes, there are terms and conditions that we accept before using the App Store in which we allow Apple access and sell our private information to other companies. Still, I don’t believe that should relieve them of all liability. At the end of the day, if there is an obviously harmful App on their App Store, they should do something to protect their users from it, whether it be drawing attention to the App’s danger or removing it from the App Store before it can cause too much damage.
Leave a Reply