#Apple Again Comes to Aid of #China's Communist Party Amid Protests
Those speaking out against the Chinese Communist Party are finding themselves without a key method of sharing information under China's censorious regime, thanks to Apple's decision to limit the ability of iPhone users in China to pass files from device to device, bypassing the CCP's censors and surveillance state.
#AirDrop, the file-sharing feature on iPhones and other Apple devices, has helped protestors in many authoritarian countries evade censorship. That’s because AirDrop relies on direct connections between phones, forming a local network of devices that don’t need the internet to communicate. People can opt into receiving AirDrops from anyone else with an iPhone nearby.
That changed on Nov. 9, when Apple released a new version of its mobile operating system, iOS 16.1.1, to customers worldwide. Rather than listing new features, as it often does, the company simply said, “This update includes bug fixes and security updates and is recommended for all users.”
Hidden in the update was a change that only applies to iPhones sold in mainland China: AirDrop can only be set to receive messages from everyone for 10 minutes, before switching off. There’s no longer a way to keep the “everyone” setting on permanently on Chinese iPhones. The change, first noticed by Chinese readers of 9to5Mac, doesn’t apply anywhere else.
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/spencerbrown/2022/11/28/apple-caves-to-ccp-pressure-limits-file-sharing-capability-on-iphones-in-china-n2616445
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-hobbled-crucial-tool-dissent-185100767.html
Those speaking out against the Chinese Communist Party are finding themselves without a key method of sharing information under China's censorious regime, thanks to Apple's decision to limit the ability of iPhone users in China to pass files from device to device, bypassing the CCP's censors and surveillance state.
#AirDrop, the file-sharing feature on iPhones and other Apple devices, has helped protestors in many authoritarian countries evade censorship. That’s because AirDrop relies on direct connections between phones, forming a local network of devices that don’t need the internet to communicate. People can opt into receiving AirDrops from anyone else with an iPhone nearby.
That changed on Nov. 9, when Apple released a new version of its mobile operating system, iOS 16.1.1, to customers worldwide. Rather than listing new features, as it often does, the company simply said, “This update includes bug fixes and security updates and is recommended for all users.”
Hidden in the update was a change that only applies to iPhones sold in mainland China: AirDrop can only be set to receive messages from everyone for 10 minutes, before switching off. There’s no longer a way to keep the “everyone” setting on permanently on Chinese iPhones. The change, first noticed by Chinese readers of 9to5Mac, doesn’t apply anywhere else.
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/spencerbrown/2022/11/28/apple-caves-to-ccp-pressure-limits-file-sharing-capability-on-iphones-in-china-n2616445
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-hobbled-crucial-tool-dissent-185100767.html
townhall.com
Apple Again Comes to Aid of Chinese Communist Party Amid Protests