Apple is rolling out a “Sign in with Apple” feature to its computers, tablets and phones, allowing users to verify their identities without having to use Facebook or Google.
The Cupertino, Calif., tech giant — which continues to attack its Silicon Valley rivals on privacy issues — said Monday the new feature generates anonymous email addresses that users can employ to sign in with apps that request an email address.
The anonymous email addresses then forward messages from the app to the users’ real emails.
“It’s a fast, easy way to sign in without all the tracking,” Apple’s VP of software engineering, Craig Federighi, said.
It was a not-so-subtle jab at Facebook and Google, which have minted their fortunes partly by tracking their users’ behavior all over the internet.
At Apple’s yearly Worldwide Developer Conference, or WWDC, Federighi echoed boss Tim Cook by calling privacy ”a fundamental human right” and saying Apple bakes it “into everything that we do.”
Federighi likewise bragged that Siri, Apple’s voice assistant, does not save voice clips from users — unlike Amazon’s Alexa.
Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg has countered that ads and tracking on his network make it a service that, unlike Apple’s iPhone, isn’t just for rich people.
Elsewhere, Apple said Monday that with efficiencies in its new iPhone operating system, iOS 13, unlocking iPhones with Face ID will be 30% faster and apps will take up as much as 50% less storage.
The iPhone will also be following in the Mac’s footsteps with a new “dark mode,” which will darken apps like iMessage and Notes — as well as menus and keyboards — to reduce eyestrain at night and help conserve battery power. The iPhone’s keyboard is also getting swipe-to-type functionality to help speed up texting.
Apple also unveiled its most powerful computer ever, the tricked-out new Mac Pro, which looks like a giant cheese grater. It starts at $6,000, while its professional-grade 32-inch 6K monitor costs $5,000.
Source: Nypost
