Apple Inc. (AAPL)'s iPhone and Google Inc. (GOOG)'s Android smartphones transmit location data from the handsets back to the companies, the Wall Street Journal reported.Android smartphones and iPhone regularly transmit such data to Apple and Google as the two build databases that could help them tap a market for location-based services.
Google's Android phones send location data to the company several times an hour as well as information about local Wi-Fi networks and a code identifying the particular handset, according to the report. Google declined to comment, the Journal said.
Declan McCullagh writes, One concern is the circumstances under which law enforcement can gain access to location histories. Courts have been split on whether warrants are required to peruse files on gadgets after an arrest, with police typically arguing that the Fourth Amendment's prohibition on unusual searches doesn't apply. (The Obama Justice Department, in a series of prosecutions including one in Nebraska involving a crack cocaine dealer, has taken the same position.)
Senator Al Franken (D-Minn.) has sent a letter to Apple CEO Steve Jobs seeking clarification on how iPhone location data is handled, why the data is not encrypted, and whether Apple's handling of this data is permissible under the terms of its privacy policy.
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