Actually, Apple wanted to activate a new tracking protection with iOS 14, which could have caused massive problems for app operators. But now the company is backing down – and is postponing the change to 2021. Is Apple kissing Facebook and Co.?

Just recently, Apple made a big announcement that it would  install a new tracking protection with the update to iOS 14 in autumn 2020. According to this, Facebook and Co. users first had to ask for permission to track their data for advertising purposes.

The measure could have completely changed the advertising industry. Because if users had not consciously reactivated tracking, app operators would no longer have been able to display personalized advertising. The personal data were missing as a basis for this.

Apple is rowing back: Tracking protection won’t come until 2021

But now Apple has published a blog entry in which the company is backtracking with its plans for the time being.

The company recognized that the short-term change would have posed major challenges for many app developers. Apple wants to give them “more time” to prepare for tracking protection and to find alternatives to the previously simple data collection.

That is how the official justification reads. For example, Facebook reacted to the original announcement by Apple with severe criticism. The social network claimed that its advertising revenue could fall by as much as 50 percent.

Tracking protection: is Apple cuddling up to Facebook and Co.?

The question now, however, is whether Apple really decided to postpone the tracking protection to 2021 – or whether Facebook and Co. have not put pressure on the company.

In theory, Apple itself could not have cared whether it released the update this fall or 2021. The company has exempted its own advertising platform from the regulation anyway.

Apple also emphasizes its belief that technology should protect our privacy rights. The company still wants to give developers enough time to prepare for the new tracking protection.

Unofficially, Facebook and Co. could have put enough pressure on Apple that the company postponed its update to 2021 rather involuntarily.

Here’s how to manually limit ad tracking

When exactly the tracking protection should come next year, it is not clear from the blog entry. If you want to restrict ad tracking on your iPhone now , you can do so in the settings .

There you select ” Data protection ” and scroll down to the bottom. Under “ Advertising ” you can now activate the slider for “ Limit ad tracking ”.

If you want, you can also reset your ad identification number. You will then receive less or no personalized advertising.