The Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law has called Apple and Google to testify on Tuesday, May 10, 2011. The hearing was dubbed “Protecting Mobile Privacy: Your Smartphones, Tablets, Cell Phones and Your Privacy” and will be presided by the Bureau of Consumer Protection and the Attorney General, Criminal Division among others.
The panel will investigate the use of data shared via consumer mobile devices. Apple was the most recent to provoke outrage when it was discovered by researchers that Apple’s iOS keeps a record of users’ general locations.
One argument that Apple may pursue before the committee will be that storing location data makes such information (stored on devices) more secure. Additionally, it makes the cache size of the data smaller on the device.
This committee meeting may be a clear first step in designing legislation for such issues. Apple and Google will be fighting to keep this sphere largely self-regulated.