Contrary to the circulating rumors on social media platforms like Facebook and TikTok, Apple’s recent iOS update does not entail sharing users’ journal entries with strangers.
Following the deployment of the latest iOS update in late February, users observed the automatic installation of Journal, a new app unveiled by Apple in December 2023. Functioning as a digital diary, Journal allows users to incorporate location tagging and photo uploads alongside their written entries, supplemented by daily prompts for writing and reflection.
Concerns regarding the default settings of the Journal app have sparked alarm among iPhone users across various social media channels. A widely circulated message, known as “copypasta,” propagated claims that the app’s “Discoverable by Others” feature could potentially expose users’ full names and precise geolocations to anyone nearby.
“The iPhone Journal app will not give out your personal information,” assured a statement aiming to dispel the misinformation surrounding the app.
One of the key functionalities of the Journal app involves offering tailored writing prompts through Bluetooth connectivity. These prompts, categorized under “Journaling Suggestions,” cater to users facing writer’s block or seeking structured guidance for their entries, as opposed to free-form writing.
By leveraging Bluetooth, Journal aggregates information from various sources, including the user’s activity, media consumption, contacts, photos, and significant locations. This data analysis enables the app to generate highly specific prompts for journal entries.
While the “Discoverable by Others” feature, enabled by default in the Journal app, registers nearby devices and saved contacts within Bluetooth range, it neither retains nor discloses any personal details to third parties. Analogous to AirDrop functionality, any data sharing necessitates recipient approval.
Essentially, Journal aims to offer insights into users’ daily activities to formulate relevant prompts. For instance, proximity to a saved contact might suggest social interactions, while the presence of multiple nearby devices could indicate outdoor activities. This contextual understanding informs the app’s prompts for journaling.
Apple clarifies on its website that the compiled data utilized for Journaling Suggestions remains stored locally on the individual’s iPhone and isn’t shared with Apple or external entities.
Echoing past instances of misinformation surrounding iPhone features, such as the previous uproar over NameDrop, the backlash against Journal reflects a pattern of misunderstanding.
Instructions for disabling the “Discoverable by Others” feature within the Journal app settings are provided to empower users to manage their privacy preferences effectively.
Additionally, users can customize Journal’s prompt generation by toggling off the feature that utilizes nearby devices and contacts for suggestions, albeit at the cost of reduced prompt accuracy.
Apple addresses privacy concerns by highlighting the encryption of Journal entries when the iPhone is locked and their storage on the user’s iCloud. While Apple’s data collection practices regarding Journal remain unspecified, the majority of data utilized by the app, including photos and location data, is already stored locally on the user’s device.
Furthermore, users can implement secondary authentication measures and passcode, Face ID, or Touch ID protection to enhance the security of the Journal app.
{Matzav.com}
If so Take your iPhone and go to settings. Scroll down and press general > then scroll down to the bottom and press > legal & regulatory.. then click > RF Exposure “Radio Frequency Radiation ”
Now you should read the disclaimer carefully … they’re literally telling you that your iPhone causes cancer and should not be held anywhere near your actual body… to avoid long term damage its recommended to use a wired hands free option or the loud speaker…
Since the smartphones there has been an increase in colon, breast and rectal cancers…
Whenever they say, “No, it doesn’t do that specific thing,” (usually in condescending tones implying that only a brain dead rural MAGA conspiracy theorist could even think that it did), it does.
Smartphones are assur.