---
title: "Big Tech Splits Over Privacy Issues, at Least on the Surface."
description: "Apple's Tim Cook calls for stronger regulation on data privacy and Google is going to be more transparent on how it spies on you."
date: "2018-10-24"
modified: "2018-10-24"
authors:
  - name: "Dan Robitzski"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/danrobitzski"
url: "https://futurism.com/big-tech-data-privacy-google-apple"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
  - "Privacy"
tags:
  - "apple"
  - "data"
  - "gdpr"
  - "Google"
  - "privacy"
  - "security"
---

# Big Tech Splits Over Privacy Issues, at Least on the Surface.

![Default Futurism featured image](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Futurism-Filler-Image.jpg>)

## Doing the Least

Apple CEO Tim Cook, whose company stands to lose the least from strong data regulations, just [made a public call](<https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/24/18017842/tim-cook-data-privacy-laws-us-speech-brussels>) to better protect personal data.

"Wow," you may think upon hearing of Cook’s dire warning of how people can be exploited and abused via their personal data. "What a hero!"

The catch: his call for weak protections — overall, they sounded like a watered-down version of Europe's General Data Protection Regulation — would hinder competitors [like Facebook and Google](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/dragonfly-google-muslims-china>) but largely spare his own business.

## Vague Suggestions

Cook did make some good — though vague — suggestions. Amid implications that Apple was doing better than some *mysterious, unnamed competitors*, Cook called for minimal data collection along with better safeguards on that data and improved transparency so people know what tech corporations know about them, [*The Verge* reported](<https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/24/18017842/tim-cook-data-privacy-laws-us-speech-brussels>).

Meanwhile, Google also announced that it will repackage all of its privacy and data collection controls in one place, called “Your Data,” [as *WIRED* reported](<https://www.wired.com/story/google-your-data-search-privacy/>). The idea is to give people a better idea of what personal information is being collected (tons!) and what they can do about it (not much!)

## Empty Words

Of course, Google is notorious for offering people the illusion of control over how their data is collected, and even one of Apple’s top apps, Adware Doctor, was just found to be circumventing Apple’s security and [sending user data to Chinese servers](<https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2018/09/top-apple-mac-app-secretly-sends-your-browser-history-to-china-researcher-finds/>).

It’s nice to have a powerful CEO calling for data protection, but [speeches and media relations](<https://futurism.com/apple-amazon-federal-privacy-regulation>) do not a better digital society make.

**READ MORE:** [Tim Cook warns of ‘data-industrial complex’ in call for comprehensive US privacy laws](<https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/24/18017842/tim-cook-data-privacy-laws-us-speech-brussels>) \[*The Verge*\]

***More on privacy: [Google Didn’t Report Its Data Leak Till Months Later. Now It’ll Face the Consequences.](<https://futurism.com/google-plus-privacy-bug>)***

## Author
Dan Robitzki is a senior reporter for Futurism, where he likes to cover AI, tech ethics, and medicine. He spends his extra time fencing and streaming games from Los Angeles, California.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://x.com/danrobitzski>)