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  • January 2023
  • Supplement
  • HBS Case Collection

Apple: Privacy vs. Safety (B)

By: Henry McGee, Nien-hê Hsieh and Christian Godwin
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:4
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Abstract

In 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the globe, Apple and Google partnered to develop a contact tracing application that would collect information about users infected with the disease and notify those who they had been in contact with. While Apple/Google’s app would keep information about infection and contact private, some governments wanted more access. Apple and Google refused to provide this information, sparking a debate over what responsibilities the companies had in the realms of personal privacy and public health. This incident marked a seeming increase in privacy protections among technology companies, with Apple increasing user privacy options with its iOS 14 update and Zoom offering free end-to-end encryption. Did this indicate a permanent shift in the tension between privacy and safety?

Keywords

Iphone; Encryption; Data Privacy; Customers; Customer Focus and Relationships; Decision Making; Ethics; Values and Beliefs; Globalized Firms and Management; Government and Politics; Health; Health Pandemics; Leadership; Markets; Safety; Social Issues; Information Technology; Telecommunications Industry; Technology Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Electronics Industry; Health Industry; United States; Europe

Citation

McGee, Henry, Nien-hê Hsieh, and Christian Godwin. "Apple: Privacy vs. Safety (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 323-066, January 2023.
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About The Authors

Henry W. McGee

Entrepreneurial Management
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Nien-he Hsieh

General Management
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    The Future of the BBC: Public Ownership vs. Privatization

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    Managing Religion in the Workplace: Abercrombie & Fitch and The United States Postal Service

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    Richard G. Phillips: Spiritual Grounding in Times of Crisis

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More from the Authors
  • The Future of the BBC: Public Ownership vs. Privatization By: Henry McGee
  • Managing Religion in the Workplace: Abercrombie & Fitch and The United States Postal Service By: Derek C. M. van Bever, Nien-he Hsieh and Matthew Souba
  • Richard G. Phillips: Spiritual Grounding in Times of Crisis By: Derek C. M. van Bever and Nien-he Hsieh
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