ARGH!
Forget the NSA, forget Big Brother. Your iPhone has been tracking your every movement without your knowledge (unless you already know about this scary feature, in which case WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL THE REST OF US?).
The people at Buzzfeed have unearthed the function, which is fairly well buried in your settings.
To access it (only on the iPhone 4s and more recent models) do the following:
Once you’re in System Services scroll down to Frequent Locations, and prepare to be staggered.
The History section will have recorded some of the general areas you’ve been in over the past six weeks or so.
Clicking into one of these area – ‘Dublin’ in this case – makes you wonder if your iPhone knows what colour pants you’re wearing and when the last time you cleaned the bathroom was…
Your phone will have deduced, based on the frequency, time and length of your visits to certain places, where your home and workplaces are.
It will also tell you the location and duration of your stay at several other locations.
Yes. Your phone knows where you work and it knows where you live. Sleep with one eye open.
You can, of course, turn ‘Frequent Locations’ off. Apple says the function exists “in order to provide useful location-related information” and in order to improve your Maps experience.
The information is stored anonymously and cannot be accessed or shared by anyone else.
Comforting.
