Apple's new privacy policy was perceived Thursday as a new hard line meant to counter allegations that technology companies participate too readily in government efforts to collect user information. Apple has reworked its latest encryption so that only the owner of the device it's on can gain access to user data typically stored on iPhones and iPads.
The new privacy policy comes in the wake of the iCloud hacking scandal and just ahead of sales of the latest iPhone. Privacy concerns also have been heightened because One of the features of the smartphone is a new payment platform.
The privacy commitment was posted late Wednesday along with an open letter on the subject from chief executive Tim Cook.
In the letter Cook says Apple does not sell customers data or provide a "backdoor for government agencies" to invade users' privacy.
The new iOS 8 operating system keeps personal data stored on iPhones and iPads, including photos, messages, emails and contacts, safe by placing them under the protection of a passcode, Apple said.
The change means the company can avoid government requests and even court orders to access its users' data, Apple said.
Taking a jab at Facebook and Google, Apple said, "Unlike our competitors," the company "cannot bypass your passcode and therefore cannot access this data. So it's not technically feasible for us to respond to government warrants for the extraction of this data from devices in their possession running iOS 8," said Apple said.
Cook emphasised the company never gave government agencies in any country access to its servers and never will.
The company was criticised for a lack of data protection after dozens of celebrity accounts were hacked in the iCloud scandal.
It reassured its users that none of the Apple IDs and passwords were leaked from the company's servers, saying hackers gained access to the accounts by correctly answering security questions to obtain passwords, or by using a phishing scam to obtain user IDs and passwords.
Following the scandal the company enhanced the iCloud security system by using a "two-step verification," system which Apple explains in detail on the new privacy website.