Government

Apple decries Trump decision on transgender rights for students

The United States President Donald Trump's decision which aims to withdraw anti-discrimination protections for transgender bathroom use in schools was met with strong opposition from Apple. In a statement to Axios, Apple said preventing transgender students from using bathroom facilities designated for the gender to which they identify is hurting human rights initiatives.

Tim Cook visits Downing Street, talks Brexit and more with UK Prime Minister Theresa May

Hot on the heels of his days-long European tour that saw him receive an honorary degree from the University of Glasgow after visiting various locations including Marseille, Paris, Vreden and Berlin, Apple CEO Tim Cook meet the United Kingdom's Prime Minister Theresa May this morning at 10am local time. May and Cook discussed the company's presence in the country in the aftermath of Brexit.

Apple’s Vice President of corporate and government sales has stepped down

John Solomon, Apple's Vice President for Enterprise and Government, has stepped down. He led sales teams charged with pushing Apple hardware and software to big companies and government agencies with large technology budgets.

Apple confirmed his departure to Reuters, but refused to comment further. Solomon wouldn't reveal why he left Apple either. It's unclear if losing a key executive for business sales might slow Apple's efforts to push its solutions to large businesses in recent years.

Apple and other tech giants file legal brief opposing Trump’s immigration order

U.S. President Donald Trump's controversial executive order that would bar Syrian refuges and travelers from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entering the country is being formally challenged by Apple and 96 other companies, Bloomberg said Monday.

Apple, Google, Facebook, Intel, Airbnb Netflix, Snap, Uber, Zynga, Levi Strauss, Chobani along with many other companies have all signed an amicus brief, which is a legal filing that lets outside parties offer non-binding opinions to the court.

Apple along with other tech giants working on a letter opposing Trump’s travel ban

Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Uber and other technology giants, along with an unidentified consumer goods and manufacturing company, are working on a letter to formally oppose U.S. President Donald Trump's travel ban which has barred Syrian refuges and travelers from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entering the country.

Having obtained a draft of the letter, Recode reports that parties from other industries will also sign on in their support of immigration into U.S.

Apple considering legal action against Trump’s executive order on immigration

U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order that bars refuges and travelers from seven majority-Muslim countries—Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen—from entering the United States for at least 90 days didn't sit well with Apple.

The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that the Cupertino firm is weighing its legal options and considering challenging POTUS's executive order on immigration.

Turkish police wants Apple to unlock Russian ambassador killer’s iPhone 4s

Andrei Karlov, the ambassador to Turkey, was killed while giving a speech at an art gallery in Ankara three days ago by 22-year-old off-duty police officer Mevlut Mert Altintas. According to MacReports, Turkish police approached Apple about unlocking an iPhone 4s that was recovered from the shooter.

The device is locked with a 4-digit passcode, but it's unclear if it runs iOS 8.0+ or one of the earlier iOS editions that don't enforce full disk encryption.

In its appeal to EU tax ruling, Apple calls itself a “convenient target”

Later this week, Apple and the government of Ireland will appeal against the European Union's $14.5 billion tax ruling targeting Apple's sweetheart tax deal with Dublin that the EU deemed “illegal state aid.” According to Reuters today, the Cupertino firm will object to the fact that EU regulators ignored established tax experts and common corporate law.

Apple's legal strategy involves painting itself as a victim of its own success. EU deliberately singled out Apple due to its success and picked a method to maximize the penalty, said Apple's top lawyer Bruce Sewell.

Korean watchdog may launch investigation into iPhone 6s shutdowns

As Apple has admitted that unexpected iPhone 6s shutdowns are plaguing other models “outside the affected batch”, South Korea's Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS) is considering launching an investigation into the issue. “The agency is well aware of recent iPhone issues and is taking a close look at it,” an official told the The Korea Herald.

President-elect Trump promises tax incentives for Apple to build “Made in USA” iPhones

Apple reportedly asked contract manufacturers Foxconn and Pegatron to look into assembling iPhones in the United States and now we learn that Tim Cook phoned President-elect Donald Trump following his victory to talk about U.S. manufacturing.

In an interview with The New York Times, Trump reveals he's promised tax incentives to Apple to build its products domestically rather than outsource component production and assembly work to Taiwanese and Chinese suppliers and contract manufacturers.

Apple screen supplier Japan Display could receive government bailout

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Apple supplier Japan Display could receive a bailout of around ¥75 billion ($703 million) from the government-backed fund Innovation Network Corp. of Japan (INCJ), which is its largest shareholder with a 36 percent share.

People familiar with the matter said that the display maker might receive new financing from INCJ through an issuance of subordinated bonds and may possibly get “additional support” from the fund.

Facebook halts WhatsApp data collection in UK following privacy probe

As of late-August 2016, WhatsApp has been sharing account data with Facebook in what the firm framed as an effort to improve targeted advertising on the social network. Although users can easily opt out of the WhatsApp → Facebook data sharing with just a few taps, most novice users are unaware that their WhatsApp usage data is being shared with Facebook.

In the United Kingdom, the Information Commissioner Office head Elizabeth Denham said her office had launched a probe into WhatsApp's updated Terms of Service a few weeks ago.

The new terms previously drew ire from European privacy watchdogs who expressed “serious concerns” over the policy change. As a result of the UK government probe, WhatsApp has now suspended account data collection and sharing with Facebook.