Apple Fixes Location Privacy Issue With iPhone 11 Chip in iOS Beta Update

The second beta version of Apple's iOS 13.3.1, released recently, now includes a toggle for disabling the Ultra-Wideband (UWB) chip in the device. This comes after privacy issue reports around the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro that they still tracked location data even when users had turned off location services.

When that led to more questions and debates, the iPhone maker stated the behaviour was due to the fact the UWB chip in the new iPhones isn't approved broadly around the world, so the iPhone 11 uses location services to check if UWB can be used or not, 9to5Mac reported on Friday.

"We do not see any actual security implications," an Apple engineer was earlier quoted as saying by Krebs On Security.

"It is expected behaviour that the Location Services icon appears in the status bar when Location Services is enabled. The icon appears for system services that do not have a switch in Settings."

After giving an unsatisfactory answer, Apple had said in December that it would bring a dedicated toggle in location services to allow customers to completely turn off the feature.

In other Apple news, Cupertino-based tech giant Apple is reportedly planning to launch its first-ever 5G iPad alongside the rumoured iPhone 12 in September.

For this, a Taiwanese component company Advanced Semiconductor Engineering (ASE) has reportedly broken into the supply chain for Apple's mmWave 5G iPhones and 5G iPads with its substrate-based FC_AiP (flip chip antenna-in-package) technology, AppleInsider reported recently.

Apple is expected to update the iPad Pro in early 2020, but a 5G model could debut later in the year.

Additionally, Kuo also reiterated that Apple plans to release its low-cost iPhone "SE 2" in the first half of 2020 too.