Without any doubt one of the big issues in the tech world is that of security and privacy. In a world where our devices know so much about us that they actually start to anticipate and predict our behavior, wants and needs this is becoming even more of a prevalent issue. With that said, it is not surprising that companies and in particular their representatives take every opportunity to sell their product by actually talking about the competitions product. This is exactly what Tim Cook did (as he has before) a couple of weeks ago in an interview with Charlie Rose. During the interview Cook was asked about data collection and its security and took the opportunity to clearly state that Apple’s (unlike Google) business is not based on having information on its users. According to Cook “You’re not our product“. This is a message Cook has tried to get through to users before “When an online service is free, you’re not the customer. You’re the product“.
Well, Eric Schmidt (Google Chairman) is not one to take such comments lightly. In an interview on CNN Money Schmidt decided to respond back with his own comments. When directly asked if Apple was better at privacy Schmidt immediately responded with “Someone didn’t brief him correctly on Google’s policies. It’s unfortunate for him.” Not content with simply responding to the comment Schmidt also clearly stated the case from Google’s point of view. “we have always been the leader in security and encryption. Our systems are far more secure and encrypted than anyone else, including Apple”. Echoing the sentiment that the iPhone 6 was considered to be ‘catching up’ with Android (albeit circa 2012) Schmidt decided to conclude his answer with “They’re catching up, which is great”. During the interview Schmidt was also asked about recent comments made by Julian Assange that Google’s business model is the same as the NSA’s. To this Schmidt very clearly responded “I think Julian needs to do a little more research form the safety of the embassy”. You can watch Eric Schmidt’s response in the clip from CNN Money below.
You might expect Cook to respond again soon although after the recent revelations of the ‘The Fappening’ and the leaking of celeb photos from their iCloud and iPhone accounts, he might better off to wait awhile. One thing that is clear is Cook was right in saying ‘you are not the product’. If you were then he would not have needed to try to ‘sell’ privacy during the interview. But what do you think? Who do you trust more? Apple or Google?…or neither?