PRIVACY: With 4 Words, Apple Just Exposed the Biggest Problem With Facebook.

On Monday, Apple finally released iOS 14.5, and, I checked, Facebook still opens on my iPhone. The world didn’t come to an end for digital advertisers, small businesses, or anyone else. In fact, no one really knows how much of a difference the change will make to anyone.

I suppose we’ll find out soon. AppsFlyer, an ad attribution measurement firm, says that the average opt-in rate in its testing is around 26 percent. That means that almost three-quarters of users are likely to opt out of allowing Facebook and other apps to track their activity.

Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering, told The Wall Street Journal’s Joanna Stern that the company’s goal is to “give users a choice.” Those four words are at the core of the problem with the position Facebook has taken since Apple announced the changes last year at its developer conference.

Apple’s motivation might not be anything “nobler” than sticking it to a rival or increasing the value of its own ad platform, but the benefits to any consumers concerned about privacy are clear.