IOS update 4.3.3 allows more control of location tracking

I've blogged on this before, but a new update seems to allow control over how much location information your iPad or iPhone collects. Here's what I collected using iPhone Tracker before the update was installed:

All Time

21/04/2011

28/04/2011

05/05/2011

When I connected to iTunes today I was offered IOS update 4.3.3:

Quote:

IOs 4.3.3 Software Update

This update contains changes to the IOS crowd-sourced location database cache, including:

• Reduces the size of the cache
• No longer backs the cache up to iTunes
• Deletes the cache entirely when Location Services is turned off

I've not verified the last statement as I use the location services a lot, but iPhone tracker certainly can't see the locations in the iTunes backup now:

I'm also not sure if this is new. The Location Services option in Settings shows an arrow next to any application that has used location services in the last 24 hours:

iPhone or iPad Tracker

There has been a little bit of a storm recently about the iPhone\iPad tracking database that was recently discovered on the device, and on computers used to backup the device.

I've used an OSX App to take a look at the data on an iPad I'm evaluating.

I live in Felixstowe and commute to Huntingdon, with the odd bit of work in Peterborough and Cambridge.

This is the data collected around my commute:

Note the odd one near Norwich and the ones around the North East of London? Well, I haven't been there since I've had this device. Notice also that the points seems to cluster around larger towns - I've used Waze on this iPad while driving so I was a bit surprised that the dots didn't follow the route that I use, the A14.

Here's a zoomed in part around where I live. The dots appear to be in a regular grid with only one small dot on my house:

It seems that the iPad\iPhone is only storing an approximation of your devices location.

The App I used can be obtained here:
http://petewarden.github.com/iPhoneTracker/

They also have a nice FAQ:
http://petewarden.github.com/iPhoneTracker/#faq

Links to news stories here:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/04/20/secret_iphone_location_tracking/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/04/22/apple_iphone_location_tracking_analysis/