Apple blocks mainland Chinese users from seeing some geographic information on its Compass app
- The changes came with Apple’s latest software updates, including iOS 15.1, which was released in China in late October, and watchOS 8.3, released this week
- Under Chinese law, foreign organisations must acquire a licence from the State Council and the Chinese military to carry out surveying and mapping activities
Apple has stopped showing mainland Chinese users certain geographic information on the latest version of its Compass app, a move that some users speculate could be linked to Beijing’s stricter approach to data privacy.
iPhone and Apple Watch users in China can no longer see their geographic coordinates and elevation on the Compass app, according to Chinese media reports and user comments. However, information including bearings and general location are still available.
The changes came with Apple’s latest software updates, including iOS 15.1, which was released in China in late October, and watchOS 8.3, released this week.
It is not clear why the information is no longer available for mainland Chinese users. On the community discussion page of Apple’s official Chinese website, a question about whether the change was due to Chinese government policy or because of a bug, posted in late October, received 269 upvotes.
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On Zhihu, China’s Quora-like Q&A platform, a comment on the change drew more than 900,000 views and 105 replies, with some users pledging to put off updating their devices because of this, and some speculating that it has to do with the Chinese government’s restrictions on the use of geographic information.