Google has announced that its next mobile operating system, Android L, will encrypt users’ data by default. The measure will make it more difficult for private information to be hacked or handed to law enforcement agencies. On Thursday, Apple said that devices running its new iOS8 software would be encrypted by default, with even the company itself unable to gain access.
Both firms have offered encryption for some time, but many users were unaware of its existence or had not enabled it. Earlier this week, Apple’s boss Tim Cook posted an online message assuring users the company’s philosophy was that a "great customer experience shouldn’t come at the expense of your privacy". As well as announcing default encryption for all devices running the new iOS8 software, Mr Cook took a thinly veiled swipe at Google, saying that Apple would not use its customers’ information to sell things to them.
"We don’t ‘monetise’ the information you store on your iPhone or in iCloud," he wrote, "and we don’t read your email or your messages to get information to market to you." He added that although Apple does have an advertising business, called iAd, the function can be disabled by users. Shortly after, Google announced its stance on privacy, also embracing default encryption. A spokesman said: "For over three years, Android has offered encryption, and keys are not stored off of the device, so they cannot be shared with law enforcement.