India Weighs Greater Phone-Location Surveillance; Apple, Google and Samsung Protest
Sources said Apple, Samsung and Alphabet's Google have told New Delhi it shouldn't be mandated.
India is reviewing a proposal about greater phone-location surveillance.
That's according to documents, emails and five sources.
The pitch is from the telecom industry to force smartphone firms to enable satellite location tracking.
Tech majors, including Apple, Google and Samsung have all opposed the move due to privacy concerns.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government this week pulled back from forcing smartphone makers to preload a state-run cyber safety app on all devices.
Activists and politicians had raised privacy worries about potential snooping.
The Modi administration has been concerned for years its agencies don't get precise locations when legal requests are made to telecom firms during investigations.
The current system only allows companies to use cellular tower data.
That only provides an estimated area location, which can be off by several meters.
An email showed a leading Indian telecoms trade body proposed precise user locations should only be provided if authorities order smartphone makers to activate A-GPS technology.
It would require location services to always be activated in smartphones with no option for users to disable them.
Sources said Apple, Samsung and Alphabet's Google have told New Delhi it shouldn't be mandated.
India's IT and home ministries are both analyzing the telecom industry's proposal and didn't respond to Reuters questions.