Anyone who uses Spotlight in either OS X Yosemite or iOS 8 will have their search data and location passed to Apple servers. That same data will also go to Microsoft; all this information is in its Terms of Service for both operating systems.
Landon Fuller, a software developer, has set up a website that Spotlight shares data by default in the new Yosemite OS. Sean Sullivan, from F-Secure, a security firm, says it happens in iOS 8 as well. If this is a concern for you, then don’t worry, it’s not unavoidable. On a Mac, go to System Preferences > Spotlight > Search Results and disable “Spotlight Suggestions “ and “Bing Web Searches.” You’ll also need to disable Safari’s “Spotlight Suggestions” so that Safari doesn’t send search results to Apple. Go to Safari > Preferences > Search and disable “Include Spotlight Suggestions.”
For iOS 8, go to Settings > General > Spotlight Search, and then deselect “Spotlight Suggestions” and “Bing Web Results.”
Emma Carr, who is the director of privacy body Big Brother Watch, said that consumers should start demanding privacy by design from vendors rather than the complete opposite.
