Apple is being sued over allegations that iPhone and iPad applications send users' personal information to advertising companies without their consent.
The complaint was filed in California on December 23 and is part of a class action-style suit.
It accuses Apple of encoding iPhones and iPads with devices that allow advertisers to track what application users download and how much they use them.
The suit claims that the Apple products are set with a Unique Device Identifier, or UDID, which cannot be blocked by users, Bloomberg reports.
Yet Apple says it does not allow data to be transmitted from its App Store without users' permission.
"Some apps are selling additional information to ad networks including users' location, age, gender, income, ethnicity, sexual orientation and political views," says the compliant.
The suit has been filed on behalf of a man called Jonathan Lalo who claims the transmission of personal information is a violation of federal computer and privacy laws.
Applications including Paper Toss, the Weather Channel and Dictionary.com have been named as defendants alongside Apple.
Anyone who downloaded an application on their iPhone or iPad between December 1, 2008 and last week is eligible to join in on the lawsuit.
ninemsn.com.au 28 Dec 2010
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