Earlier this week, security researcher Brian Krebs found that his iPhone 11 Pro was searching for user location even when all apps and system services on the phone were disabled from location access. Apple said that this was "expected behavior" and that the Location Services icon "appears for system services that do not have a switch in Settings", and now the company has shared more information on the matter.
Apple explains that the Ultra Wideband technology included with the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro is the reason for the phones using Location Services even with all location access turned off. This tech is subject to international regulatory requirements and must be turned off in some locations, Apple told TechCrunch, and so the phone is checking to see if it's in one of those locations.
Here's the company's full statement on the matter:
“Ultra wideband technology is an industry standard technology and is subject to international regulatory requirements that require it to be turned off in certain locations. iOS uses Location Services to help determine if iPhone is in these prohibited locations in order to disable ultra wideband and comply with regulations.
"The management of ultra wideband compliance and its use of location data is done entirely on the device and Apple is not collecting user location data."
Apple added that it will put a toggle for the Ultra Wideband feature in an impending update for users that wish to disable this feature.
Ultra Wideband is used to help the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro find other phones to AirDrop with, and some have speculated that it may also be used in Apple's oft-rumored tracker tag that will help you locate items like keys or a bag.
Lots of folks would be concerned if they saw that their phone was accessing their location data even if all of the apps and system services were blocked from using Location Services, so it's understandable why this situation was making news this week. The good news is that there doesn't seem to be any security issues or bugs that must be fixed and that the location data that's being collected for regulatory reasons is kept on your device. So if you've got a new iPhone and you're wondering why your location is being accessed even with Location Services disabled, now you know why.