“The time is coming when everything that is covered up will be revealed, and all that is secret will be made known to all. Whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be shouted from the housetops for all to hear!”  Luke 12:2-3 NLT

My iPhone scares me. It’s learning stuff. I have it set to “Do Not Disturb” so I won’t be tempted to read an incoming text while I’m driving. I programmed a whole contact list into my phone once while driving to Utah. Granted, there wasn’t any traffic and nothing to see on that desolate stretch of highway, but that was just plain stupid. I’ve learned a lot since then. But, then again…so has my phone!

Along with the “Do Not Disturb” message comes an estimated time of arrival at my destination. And how does my phone know where I am, you ask? I wondered the same thing, so I did some searching. 

First of all, the “Do Not Disturb” message is triggered by the phone connecting to the Bluetooth in your vehicle. I thought it was totally psychic, so I was a little disappointed when I discovered this little tidbit. Then, if you have your map set to connect to your GPS, your phone will estimate how long it will take you to get to the place you go to most often. In my case, home. Then, yesterday…it changed.

Mr. FixIt and I have a routine. We have a leisurely Sunday morning. Then we go to the noon service at our church. After church, we head to Shoney’s for breakfast. My phone usually tells me how long it will take me to get home and what the traffic is like on the way. Yesterday…it switched. It told me how long it would take me to Shoney’s. It’s learning. It knows where I’m going.

How many times have you gotten on Facebook or Google and suddenly…miraculously…a topic you’ve been wanting to research shows up. In an ad. In a search. In a “recommended” button. It’s creepy. But it’s easily explained. 

When you download an app, there is a Terms Agreement you have to accept in order to install it on your phone. Sometimes that thing is over five pages of tiny typeface that is impossible to read, even if you wanted to…which, who does, right? You tap “accept”, download the app, and you’re in business. The problem is, you have no idea what you gave the app permission to do. One of the most common things tucked in that app is “permission to access the microphone”. That means, at anytime, for any reason, the company that developed or owns the app can access you microphone and listen in to your conversations. Over dinner. At work. While you are….ahem…otherwise engaged. Wink, wink. Let’s say you’ve given an app permission to access your microphone and you have a conversation with your best friend about a party that’s coming up and you need a fancy dress. Lo and behold, the next time you go on Facebook or Google or Amazon, up pops ads and suggestions for fancy party dresses.

Ok, maybe it can make life easier. But what’s it going to save you? A few seconds…a minute, at the most? I don’t need my life to be simplified in that way. I don’t want the intrusion into my personal life. I have changed my mind about many apps I’ve downloaded. I’ve denied permission and hit delete more than once. We’ve gone way past “1984” here. I don’t want my iPhone (or any other electronic device) learning any more about me than I am will to share with it over coffee. ❤️