Facebook shows notices in iOS apps to sell you on app tracking as it helps keep it free of charge

Facebook is calling these notices “educational screens” that tend to provide its users with details on how the company and its apps track them.

Apple’s controversial App Tracking Transparency has finally rolled out to several iPhone users with the iOS 14.5 update. The keyword here is controversial, and that is because Apple’s new policy for iOS apps is not sitting well with some developers. The most notable company that has been campaigning against Apple’s App Tracking Transparency is Facebook. And it is continuing with its stance with a new tactic. Facebook is adding a popup within its iOS app to urge users to allow tracking because that “helps keep Facebook free of charge.” The new popup windows emerge randomly inside the Facebook and Instagram apps on the iPhone. And among everything they tell their users, one important aspect is that Facebook is reminding them that they do not pay any fee or charge to access the social media platform. Technology researcher Ashkan Soltani first pointed it out on Twitter (via The Verge), saying this is a part of “scare tactics” from Facebook. Telling people to do something that is as simple as tapping on the “Allow” button, because, otherwise, they will have to pay to access something is essentially scaring people into doing that. Facebook is calling these popup notices “educational screens” that tend to provide its users with more details on how the company and its apps (such as Instagram) use data for personalised ads. “We use information about your activity received from other apps and websites to show you ads that are more personalised, help keep Facebook free of charge, and support businesses that rely on ads to reach their customers,” Facebook’s so-called educational screens suggest inside the marquee app and Instagram app on the iPhone with iOS 14.5.