This is the VOA Special English Technology Report.
这是美国之音特别英语科技报道。
Lawmakers in the United States have expanded an investigation into the use of location-tracking systems on mobile devices.
The action follows recent reports about the storing of information on the Apple iphone, ipad and iTouch. Questions have also been raised about Google Android devices. Some people consider location tracking to be a threat to personal privacy and security.
Allan Friedman is the research director for technology and innovation at the Brookings Institution in Washington. He says all wireless companies do some amount of location tracking as part of their networks. Mr. Friedman says this information is usually stored by the companies, not the devices, and there are laws to protect it.
ALLAN FRIEDMAN: Law enforcement, for example, has to have a fairly high standard before it can access that data. And the phone company is also prohibited from selling that information.
美国立法者已经展开了对移动设备位置跟踪系统的使用的调查。
这些行动是对苹果iphone的信息存储最近的报道，ipad和iTouch。关于谷歌安卓设备的问题也提出了。有些人认为位置跟踪是对个人隐私和安全的威胁。
艾伦弗里德曼是华盛顿布鲁金斯学会的科技和创新研究中心主任。他说，所有的无线公司都做了一些位置跟踪，作为其网络的一部分。弗里德曼先生说，这些信息通常是由公司，而不是设备，有法律保护它。
弗里德曼艾伦：执法，例如，必须有一个相当高的标准，才可以访问该数据。而且电话公司也禁止出售这些信息。
Congress discussed the issue of mobile privacy last year. Now, two researchers reported last month that location tracking information is being stored directly on Apple devices. They said Apples newest operating systems gather global positioning system and timestamp information.
The information is stored on the device in a file that is also uploaded to any computer that the device is connected to. The researchers say the information is available to anyone who has access to the device or computer.
Allan Friedman says this raises additional concerns.
ALLAN FRIEDMAN: Theres the idea that because its on my phone and on my computer, rogue applications that I pay for or that Im tricked into downloading may be able to access this data and somehow misuse it.
Apple, in a statement, says it is not tracking the location of your iphone. The company says it is simply keeping a database of Wi-Fi hotspots and cell phone towers near the users location. It says this information is meant to help the iphone quickly find its location when needed.
国会去年讨论移动隐私问题。现在，两家研究人员上个月的位置跟踪信息被直接存储在苹果设备上。他们说，最新的苹果操作系统收集全球定位系统信息和时间戳信息。
该信息被存储在该设备中，该设备还被上载到该设备连接到的任何计算机上。研究人员说，这些信息是提供给任何有访问设备或计算机的人。
弗里德曼艾伦说，这引起了更多的关注。
Last week, leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee sent letters to some of the leading mobile device developers. These include Apple and Google. The letters asked for more information about their location tracking systems.
Allan Friedman calls this an important start to strengtheAllan Friedman：有这个想法，因为它在我的电话，我的电脑上，流氓应用程序，或我诱骗下载我付出可能是能够访问这些数据，不知怎么误用它。
苹果，在一份声明中，说它是不跟踪的你的iphone的位置。公司说，这仅仅是保持数据库的Wi-Fi热点和手机发射塔附近的用户的位置。它说，这些信息是为了帮助苹果迅速找到它的位置，当需要的时候。
ning privacy laws.
上周，众议院能源和商业委员会的领导们给一些主要的移动设备开发人员发送信件。这些包括苹果和谷歌。信件要求他们的位置跟踪系统的更多信息。
弗里德曼艾伦称这是一个重要的开始加强隐私法律。
ALLAN FRIEDMAN: There arent strong controls over things like location data. We need to understand who is getting my location information, what are they doing with it, how long are they keeping it. And perhaps the most important question is, is my location data tied with other facts about me?
A new Senate subcommittee on privacy, technology and the law plans to hold a hearing on May tenth about protecting mobile privacy.
弗里德曼艾伦：没有强大的控制，如位置数据的东西。我们需要了解谁是获得我的位置信息，他们在做什么，他们保持多久。也许最重要的问题是，我的位置数据与其他事实联系在一起吗？
一个新的隐私，技术和法律的参议院小组委员会计划在五月十日举行的关于保护移动隐私的听证会。
And thats the VOA Special English Technology Report, written by June Simms, and available online at voa special english.com. Im Steve Ember.
这就是今天的美国之音特别英语的技术报告，由六月Simms撰写，并在网上提供美国之音特别english.com。我是史提夫。