What's Tim Cook doing with German Chancellor Angela Merkel?
Cadie Thompson — February 23, 2015 — CNBC.com(Photo cannot be linked due to Getty Image copyright nastiness.)
Tim Cook, Apple CEO, during his trip to Belgium, February 23, 2015. Apple's CEO Tim Cook has been making the rounds in Germany. According to a 9to5 Mac report, which cites the German newspaper BILD, Cook met up German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday to talk about issues in tech and other matters.
Privacy was one topic that came up and apparently Cook told Merkel he's a big fan of Germany's strong position regarding data privacy, according to the report.
Cook reportedly told Merkel that Germans "have the same views on privacy as I do."
Read MoreWall Street's 5 burning reasons to buy Apple Data privacy is an issue that tends to get more attention in Europe than in the U.S. Last year, the European Court of Justice that people had the "right to be forgotten" forcing Google to begin removing links to content that people requested be taken down.
Currently, the European Union is working to establish new data-protection rules that will likely make it tougher for tech companies operating in the region to use personal data. Their aim is to create a single digital market that would bring together the varying internet policies of the 28 countries.
About two years ago, when Eric Snowden first released information about a supposed way of hacking into iPhones called “DropoutJeep” from October 2008, Angela Merkel got rid of her iPhone. Actually DropoutJeep was a “close access exploit” and required that the NSA have had actual possession of the iPhone at sometime to install the exploit spyware. DropoutJeep could not be downloaded or installed remotely to the iPhone. It would not have worked on her newer iPhone at all. Perhaps he was letting her know those facts.