How does Apple keep trade secrets while working from home on the new Coronavirus?
With the spread of the new coronavirus, many companies are encouraging their employees to work remotely. Apple has also encouraged employees to work from home, with some employees reportedly working at home on products such as Apple TV and iMac, which are in the early stages of development.
Apple Tests Its Secrecy Somewhere New: Employee Homes-Bloomberg
Apple reportedly letting select employees work on early-stage products at home-The Verge
https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/30/21200098/apple-secrecy-future-products-employees-work-from-home
According to Bloomberg's report, Apple has encouraged many employees to work from home affected by the new coronavirus, and has allowed products that are in the early stages of development to be taken out of the company. . The news came as a surprise as Apple was known for imposing strict confidentiality agreements on unreleased hardware and software for its employees. In order to take out the prototype product outside the company, it seems that senior executive permission is required, and executives who give permission to take out regularly check `` list of employees who take out products '' and review it To do.
According to reports, Apple has allowed products outside the company at the time of writing to be developed, including HomePod , Apple TV, MacBook Pro, iPad, Apple Watch, and iMac. The new iPhone is not included in this, but it is reported that the development of the iPhone is progressing steadily for release this fall. According to Bloomberg, `` hardware engineers are allowed to work in the office for some tasks that require practical development, '' the development of the next iPhone was cited this time. You can see that it is ahead of products such as HomePod, Apple TV, MacBook Pro, iPad, Apple Watch, and iMac.
As with hardware development, software development continues, and Apple is developing the next major version of the mobile OS, iOS 14, and the next major version of macOS, which are also available for employees working from home. Among them, 'Who is accessible?' Is strictly managed. According to the information obtained by Bloomberg, the next major version of iOS and macOS will be released as scheduled.
In addition, Apple announced the new iPad Pro and MacBook Air as the first new products after the spread of the new coronavirus.
Apple announces new iPad Pro with dual camera and enhanced AR function, also new Magic Keyboard with trackpad-gigazine
According to reports, Apple encourages telecommuters to cover the costs of building a working environment at home, and seems to be responsible for purchasing desks and monitors. We also held a contest to introduce employees to their home workspaces, saying, 'It's always important to handle confidential information confidentially, both at home and in the office. Please be careful and keep your confidential information secure at all times. '
Unlike Bloomberg's report, The Information points out the problems faced by Apple employees working from home.
How Apple Is Working From Home — The Information
https://www.theinformation.com/articles/how-apple-is-working-from-home
Apple staffers suffer work-from-home setbacks due to security guidelines, travel bans
https://appleinsider.com/articles/20/03/30/apple-staffers-suffer-work-from-home-setbacks-due-to-security-guidelines-travel-bans
According to information obtained by insiders from insiders, Apple's guidelines require that important processes, such as product development, be performed in-house securely to prevent confidential information from leaking outside. thing. The Information reports that as a result, employees are forced to work from home, halting prototype development for most hardware.
Also, because it is not possible to work in the office, it is in a state where mock-up design using a 3D printer or milling machine can not be performed, and it seems that at present it is also impossible to perform stress tests and drop tests of prototypes .
Apple says it is working to make it easier than ever to
Apple has compiled ergonomic advice for employees who are forced to work from home, and says that they will pay the costs necessary to set up a telecommuting environment. This is the same as Bloomberg's report.
In addition, Apple has many supply chains in China, but due to the travel restrictions of the new coronavirus measures, it is difficult to directly communicate with local factories. As a countermeasure, there is the exchange of photos and text using email and chat applications, but Apple is concerned that there may be leaks of photos of products in the development and manufacturing stages. It has also been pointed out that in the case of text exchanges, the responsiveness of conversations is inevitably low, and if there is a serious problem in development, it may fail to correct it.
In addition, Apple has stipulated guidelines on product photography for the supply chain, and it seems that strictly restricts `` who can use the camera '', `` which terminal can upload photos '', etc. .
According to The Information, some employees hope that Apple will allow remote work after the end of the new coronavirus infection.
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