Hello guys:
I'm developing an IOs App that need to get a list of wifi stations detected by phone, ONLY NAMES, no Macs, Signal..., only only names!!, because my App uses it only for commercial purposses, but I have noticed that retrieve a list of Wifi stations is prohibited by Apple, is true???, in that case... why??.
Thanks!!
Mac mini, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.3)
Because that can be used to track people. WiFi signatures are known, recorded in a number of worldwide databases, and georeferenced down to a few feet. You are essentially asking for a list of buildings someone has ever been in.
I know that retrieve a list of Wifi stations detected in that moment can be used for hacking, add in databases and more, but Apple should know that it can be used for other good purposes.
In my case, we have an Fan Club of shops, and each shop appoint its wifi station as "FanClub_xxxxxx'.
I need read the list of wifi stations in mobile each 10 or 20 seconds in order to detect the name "FanClub", to alert the user that has a shop fan near.
With his explanation not clear to me if I can use this feature or not, but if I can't, I don't know how Apple (a giant of computing) can not put the necessary filters to detect honored apps of which are not, and let us use this feature that can be used for great good.
Please, let me know if with this purposes I can get the list of wifi stations in my App, and if I'm not having problems in the appstore.
Thanks!!.
From what I understand, the information you are looking for can only be obtained by using a private library that will get your app rejected. On top of that, it is simply a bad idea that really has no legitimate application. If these are your shops, then you should know where they are. People's phones know where they are. You could send them notifications whenever they get nearby. Using wifi, you wouldn't detect anything until they were standing out front. Why not use the approved, legitimate, and far superior solution?
Ok, yes, I know where are all shops, but how phone people's can know where they are?, by GPS location?..., location have a very big error margin. I need program a complex math calc to app detect if shop is near or far, and error margin can placing the location in parallel streets.
Wifi detection is very fast, if you walk with your mobile in list of wifi mode, you can see wifi stations appear and disappear very quickly as you go through them.
What is the superior solution you propose?.
Thanks!!!
Etresoft answer was rather pertinent (I don't know him personaly). Apple does not want YOU, the developer to know the names of wifi stations nearby. If they did'not mind you would do it easily but it is the opposite, as bad or wrong it looks for you. So you won't get it ..
All you can do is to ask Apple to add this feature in iOS SDK for a future release but in my opinion you would loose your time. If you have a paid developer account (not a free one) you can ask for aTSI (technical support incident) twice in a year of paid account. Or you can use freely bugreporter (just needs to be registred) to ask for a new feature and see if they answer as they usually do (oftenly by a "duplicate" saying you're not the 1st to ask).
As for the way to know when a customer is near a shop : wifi won't be detected if you are more than a few meters from the Wifi-Router while GPS is far more accurate than you pretend it is, both in my opinion and in my real life usage.
And the maths to do it are probably known by many developers that would certainly share and help you once you start working that way rather than complaining Apple does not agree with your wishes.
Putting aside the privacy issues and the fact that what you propose is dead-in-the-water, wifi just isn't a good solution for your problem. While it would be fast and accurate, it is too accurate. Someone would have to be standing quite close to your shop to get a notification. They would have to actually be looking at it or inside it. Ergo, wifi will provide no assistance to help them get there.
Using GPS, on the other hand, will get them to within visual distance. Siri can even give them directions.
etresoft wrote:
From what I understand, the information you are looking for can only be obtained by using a private library that will get your app rejected.
That, and the fact that I could just name my network "FanClub_xxx" and the OP's app would think my house is one of his shops. 😝
No man..., "FanClub_xxx" have a number of 5 digits. When detect "FanClub", the App read the number and ask to server for shop ID, and if exists, push in screen the offers. You are free call to your network "FanClub_xxx" copying another network, but the publicity is for your competitor X-D.
This is even worse !
Nothing prevents another concurrent FanClub to stole the number of a genuine FanClub and put a fake name on the wifi. And because it relies only on wifi your app will not notice the genuine FanClub is miles away while there is a similar shop in front of the phone owner due to the short range of wifi waves.
Turn it upside down you won't convince us that you are taking the good path. And don't forget to ask Apple to change their mind on this issue btw.
Laurent, that you say is not possible!!...
When App detect an Wifi named "FanClub_78844" and retrieve the "push" on the server, alert in screen the image of shop, street, number, phone and discounts CODES!!. Would be foolish copy the named of other station, because the alert that notify to user would be of genuine shop.
I will use GPS, so I have decided follow the instructions of etresoft, but use Wifi is not a bad idea, because I have test it in Android and work much more better than GPS!!. List stations refresh very very very fast in Android..., you can walking and can see refresh of stations practically every second.
Recreativo,
I see what you mean but, in my iPhone usage and wifi you need to be quite near the source of the signal for your iPhone to detect it. What I mean is that when your phone detect the FanClub_78844 your eyes have the shop in full sight and the shopkeeper would catch much more people at that distance with a classic advertising. While using GPS you could catch people that would not see (therefore know) when there is a shop around the corner.
Aside of that I think you should to be carreful that your app does not drain the battery, I have no mercy for any new app that I can see draining my battery, I don't even wait to be in iTunes to remove it from the iPhone and does it right away on the sidewalk.
Get list of wifi stations in IOs prohibited by Apple?
