What is App Tracking Transparency (ATT)?

App Tracking Transparency, or ATT, is a privacy policy that was made mandatory by Apple with the release of iOS 14.5.

Apple assigns a unique ID called IDFA (Identifier for Advertisers) to every iOS device. If an application collects user data, tracks users, or shares data with third-party applications, it must obtain user consent within the scope of ATT. Explicit user permission is mandatory for sharing the IDFA.

How Does ATT Work?

In order for an application to access users’ IDFA information, it must first request permission in accordance with ATT standards. If the user gives consent, the IDFA information can be shared; if the user does not give consent, access must be blocked.

Additional Important Points:

Users who previously had Limit Ad Tracking (LAT) enabled are automatically considered opt-out.

In order for the ATT permission prompt to be displayed, the “Allow Apps to Request to Track” setting must be enabled in user settings (enabled by default).

If data will be used for advertising purposes in another application, dual opt-in is required.

Impact of ATT on Mobile Marketing

Before ATT rules, mobile marketing operated in an environment where the distribution of user information was more open, user data could be collected definitively rather than through modeling, and campaign optimizations could be carried out clearly.

After ATT;

Access to IDFA has significantly decreased due to users not granting consent.
Since user data cannot be accessed clearly, data is reached through modeling and estimation.
SKAdNetwork, probabilistic modeling, and first-party data have come to the forefront.

As a result, ATT has introduced a privacy-first principle to the mobile marketing world and is built on first-party data and consent-based data collection.