When reporting on Google I/O 2019 yesterday, I started with a segment about how Apple has led the fight for cyber privacy. I pointed to Cook's keynote in Europe on this matter and how Apple set up a massive banner ad across the street from the CES venue back in January pushing one of Apple's core values, privacy.

Google's CEO spent a lot of time in his keynote address focused on the matter of privacy, knowing that Apple has dinged them on this issue over the last year. Google's CEO even went out of his way to ensure that the New York Times would publish a story about privacy and Google's position on it in order to try to erode Apple's stinging message against their company and others.

This week at Microsoft's developer conference known as "Build 2019" their CEO Satya Nadella did the same thing. As our cover attests to, Nadella spent quality time in the conference's opening keynote to emphasize Trust that includes Privacy, Cybersecurity and Responsible AI.

On the topic of Privacy, Nadella stated: "…we also share a deep responsibility together. It starts with us as platform providers, but we have a collective responsibility. A few years ago we started talking about it, it felt a bit prosaic to talk about responsibility at tech conferences where it's all about the glitz of technology – but it's no longer the case. To us, thinking about trust, in everything that we build, in the technology we build, it's so core. As engineers, we need to truly incorporate this in the core design process, in the tooling around how we build things. So when we think about privacy and the fact that privacy is a human right is as much of an engineering design principle as an engineering process issue. The Same thing with cybersecurity and AI ethics."  

Between Apple's CEO pounding the table on privacy and the U.S. Government getting involved roasting Twitter and Facebook over the issue, the message is getting through to the industry. It's a wake up call, for some, to avoid government intervention.

Where some disagree with privacy is in it having no boundaries. Some believe, and rightfully so, that hindering law enforcement in doing their job to protect its citizenry from  criminal hackers, terrorists, child pornographers, drug dealers, human traffickers and so forth requires cooperation from technology companies. Yet that's a story for another day.

On the general topic of privacy relating to our ability to safely use mobile wallet apps like Apple and Google Pay, to protect our identity from being stolen, to stopping advertisers tracking our every online move, to stop massive data breaches and so forth, Apple has led the way.

Seeing Google, Microsoft and Facebook in the last few days and months trying to reinvent and redefine their image as privacy advocates must be very satisfying to Apple's CEO who began his crusade as a one man army. Apple and it's determined CEO put the industry to shame for putting advertising dollars ahead of their customer's privacy.

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