Collaborating with Apple to Further Customer Privacy and Security

As the internet service provider to 24 million residential customers around the country, we take our responsibility to protect and secure our customers’ private information online very seriously. It’s why we don’t share or sell our customers’ internet user information, such as their web browsing history or app usage, with third parties for their own marketing or advertising purposes. It’s why we’ve called for a new strong national privacy framework based on an “opt-in” approach, which would require all companies doing business online to obtain consumers’ affirmative consent for the collection and use of their data, with few exceptions. It’s also why we continue to work on future enhancements to provide customers more control of their home networks, the ability to see every device connected to their network, receive connection notifications and access improved parental controls.

Today, we announced a groundbreaking collaboration with Apple that will advance our objective of delivering a superior connectivity experience that prioritizes privacy and security through HomeKit technology. Charter is the first ISP to work with Apple to deliver a more secure online experience for Spectrum Internet customers who use HomeKit enabled accessories. We plan to support HomeKit as part of the Spectrum Connectivity Platform later this year to offer enhanced security and privacy to Apple customers, and a streamlined, easier process to onboard certified consumer devices to our customer’s home network.

On the Spectrum Connectivity Platform, HomeKit will enable Apple customers to restrict their HomeKit-certified devices from communicating with unauthorized internet services and ensure more privacy and security of their smart homes. While this solution is an additional layer of protection for Apple HomeKit users, Charter is open to working with additional companies to ensure all our customers are similarly protected. Charter believes that security and ease of use are cornerstones of delivering the best connectivity experience, and we are committed to delivering on this vision.