The company stressed that the UWB-related checks are handled "entirely on the device," and that Apple isn't collecting location data. It's promising a dedicated toggle for UWB in a future iOS release.

The claim lines up with developer Will Strafach's determination that the location activity doesn't leave the iPhone, and suggests that there's no reason to be concerned about the behavior. However, Apple's response is drawing concern. The company initially declined to comment on the location findings, and doesn't clearly tell users that these location checks will still happen. In other words, people had room to speculate about sinister purposes rather than an up-front explanation that might have settled things much sooner.