Apple chief executive vents opinion on discovery that iPhones keep record of connections with cell towers in their vicinity and says Android tracks too

Steve Jobs has responded to the mounting questions about iPhones collecting location data for up to a year - a revelation that could lead to privacy investigations by some European governments.

In a characteristically terse email, apparently sent directly from his iPhone, the Apple chief executive - who is officially on medical leave from his company, and has been seen only briefly in public since January - insisted that "we don't track anyone", and instead aimed his ire at Google, claiming that "they do" track users.

The exchange, documented by a reader of the MacRumors website who emailed Jobs (whose address is well-known online), appears to be legitimate. Apple has not commented on its provenance.

The reader asked Jobs:

Could you please explain the necessity of the passive location-tracking tool embedded in my iPhone? It's kind of unnerving knowing that my exact location is being recorded at all times. Maybe you could shed some light on this for me before I switch to a [Google Android] Droid. They don't track me.

Jobs's reply, in full:

Oh yes they do. We don't track anyone. The info circulating around is false. Sent from my iPhone

While it is certainly true that Android phones do gather anonymised location information, Google has insisted that the collection is opt-in, with a clear dialogue which the user is presented with before proceeding. In addition, Google's system only retains the most recent 50 mobile cell masts and 200 Wi-Fi networks seen, and in a form that is hard to access. By contrast Apple's seems to collect an almost unlimited amount in a form which is easily accessible to anyone who gets their hands on the phone.

Apple has also confirmed to the US Congress that iPhones and iPads collect location data when permitted by the user, and buried in the lengthy license document for the iTunes Store (used to synchronise data) is an 86-word paragraph which gives the company the right to access location data collected by the user.

However the data is all anonymised, with no personal details of the user or physical addresses for the phone.

Jobs's claim that "we don't track anyone" is arguably true, in that Apple could not target named individuals. However the benefits of the location-tracking services to targeted advertising based on whether a phone is being used are clear to both Apple and Google.

Jobs's assertion that "The info circulating around is false" is hard to analyse, given that he does not say which information he is referring to. But hundreds of people have posted maps online showing how their iPhone or iPad has tracked their movements.