Quora , a unique thread has been created with users asking about how Apple keeps secrets. The answers are unique as they give insight into the company's reasoning for leaks, but even better is that there are also answers that mention the way in which big Apple secrets have been leaked over the years.
Below we list three such examples to give you an idea and you can find more here.
Steve Jobs' philosophy on leaks during his time at Next (written by a Next employee)
“In the early years, there were no secrets within the company. Things were so clear and accessible to everyone that even everyone's detailed payroll was posted outside the CFO's office and we were encouraged to look at it whenever we wanted. But no one was that interested in that. Steve Jobs had emphasized to us that within Next everything would be open and accessible to everyone, but outside Next we were not supposed to talk to anyone. He had told us that he would keep this line of reasoning until there was the first leak from within the company, since then, as he characteristically emphasized, he would abolish it and we would become just another typical company. Of course, his tone of voice was such that no one wanted to be the first to start this first leak.”
How Apple tracks its original products (written by an Apple employee)
“All Apple prototypes are marked with a unique serial number via laser and are tracked through an Apple system called iTrack. There is also a physical security presence everywhere that even performs a physical check, and all prototypes that are not used for a test purpose must be secured and locked in specific cabinets immediately. Many times we don't even know what a colleague of ours is working on. In order for someone to be able to go from one department to another, they must have a specific pass with different security levels for each. Departments like those in design have their own reception and in order for you to be able to enter beyond the appropriate permits, there is also an exclusive escort who will take you to the area you want to visit. “
The iMac G3 leak in 1998 (written by Adam Banks, editor of MacUser UK)
“I was editor of MacUser UK at the time and there were a lot of rumors that Apple was ready to introduce a new Mac range. We were the first magazine to give the most accurate description of what this machine would look like months before Steve Jobs introduced it and called it the iMac. Our source was a person who had access to a test unit that had been sent by Apple to his service. At the time, although we were pressured not to reveal the name of the service, it is safe to say today that it was the Pentagon. Steve Jobs considered it a safe location to test his iMac and all the Pentagon employees had been given clear instructions not to say anything to the outside world. Of course, to them it was still a PC so they paid no attention to these instructions”
Dimitrios Georgoulas @ GreekAppleNews
