California Man Sues Apple Over iOS 7 Automatic Update, Seeks Removal Of Installer File

A California man was so bothered by iOS 7’s over-the-air update mechanism that he sued Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), saying that the new version of the mobile operating system was downloaded to his family members' Apple devices without his consent.

The small claims court suit, titled “Mark David Menacher v. Tim Cook” by the San Diego County branch of California's Superior Court, seeks a way to remove the iOS 7 install files that were downloaded to the plaintiff's devices automatically when they were plugged in and connected to a Wi-Fi Connection, CNET reported.

Although the downloaded files cannot install iOS 7 on a device without the user’s permission, they prompt users to do so whenever the device is restarted. The installation file, which takes up more than 1 GB of storage space, cannot be removed by the user, and it could decrease a device’s available memory by 15 percent, Apple Insider reported.

“Apple's disregard for customer preferences in relation to iOS7 is corporate thuggery,” Menacher said in a statement. “Steve Jobs was reportedly rough on company employees in pursuit of happy customers, but Tim Cook apparently cultivates a culture of contempt for customer satisfaction in pursuit of corporate profits. It is a policy that will eventually fail.”

In addition to seeking a method to get rid of the installer file, Menacher also asked for $50 in compensation. According to Menacher, he is “considering” taking the issue to a higher court and exploring whether there is support for a class action suit.

This is not the first time such a complaint was made against Apple. A thread appeared in the company’s support forums last month in which users claimed that iOS 7 was forcefully installed on their devices, significantly reducing their devices' available storage space.

“Apple has forced the iOS7 update file onto my iPAD2 and this update is sitting in the 'other' folder indicated by the yellow bar in iTunes,” a user wrote. “I never wanted to upgrade -- how do I get rid of this 2.3 GB file that has eaten away my iPAD capacity?”

The automatic download feature was present during the transition from iOS 5 to iOS 6 as well. However, the shift from iOS 6 to iOS 7 requires far more storage space than the previous update, with the new version of the iOS featuring a new user interface and many other notable changes to the platform.