Is Apple patenting spyware?

[cyberdiva]

Yesterday, I got an email message from a friend who asked me "Have you been following the story re Apple's attempt to get a patent for an app that will use photos, gps, sound (inc heartbeat) to locate a user surreptitiously?!"  I thought she was pulling my leg, but today she sent me this URL from the Electronic Frontier Foundation blog:
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/08/steve-jobs-watching-you-apple-seeking-patent-0. 

I don't usually believe stories like this, let alone post messages about them. However, this one troubles me more than most.  Even if one isn't concerned about what happens to people who use products illegally, the possibilities for abuse of technology like this seem overwhelming.  Does anyone know anything more about this?

[Renegade]

Does anyone know anything more about this?

While I don't know much more than the article, I do believe that Apple ironically forecast their intentions during some past sporting event:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYecfV3ubP8

"And you'll see why 1984 won't be like 1984..."

Because they're planning to delay it until 2010...

Sometimes I just want to shoot myself when I hear stuff like this.