Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
These Android apps have been tracking you, even when you say stop
#1
Quote:18,000 Android apps with tens or hundreds of millions of installs on the Google Play Store have been found to violate Google's Play Store Advertising ID policy guidance by collecting persistent device identifiers such as serial numbers, IMEI, WiFi MAC addresses, SIM card serial numbers, and sending them to mobile advertising related domains alongside ad IDs.

The issue here is that, while some of the companies behind these apps will most probably say that they're not actually using persistent device identifiers for ad targeting, they are still violating the Google Play Store Advertising ID policy guidance.

Sending non-resettable identifiers besides the ad ID is especially worrisome considering that it effectively removes "the privacy-preserving properties of the ad ID" as explained in a report published by AppCensus.

To further illustrate why this is an issue, Appcensus' Serge Egelman says that "in 2017, it was major news that Uber’s app had violated iOS App Store privacy guidelines by collecting non-resettable persistent identifiers. Tim Cook personally threatened to have the Uber app removed from the store."

Source
[-] The following 3 users say Thank You to sgx for this post:
  • darktwilight, harlan4096, silversurfer
Reply
#2
Quote:Some apps may track your activity over time, even when you tell them to forget the past. And there's nothing you can do about it.

Roughly 17,000 Android apps collect identifying information that creates a permanent record of the activity on your device, according to research from the International Computer Science Institute that was shared with CNET. The data collection appears to violate the search giant's policy on collecting data that can be used to target users for advertising in most cases, the researchers said.

The apps can track you by linking your Advertising ID -- a unique but resettable number used to tailor advertising -- with other identifiers on your phone that are difficult or impossible to change. Those IDs are the device's unique signatures: the MAC address, IMEI and Android ID. Less than a third of the apps that collect identifiers take only the Advertising ID, as recommended by Google's best practices for developers.

"Privacy disappears" when apps collect those persistent identifiers, said Serge Egelman, who led the research. He said his team, which reported the findings to Google in September, observed most of the apps sending identifying information to advertising services, an apparent violation of Google's policies. 

The company's policies allow developers to collect the identifiers but forbid them from combining the Advertising ID with hardware IDs without explicit consent of the user, or from using the identifiers that can't be reset, to target ads. What's more, Google's best practices for developers recommend collecting only the Advertising ID.
Source
[-] The following 1 user says Thank You to NcoII for this post:
  • harlan4096
Reply


Forum Jump:


Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)
[-]
Welcome
You have to register before you can post on our site.

Username/Email:


Password:





[-]
Recent Posts
AWZ Screen Recorder
AWZ Screen Recorder ...zevish — 11:05
Website X5 Go 2024.1
Website X5 Go 2024.1...zevish — 09:32
Apple's rules to allow third-party app ...
Apple has announ...alison30 — 09:28
Intel: Microsoft AI PCs need a Copilot K...
Microsoft hopes th...harlan4096 — 08:55
Synchredible 8 Professional Edition v8.2...
          Synchredib...zevish — 08:54

[-]
Birthdays
Today's Birthdays
No birthdays today.
Upcoming Birthdays
No upcoming birthdays.

[-]
Online Staff
There are no staff members currently online.

>