Digital privacy increasingly becomes a concern for users, so researchers from the UnUniversity of Edinburgh (UK) and Trinity College (Dublin, Ireland) conducted a study in this area and found that several companies of ‘smartphones’ with Android operating system track your mobile at all times even if you have not authorized it.
The experts specified that this occurs even when people delete suspicious applications and reject proposals to monitor their actions when installing a new ‘app’. The follow-ups are carried out by means of the “system applications”, which are generally installed by default. in the device’s RAM and they are almost or totally impossible to eliminate unless you have knowledge of the subject.
They watch over you at all times
The experts analyzed the data-sharing habits of some popular variants of the Android operating system, including those developed by Samsung, Xiaomi and Huawei, with which they discovered that “with little configuration”, from the first moment and even when the mobile is inactive, these applications would incessantly send the data of the device to the developers of the operating system and a large number of third parties, although it is not clear why.
The researchers emphasize that some apps are essential, such as the camera or messaging, so the user could not do without them, but there are others more than they don’t stop sharing private information despite never being open.
What kind of data are they getting?
The study indicates that, in the particular case of Samsung, the Linkedin app sends “telemetry data” to Microsoft servers, including details such as the device’s unique identifier and the number of Microsoft applications they have installed on it. In addition, they are shared with any analytics provider that you have already linked with, such as Google Analytics.
Google Analytics data is also shared on Xiaomi smartphones, as well as records of each text message that is sent. This kind of situation raises concern in some users, since a unique kind of “fingerprint” is being created that can be used to track a device and, therefore, know who the user is.
Those who did the analysis point out that Google does not establish rules on whether developers can collect this information, but that there are only restrictions on what can be done with it. The firms maintain that they do not do something illegal, Instead, everything they collect helps them create predictive maps to future behaviors to anticipate needs, reduce risks, and offer more relevant products.
msb
