Online retailers want you to use their app instead of the traditional website – sure it may give a more personalised experience but it could be because the app collects personal information you are not aware of.
Opera Max, a data saving, management and privacy app from Opera Browser protects your privacy against “sneaky apps.” It has found that more than 50% of popular shopping apps should be renamed snooping apps that collect personal data without explicit user consent.
This data includes name, location, email address, phone number, searches, and more and it is shared with third parties. Independent research on 110 popular Android and iOS apps corroborates Opera’s findings – including emoji keyboard, Map my Walk, Pinterest, Text Free, etc. Google and Facebook – were the main recipients of the data.
Some of the most “leaky” shopping apps, such as Amazon (59 trackers), BestBuy, JC Penney and Newegg (67), use a high number of trackers – and receive income or benefit from sharing your information with those.
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Worryingly Opera Max found 96% of the leaky apps did not use any or full encryption when sending siphoned data to third parties.
“Most people would not reveal their credit card details or full name to employees of a physical store where they live when shopping and browsing for products. But, on mobile apps people are not aware that this kind of information can be shared,” says Sergey Lossev, Head of Product, Opera Max. “That is why we have implemented privacy mode in Opera Max. We want to educate our users by revealing which apps are sharing your data through trackers without your permission.”
“People deserve to be aware of how many trackers and unsecured connection requests your apps have sent out; you may want to ensure all your app traffic is protected and encrypted by Opera Max. You can then protect your privacy when shopping. Just take a look at what your apps are doing and decide for yourself,” added Lossev.
Comment
Opera Max is to be congratulated for helping to expose app data leakage, but it is not a new think. In the Windows/Mac world browser trackers are a way of life.
I have been using Ghostery – a privacy add-on for browsers including Opera, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, IE, Android, iOS and more. It tells you exactly what trackers are on each and every page you visit and allows you to block them easily for good. So far most sites visited have at least Google Analytics, but the top offender so far had 65 trackers.
These also send location and advertising ID allowing marketers to build a profile on you.