Some Android apps caught covertly sending GPS data to advertisers
The results of a study conducted by researchers from Duke University, Penn State University, and Intel Labs have revealed that a significant number of popular Android applications transmit private user data …
Context & Ripple Effects
A June report had already found that a fifth of Android apps exposed private data. The Duke, Penn State, and Intel Labs study adds location transmission to that emerging app-privacy problem as Android’s U.S. sales and mobile-web share were rising.
First-order effects
- Android users of the identified popular apps may have their location data passed to advertisers without an informed choice, while the developers and advertisers involved face scrutiny over their data flows.
Second-order effects
- Android’s expanding handset base raises the stakes for the platform: privacy weaknesses in individual apps become a trust and oversight issue for the broader Android ecosystem.
Third-order effects
- If location-sharing through app components becomes a recurring pattern, mobile platforms will face pressure to govern third-party data collection more tightly rather than treating each app as an isolated product.
The trend: As Android scales, mobile advertising’s demand for granular user data is exposing the governance gap between app distribution and the tracking code embedded in apps.