No one knows you better than your own phone. It knows where you live, where you work, the people you communicate with, what you write in your messages and emails. Similarly, most apps on your phone and other devices can track your online activity and personal information, exposing you to a world of hackers.

Curious to know what everyone is doing while glued to their phones? 88% of that mobile time is spent on apps. Many of us rely on apps for pretty much everything. From banking and shopping to entertainment and social networking – in this digital era, it’s hard to live without it. Unfortunately, apps are not easy to trust, and it is a way for marketing companies and cybercriminals to profit from our personal data.

Quick Facts

3 Viral Apps That Compromise Our Data

  1. Facebook: With 91 billion active users, Facebook is the most used online social network worldwide. It is also one of the worst apps for privacy, as it tracks users across all its apps and websites even when not logged in. In order to access the apps’ functionality, it requires numerous permissions including contacts, camera, microphone, Wi-Fi, location, and more. This platform uses its users’ actions and behaviours to target specific ads and uses personal information for their own purposes. Facebook, with its many breaches and scandals, has continuously proven that our personal data is not safe in their hands.
  2. FaceApp: If you use social media, then you’ve definitely seen this app before. This face editor app went viral for making selfies look decades older than what they really were. But what was overlooked by many, was the fact that FaceApp’s terms of use agreement states that once images are uploaded to the app, they officially belong to the app. Therefore, they are able to use, reproduce, and modify any user content on the app.
  3. Weather apps: A weather app wanting access to your location to give you updates on where you are doesn’t seem suspicious, does it? Once permission has been granted, these third-party weather apps track you at all times, even when you are not using the app. According to The New York Times’ Wirecutter, 17 of the 20 weather apps it reviewed had been tracking devices for marketing purposes, and of those, 14 apps were using location information to track devices.

With 6.6 billion smartphone users worldwide, it’s no wonder apps are booming. We use our phones at home, at work, in bed, while we eat – it is part of our everyday life. Making a few changes to your device and navigating apps with caution can protect your digital privacy so that you are able to enjoy the entertainment of apps. Book a demo with a Netsweeper solution expert to see how we can help you protect your personal data on your digital devices.

For more blogs like this, check these out 👇👇👇