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Android App Spying On Us!

A

AceAndroid

Newbie
Hi I am new here (As you can guess)

Im getting a Samsung Galaxy S in mid January but been reading alot about Android apps that send info to companys without the user knowing about.

My question is should I be worried about this and does anyone know of a list off apps that "Spy" on you?

I ready don`t want this to put me off buying the phone but it`s very worrying to me
 
chrisinsocalif said:
There is a lawsuit against Apple just filed for this complaint. Check it out here:

Apple Class Action Lawsuit Over Privacy

Google may also have similar marketing on their devices.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info but already seen that lol
And as i understand, goggle do have similar marketing on there devices. Apps like Angry Birds, Paper Toss and others that i can`t think of as well

Here is one of the pages i have been reading:

HOW SMARTPHONE APPS SPY ON YOU ? 5

And here is a video about it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1X9ZyJc1_Zc&feature=related

(Hope its ok to post links)

As far as i know the Wall Street Journal has done some tests and out of 101 apps they found that 50 odd apps send info to marketing companies

I really want to find a list of the apps that send info so i can stay away from them apps
 
Thanks for that Jammy! Yeah i don`t mind rooting my SGS when i get it lol Was going to anyway and was going to flash my SGS with Darky 7.5 as well

Looks like a good bit of software. I like to keep tabs on what my phones are doing.
 
I wouldn't worry about it. Unlike Apple, apps have to tell the user exactly what information they want to access. So you can easily block apps that ask for permissions they don't need. Take Paper Toss since you mentioned it. It requires:

Full Internet access - makes sense since it displays ads.
Coarse (network based location) - sketchy. Can be used to target ads though
Read phone state and identity - Uneasy about this myself.
 
AceAndroid said:
My understand is that if you say no to all of them it won`t let you run the app.

Am i right on that one?
Click to expand...

No, in the market, you can view these permissions before deciding whether or not to download an app.

You have to "agree" to all of them.
 
I like the idea of that. Wish other app stores (Apple & Nokia) would give you that info before you install

I have been a Nokia fan boy (man now lol) since the Nokia Ringo but getting very fed up with the company for the last few years. There Symbian os is rubbish and them bringing out phone like the N97, 5800 and X6 that don`t work well is making me swing towards Android in a big way!

I really can`t wait to get rid of my Nokia and get a Samsung Galaxy S (Got to wait for my next pay packet)

Back to the subject Ace! lol Thank you guys for helping my out and making my worries go away a liitle. I now understand a bit more about Android and know I have control over my phone (when I get it)
 
Consider the Nexus S over the Galaxy S.

It is very similar hardware-wise, but Google will give updates for it. This means that the ROM devs will get the updates to the Nexus S before any other phone.
 
As far as i can tell its just a SGS but with a flash lol

(Edit) There`s no HD recording! I`ll think i`ll stick with the SGS
Could they not port the rom from the nexus s to the SGS?
 
So what information are they giving away? I am sure it isn't contacts and such. I am assuming it is just tracking the sorts of things you like to browse so that you are given better ads (higher the chance you will click or buy the item). I suppose if we wanted to get strict about the definition of privacy this would be a violation, but IMO it isn't a big deal.

I don't have the time to sit down and read the links as I am at work, but will check them out later.
 
@lordofthereef

Without reading the links your not going to know what im going on about lol but i don`t blame you, your at work to work lol (don`t get caught by the bosslol)

Basicly these apps gives out info like your name, age, your sex, you location, your number and other things (some apps even look at your contact list) that should not be given out.

IMO its like idenity theft
 
@dan55

Not a silly question, just look at the links i have posted or google "Android app spying on us" and your find many pages about it
 
i think this privacy issue is overblown. long before smartphones, personal data have been collected from PCs through internet access. what makes collection of these data different from PCs? if there was no collection of data, developers will not have made WWW as big as it is today, certainly google will not be what it is today as well. i personally feel as long as they are not stealing my credit card information or passwords, i wouldnt mind them collection info about what websites i surf regularly so they can use such statistics to enhance and provide more of the stuffs i like. WWW will be boring if they do not have a clue of what we like, hence unable to provide contents that are of interest to us. just my personal opinion.
 
ruriimasu said:
i think this privacy issue is overblown. long before smartphones, personal data have been collected from PCs through internet access. what makes collection of these data different from PCs? if there was no collection of data, developers will not have made WWW as big as it is today, certainly google will not be what it is today as well. i personally feel as long as they are not stealing my credit card information or passwords, i wouldnt mind them collection info about what websites i surf regularly so they can use such statistics to enhance and provide more of the stuffs i like. WWW will be boring if they do not have a clue of what we like, hence unable to provide contents that are of interest to us. just my personal opinion.
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Taken and Noted lol

I for one would not like people collecting info about me and what im doing without me knowing. I would not care if they asked and I said its ok but its not the case

Please read this as well:
IPhone and Android Apps Breach Privacy - WSJ.com
 
I'd prefer it if there was a separate Internet Access For Ads Only section, so that I'd know that it was only able to use my net access for ads and not for sending other data. As it is, we can only take its word for it that it will do only what it says.
 
txrxio said:
I'd prefer it if there was a separate Internet Access For Ads Only section, so that I'd know that it was only able to use my net access for ads and not for sending other data. As it is, we can only take its word for it that it will do only what it says.
Click to expand...

I don`t get what you mean?

As far as i know, if an app connects to the net it can send what ever data its programed to. So it would not matter about separate internet access
 
I was meaning that a permission that can only connect to the ad servers, not to anywhere else on the net.
 
We DON'T have privacy as long as you use the toy! Apple, Google, Yahoo, Bing... you name it, are all spying on us. It's part of their job description. It will be there FOREVER. Accept it and live with it. You should enjoy your vacation even you are scanned (naked) at the airport.
 
shenkov said:
We DON'T have privacy as long as you use the toy! Apple, Google, Yahoo, Bing... you name it, are all spying on us. It's part of their job description. It will be there FOREVER. Accept it and live with it. You should enjoy your vacation even you are scanned (naked) at the airport.
Click to expand...

What? lol

I don`t know what country your from but in the uk there are privacy laws
 
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