It can feel like the ultimate betrayal: you’ve been faithfully using an app for months or even years, only to find out it’s actually gathering your data AND turning around and using it to make a profit. But the truth is that many apps are quietly collecting your data, especially if they are free apps that are searching for ways to turn a profit (remember: nothing is truly free when it comes to apps and if you’re not paying for something, chances are YOU are the product). Tech Expert Harriet Chan at Cocofinder.com spoke to SHEFinds.com about the one app that could be selling your data.
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It should come as no surprise that the one app that rises to the surface anytime a discussion about selling users’ data is brought up is, of course, Facebook. According to leaked documents that were exposed in 2019, the social media giant had plans to squash its competition by leveraging its users’ data, including information about a user’s friends, relationships, and photos, to its third-party advertisers.
As a result of this, app developers that were considered “friends” of Facebook and spent money on the site were given the “gift” of user data that they could then use to target the person with more personalized ads.
Chan says the only way to ensure your data isn’t being mishandled by Facebook is to delete the app. “This app holds the records of your name, date of birth, and all the photos you upload on Facebook, and also keeps monitoring your messages through Facebook and location,” Chan says. “Deleting this app gives more privacy protection to your photos and other personal credentials.”
Although the Facebook example is the most widely known, it isn’t the only app that could be loose with your data.
Believe it or not, Google is also suspicious. “Google holds all the records of your location, browser history, contacts, and mails,” Chan says. “Deleting this helps you in the protection of your activities and makes you less vulnerable to cyber attacks.”
It’s also a good idea to be wary of free game apps that are such a distraction you find yourself on them for hours a day — something the developer knows can be taken advantage of. The Angry Birds app is the perfect example of this.
“This overnight success bird launching game was siphoning data from users, an ad platform hidden in some of the game's code lets the company target advertisements to its users and the ad data is completely visible, meaning exposing your sensitive information,” Chan says.
Again, the best thing to do with apps that compromise your data is delete and forget them.
