{"id":2875,"date":"2013-07-10T12:30:32","date_gmt":"2013-07-10T16:30:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.nccomputertech.com\/?p=2875"},"modified":"2013-07-10T12:30:32","modified_gmt":"2013-07-10T16:30:32","slug":"bitdefender-free-apps-are-the-equivalent-of-smartphone-spyware","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2013\/07\/10\/bitdefender-free-apps-are-the-equivalent-of-smartphone-spyware\/","title":{"rendered":"Bitdefender: Free apps are the &#039;equivalent of [smartphone] spyware&#039;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align:center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.neowin.net\/news\/bitdefender-free-apps-are-the-equivalent-of-smartphone-spyware\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/iosapp-screen.jpg\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>We all know that free apps are almost never truly free and that most of them are monetized with ads inside the app itself. But according to the security and antivirus company Bitdefender, we grossly underestimate how much these apps really cost.<br \/>\nIn a recent report, Bitdefender named free apps the \u201cequivalent of spyware\u201d because users unknowingly hand over a lot of personal information when installing them. Bitdefender looked at iOS and Android apps targeting more than 500,000 free applications. The research revealed that there\u2019s little difference between the two operating systems when it comes to the user\u2019s privacy. As for the apps themselves the results are somewhat alarming.<br \/>\nAbout 45 percent of the iOS apps that were looked at had location tracking capabilities, with 35 percent of Android apps also featuring this capability. And while this may not sound too bad, here\u2019s where the scary part starts: 19 percent of iOS and 8 percent of Android apps have the ability to look at the user\u2019s contact list.<br \/>\nSomewhere around 9 percent of Android apps have a chance to leak the device\u2019s phone number to third-party advertisers, while 15 percent may leak the device ID. Apple has phased out the apps\u2019 ability to check the Device ID since iOS 5 was released.<br \/>\nTargeting users with ads is nothing new but Catalin Cosoi, chief security strategist at Bitdefender, says that this process is a much more insidious one on smartphones. \u201cOn mobiles, advertising frameworks can learn your communications habits, friends, friends&#8217; contacts, location and \u2013 more frequently \u2013 all of the above at the same time,\u201d he added.<br \/>\nAnd the real problem here is that folks either don\u2019t even know this is happening or that many didn&#8217;t realize they&#8217;ve actually agreed to this when they downloaded the application.<br \/>\nvia <a href=\"http:\/\/www.neowin.net\/news\/bitdefender-free-apps-are-the-equivalent-of-smartphone-spyware\" target=\"_blank\">Bitdefender: Free apps are the &#8216;equivalent of [smartphone] spyware&#8217; &#8211; Neowin<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We all know that free apps are almost never truly free and that most of them are monetized with ads [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[7,9],"tags":[65,384,549,849,1017],"class_list":["post-2875","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-security","category-software","tag-android","tag-free-apps","tag-ios","tag-privacy","tag-spyware"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/papNkV-Kn","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2971,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2013\/07\/17\/tumblr-tells-users-to-change-passwords-patches-security-hole-in-ios-apps\/","url_meta":{"origin":2875,"position":0},"title":"Tumblr tells users to change passwords, patches security hole in iOS apps","author":"NCCT","date":"July 17, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Tumblr, the blogging site recently acquired by Yahoo, has released a security update for its iPhone and iPad apps that it said addresses an issue that allowed passwords to be compromised in certain circumstances. Users of the apps have been advised to update their passwords on Tumblr as there is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Security&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Security","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/security\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6833,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2014\/11\/12\/ios-security-hole-allows-attackers-to-poison-already-installed-iphone-apps\/","url_meta":{"origin":2875,"position":1},"title":"iOS security hole allows attackers to poison already installed iPhone apps","author":"NCCT","date":"November 12, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Security researchers have warned of a security hole in Apple's iOS devices that could allow attackers to replace legitimate apps with booby-trapped ones, an exploit that could expose passwords, e-mails, or other sensitive user data. The \"Masque\" attack, as described by researchers from security firm FireEye, relies on enterprise provisioning\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Apple&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Apple","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/apple\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/masque-attack-example-640x613.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/masque-attack-example-640x613.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/masque-attack-example-640x613.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8714,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2015\/11\/05\/newly-discovered-adware-digs-its-claws-deep-into-android-is-nearly-impossible-to-remove\/","url_meta":{"origin":2875,"position":2},"title":"Newly discovered adware digs its claws deep into Android, is nearly impossible to remove","author":"NCCT","date":"November 5, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Security researchers found over 20,000 adware samples hiding in apps that masquerade as Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and other popular services. Derek Walter | @derekwalter | PCWorld Security researchers have uncovered a new style of Android malware that hides inside of apps that act and look like they\u2019re legitimate services. Lookout\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Security&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Security","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/security\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6766,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2014\/11\/04\/3-things-to-consider-before-ditching-your-laptop-for-a-tablet\/","url_meta":{"origin":2875,"position":3},"title":"3 things to consider before ditching your laptop for a tablet","author":"NCCT","date":"November 4, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"For a few years now I\u2019ve been watching tablets develop into ever more potent machines, with an eye towards making the jump from a laptop to a slate for my mobile workstation. Sure, people have been working on iPads for years, but until recently it\u2019s always seemed like a bit\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Hardware&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Hardware","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/hardware\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8923,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2016\/05\/17\/this-botnet-has-infected-nearly-a-million-devices-since-2014\/","url_meta":{"origin":2875,"position":4},"title":"This botnet has infected nearly a million devices since 2014","author":"NCCT","date":"May 17, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"By Shawn Knight | TechSpot One of the many ways that cybercriminals earn income is through affiliate advertising programs like Google\u2019s AdSense. Rather than generate traffic through content creation, hackers figure out ways to trick advertising platforms into thinking a partner is sending them legitimate traffic. Not knowing they're being\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Security&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Security","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/security\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":7656,"url":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/2015\/02\/26\/the-harmful-code-recently-found-on-lenovo-machines-is-now-surfacing-in-other-apps\/","url_meta":{"origin":2875,"position":5},"title":"The harmful code recently found on Lenovo machines is now surfacing in other apps","author":"NCCT","date":"February 26, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"As we previously reported, Lenovo apparently pre-loaded a number of its machines with Superfish adware along with other malicious code. The appearance of the potentially harmful software was not only shocking to many, but also prompted researchers to look around to see if the adware (or similar code) made it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Security&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Security","link":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/category\/security\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2875","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2875"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2875\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nccomputertech.com\/techtalk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}