![]() The key takeaways from our research are quite worrying, to put it mildly:ġ8 out of the top 30 apps are based in China or Hong Kong Initial data on Google Play app rankings was collected in February 2020 and updated in March 2020. The reputation of app developers, including their location and any potential history of ad fraud, malware, vulnerabilities or unethical practicesĪpp permissions were analyzed by generating Android permission reports from uploading the APKs on the Hybrid Analysis service. The amount and potential risk of permissions the apps are asking for If it’s free, you’re probably the product: many free apps on Google Play engage in unethical advertising or simply mine your data and sell it for profit, so, make sure to take that into consideration before trusting any free app with your privacy.įor this research, we downloaded and analyzed the top 30 apps on the Google Play store that were displayed when we entered the keyword “privacy app.” We then extracted the APK files from those apps and took permission data from those APKs.It’s developed by a company you’ve never heard of: if it’s not made by a reputable developer, consider sticking to safer options from brands you already know and trust.Too many permissions: if all it does is move your photos to a secure folder but insists on knowing your location, consider looking for a less invasive app.Suggest you remove them immediately and think twice before downloading suspiciousĪpps from Google Play or any other app store. If you have any of these dangerous apps installed on your smartphone, we Google Play and are still being used by more than half a billion people. Most of these apps are still up and available on Increase your online security and privacy by encrypting your internet connection and hiding your IP address. Simply takes your picture if you enter the wrong PIN when you open it. Privacy app that apparently needs no permission to use your camera and ( Update: as of MaSecurity Master has been removed from the Play store.)Īnd then, there’s Video Hider – Privacy Lock, the Then, there’s Security Master – an all-in-one privacy, antivirus, and VPN app with 500 million installs whose developer Cheetah Mobile has been found to be “ collecting all manner of private Web use data,” as well as committing ad fraud. It has been identified as either malware or spyware, but instead of removing the app from Google Play, developer cxzh.ltd simply renamed it by changing a single word and continues to offer this and 19 other apps to unsuspecting users to this day. (Learn how to scan and remove viruses from your iPhone or Android.)įirst, there’s Vault - Hide Pics & Videos, App Lock, Free Backup, an app that has been downloaded and installed 50 million times. Photos, videos, and even other apps away from the prying eyes of cyberbullies,īut some of these apps do the exact opposite: they spy on you when you’re the most vulnerable, sell your sensitive data to advertisers (or worse), or even infect your smartphone with adware or malware. One of the main reasons why privacy apps are widely used to privately store Likelihood of them discovering anything too sensitive becomes a lot lower. That way, even if someone else has access to your device, the Sensitive data to a secret, password-protected (or even encrypted) folder on With a privacy vault app, you can move all of your Which is exactly what privacy vault apps are supposedly made for. That’s why more and more people are looking for spaces to safely store their most sensitive private pictures, videos, and messages. In the days of omnipresent leaks, breaches and corporate or state surveillance, storing your data without protection is no longer reasonable.
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