Applications available for Android phones have already been downloaded more than 1.5 million times.
It is not certain what will be done with the data collected in China. Illustration picture. 3D Generator / Alamy Stock Photo
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European mobile data security company Pradeo stated, that the above mentioned two apps by an app developer named Wang Tom are stealing sensitive information from their users without their permission. The applications will eventually send the collected data to China.
Applications can also start on their own and start the phone at will, if the user has inadvertently given the application permission to do so. So it is a kind of mobile phone virus disguised as an application.
Applications have been downloaded more than 1.5 million times. Google, which runs Android’s app store, has since removed the apps from its store. Users who have had time to install these applications should remove them as soon as possible.
This information ends up in China
The developer claimed in the app store that it does not collect data, but Pradeo stated that the apps do collect the following data:
- Contact information, emails and social media accounts.
- Saved images and videos used by applications.
- User location.
- The country code of the phone number.
- Name of telecom operator.
- Network code of the SIM card issuer.
- The version number of the phone’s operating system.
- Make and model of the phone.
It is not certain what the app developer will use the captured data for.
– It is possible that the publisher uses the information to increase its own popularity and credibility, Pradeo thinks.
Pradeo points out that users should generally pay attention to the permissions requested by applications when installing them.
Told about it Bleeping Computer.