Many smartphone users don’t know of what their apps are accessing

Many smartphone users don’t know of what their apps are accessing

FPJ BureauUpdated: Friday, May 31, 2019, 06:57 PM IST
article-image

New York : Many smartphone users are unaware of what their Android apps are accessing and that if they were, they’d like to stop it, according to a study, says IANS.

Using a group of 36 participants, researchers at the University of British Columbia and the University of California-Berkeley, gave each person a handset with a tweaked form of Android that highlighted when information was being accessed or permission was needed.

After a week and 27 million data points, 80 percent of participants said they would have liked to block one permission, and on the whole one third of all requests would have been stopped if it had been possible.

Only six people in the group were happy to share all data and information all of the time, ctvnews.ca reported on Sunday. The study showed that there needs to be a clearer way of detailing how and why apps need permission and giving users the chance to opt out.

RECENT STORIES