Following reports this week that Apple are secretly keeping tabs on our whereabouts from iPhone, we’re now hearing accusations that the Google Android operating system also has been seriously compromising user privacy by similarly recording and relaying location information amongst other details.
The Wall Street Journal reported that a top security analyst (and former hacker) has looked into the claims and found that an unspecified version of Android would record users location every few seconds and send information including names, unique phone identifier, signal availability and nearby WiFi connection back to Google HQ several times an hour.
iOS is suggested to transmit our longitude and latitude data from iPhone to Apple every 12 hours so if we weren’t a little concerned before, now may be the time..
It’s suggested that this collection of personal data by both Apple and Google is purely to understand locations and signal information for improvement to locally-based mobile services – Those who remember “1984” may not be so easily convinced!
What do you think of this latest potential threat to our personal security through our trusted handsets? Let us know your thoughts and comments on this or any of our blog articles at our Official Gadget Helpline Facebook Page!