Mobile security has always been a concern among businesses and individuals aware of the vulnerability of our online privacy. With billions of mobile users in the world, hackers have more than enough opportunities to exploit data for malicious purposes and make a profit off of other people’s information.
As much as large digital corporations fight against cyber threats, security remains a crucial issue when it comes to distributing mobile devices. A recent incident proved that millions of people had their smartphone data compromised without even being aware of the threat. Here’s what the incident was about!
The Recent Smartphone Security Incident
In a recent research project, The New York Times discovered an unexpected issue. Namely, tens of millions of smartphones contained a vulnerability that revealed users’ data. Millions of devices were broadcasting their live location data to unregulated third parties and the users had no idea about it.
“Every minute of every day, everywhere on the planet, dozens of companies — largely unregulated, little scrutinized — are logging the movements of tens of millions of people with mobile phones and storing the information in gigantic data files. The Times Privacy Project obtained one such file, by far the largest and most sensitive ever to be reviewed by journalists. It holds more than 50 billion location pings from the phones of more than 12 million Americans as they moved through several major cities, including Washington, New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles,” explained The New York Times
There is no doubt that an incident like this should be brought to light, considering how many people were impacted by the event. The New York Times blames smartphone manufacturers for using widely available software development kits, which are not always fully secured. These kits are used by app developers on both Android and iOS platforms, which widens the number of people who can potentially be impacted by security incidents.
However, it is important to clarify that some app makers get paid for releasing smartphone location data, whereas others are not even aware that something this dangerous is happening. In other words, users can never be 100% sure whether the applications they download are safe or corrupted by malware or other malicious software components.
Safety Measures to Consider
While a revealed device location can cause a lot of issues, no law prohibits app developers to sell this data. This leaves smartphone users in danger of data theft even when they’re not aware of potential security issues. Stronger lanes are required in this field to protect people’s privacy in the digital world. However, since users can’t do anything about the legal system, they can take care of their devices to reduce security risks.
Poorly secured smartphone applications are a common cause for cybersecurity attacks, which is why users should take time to implement safety measures to protect their devices. These safety measures include using a VPN, communicating through encrypted messaging apps, and using password management tools to securely log into online accounts. The use of virtual private networks is by far the most important safety measure to consider since VPNs help hide the actual location and IP address of the device.
This security warning came in line with other crucial security incidents after Apple admitted that their iPhone 11 series checks the device location even if the users turn this feature off. Google is not doing much better either, since it was reported that their Android Chrome browser almost destroyed critical user data. Nowadays, the safety of users’ information largely depends on their security habits and the ability to follow the NIST cybersecurity framework.
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