Title: Warned! Disable Location Tracking on Your iPhone and Android Devices
Your smartphones have a negligent habit of broadcasting your whereabouts, even when you'd rather keep that information private. The latest location tracking predicament to strike phone users highlights the ongoing threat, despite enhanced security safeguards built into our iPhone and Android devices. A recent cyber attack on location aggregator Gravy Analytics, as reported by 404media, led to the theft of sensitive data, including customer lists, industry insights, and location data collected from users' smartphones.
This scandal has uncovered a list of alleged offenders, including popular apps such as dating sites Tinder and Grindr, gaming platforms like Candy Crush and Temple Run, and social networks like Tumblr and Yahoo Mail. As explained by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), every time you encounter a targeted ad, your personal information is exposed to various advertisers and data brokers through real-time bidding (RTB). This process not only delivers ads but also fuels government surveillance, poses national security risks, and gives data brokers unfettered access to your online activity.
In response to this privacy invasion, the National Security Agency (NSA) has issued advice for users to protect their data. To minimize the sharing of location information, NSA suggests that apps should be given minimal permissions and that location data usage permissions should be limited either to "while using the app" or "never." Users can also disable advertising permissions to the maximum extent possible and reset their advertising IDs on a regular basis. Apple's "Allow Apps to Track" setting is particularly beneficial for iPhone users, while Android users should delete or reset their advertising IDs.
It is important to be aware of the methods by which location data is collected and distributed in order to take necessary precautions. Following these guidelines can significantly reduce the risk of shared location information, ensuring heightened privacy for individuals.
The NSA has issued an Android warning, advising users to limit location data usage permissions in apps to minimize tracking. Similarly, Apple and Google have issued warnings about location tracking, suggesting iPhone and Android users respectively, disable advertising permissions and reset advertising IDs regularly. The FBI has also issued a warning about this issue, worrying about the potential misuse of location data by malicious actors on both iPhone and Android devices.
