Google Pulls 3 Android Apps for Data Collection Violations

International Digital Accountability Council (IDAC) researchers reportedly found three Android applications for kids that violated the data collection policies of Google, states Tech Crunch. Following this, the tech giant moved to pull out the trio of apps from the Google Play Store.

The three software programs in question were Princess Salon, Number Coloring, and Cats & Cosplay. According to Tech Crunch, the three apps for kids were in direct violation of Google’s data collection policies.

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Moreover, the apps, which had around more than 20 million downloads in total among the three of them, maybe potentially gaining access to users’ respective Android IDs as well as Android Advertising ID (AAID) numbers.

Google Pulls 3 Android Apps

The International Digital Accountability Council pointed out that it was the current frameworks in place that led to the removal of the apps from the Play Store, rather than have a specific app-related code being the cause of these being taken down.

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While the privacy watchdog failed to detail the full list of alleged violations, Engadget states that it appears that the data collections were not intentional.

In an article by Engadget, it said that that three children’s programs leveraged different versions of Unity, Appodeal, and Umeng. All three of these developer kits were under fire for collecting user data.

Based on the report released by the nonprofit privacy watchdog, the developer kits in question “may have allowed Unity to bypass privacy controls and track users over time and across devices.”

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In the event an app proceeds to send AAID numbers and other relevant information, these actions result in violating Google privacy protection policies.

Gizmodo states that this is particularly alarming given that these can create a network or custom profile that brings together user likes and dislikes, thereby bridging sensitive information to companies looking to track data.

Although the AAID can be reset by users, this is considered the gateway for companies to gain access to user data, with all this information corralled in one place.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the tech company said that “We can confirm that the apps referenced in the report were removed. Whenever we find an app that violates our policies, we take action.”

The Google spokesperson also said that one of the ways they are ensuring child protection is the Families ad certification program. “For apps that wish to serve ads in kids and families apps, we ask them to use only ad SDKs that have self-certified compliance with kids/families policies. We also required that apps that solely target children not contain any APIs or SDKs that are not approved for use in child-directed services.”

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