As smartphones have entered every aspect of our lives, user data has become more important. Government organizations want to track their citizens with this data. Apple and Google have been warned that they may distribute user data to governments. A US Senator thinks Android and iOS owners are being tracked.
Are Android and iOS devices being monitored by governments?
US Senator Ron Wyden stated that smartphone users are being tracked. In a new letter to the Department of Justice, Wyden claimed that certain governments are spying on iOS and Android users through certain apps. He said he used push notifications for this.
He pointed out that messages sent from apps to smartphones can be used by the government. According to the senator, tech giants can hand over user data to governments through push notifications.
The US senator also underlined that governments could threaten Apple and Google. They could collect information about how users interact with apps through notifications, including the content of notifications.
Such data could reveal private details about app usage habits and activities. Wyden says Apple and Google should be transparent about the requests they receive from foreign organizations for push notification records.
Both companies have confirmed that such surveillance requests have been made in the past. At Wyden’s request, Apple and Google expressed support for transparency on this issue. Apple said it would report push notification requests in its transparency reports. Google already discloses data requested by governments.
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