Its been reported that the apps bundled with many Android phones are presenting threats to security and privacy greater than most users think. This according to a paper (PDF) from university researchers in the US and Spain who studied the pre-installed software that 214 different vendors included in their Android devices. They found that everyone from the hardware builders to mobile carriers and third-party advertisers were loading products up with risky code.
An academic study that analyzed 82,501 apps that were pre-installed on 1,742 Android smartphones sold by 214 vendors concluded that users are woefully unaware of the huge security and privacy-related threats that come from pre-installed applications. https://t.co/s8oIKPyUHI
— Stealthcare (@Stealthcare_) March 26, 2019
Tom Davison, Director EMEA at Lookout:
“Users should always be aware that apps may impact privacy or handle personal data in a way that might be unexpected or unwanted. Pre-Installed apps are often assumed to be more trustworthy however that may not always be the case. The recommendation is to use a mobile endpoint security solution that can analyse app capabilities on-behalf of the user and notify in the case of anything suspicious.”
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