06/14/2024
“TikTok spies on me…”
Heads up: ALL apps use push notifications to spy on your device. But, uh, don’t just take my word for it:
1. MacRumors- Research reveals how iPhone push notifications leak user data. https://www.macrumors.com/2024/06/10/research-reveals-how-iphone-push-notifications-leak-user-data
1A. MacRumors reports that numerous iPhone apps abuse iOS push notifications to collect user data. These apps exploit background processes triggered by push notifications to gather various device details, such as system uptime, locale, keyboard language, available memory, battery status, storage use, device model, and display brightness. This data can be used to create fingerprinting profiles for persistent tracking, which is a significant privacy concern.
2. BleepingComputer- iPhone apps abuse iOS push notifications to collect user data. https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/iphone-apps-abuse-ios-push-notifications-to-collect-user-data/
3. MobileSyrup highlights that governments are also involved in surveilling smartphone users through push notification data. Both Apple and Google confirmed they were prohibited from sharing information about this surveillance due to gag orders. The collected data includes metadata such as which app received a notification and when, allowing agencies to track users’ interactions and movements, https://mobilesyrup.com/2023/12/07/governments-use-push-notifications-spy-smartphone-users/.
These articles illustrate the extent to which push notifications can be misused to invade privacy, emphasizing the need for stricter regulations and user awareness.
Numerous iOS apps are using background processes triggered by push notifications to collect user data about devices, potentially allowing the creation of fingerprinting profiles used for tracking.