Nine out of ten free Android apps share data with Google

Oxford University survey indicates high level of data leakage by free apps

Nine out of ten free apps in the Android Play Store share data with Google, according to a survey by Oxford University.

The report suggests that the free apps are being monetised by Google - the data then being used by the internet giant to target online advertising at the end users.

Cross-referencing the data with that collected from elsewhere can easily yield a huge wealth of data, enabling Google to glean age, location, gender, and so on. Then, of course, various deductions can be made over the types of apps on the device and what the user does with them.

However, Google has criticised the methodology of the report. It told the BBC that "it mischaracterises ordinary functional services, like crash reporting and analytics, and how apps share data to deliver those services.

"Across Google and in Google Play we have clear policies and guidelines for how developers and third-party apps can handle data, and we require developers to be transparent and ask for user permission. If an app violates our policies, we take action."

But campaigners remain concerned about the level of transparency afforded to customers, with it often remaining unclear to the end user exactly what their data is being used for, why, and how to opt out.

Campaigners are keen to emphasise that the level of data being collected by internet giants, such as Facebook and Google, goes much further than required simply to deliver advertising.

The report comes as Facebook faces a maximum fine of £500,000 over its negligence in the Cambridge Analytica affair. That fine has been levied under the Data Protection Act 1998 - under the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) regime, it could have faced a fine of £17 million or four per cent of global turnover.

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