Most smartphone apps seek far more permissions than they need to carry out their functions, according to new research from cybersecurity firm NordVPN.
In fact, the study states that 87% of Android apps and 60% of iOS apps go overboard with their permission requests. NordVPN looked into the top five apps across 18 different categories for its study.
The cybersecurity company also found that 14% of apps collect more unnecessary information than data they actually need to perform their functions. Just a small fraction, eight percent of the apps in the study, did not collect any unnecessary information.
“A significant number of mobile apps that we use daily request access to device functions unrelated to their performance. And most users give the app license to spy without even reading the terms and conditions,” said Adrianus Warmenhoven, cybersecurity advisor at NordVPN.
“Users should always consider whether the app needs certain data to do its job before tapping ‘Accept,’ because collected data could be used against our interest. It’s especially important to be more attentive to some categories of apps which are more intrusive, such as social media or messaging apps,” Warmenhoven added.
Which App Category Requests the Most Permissions?
NordVPN is known for its suite of cybersecurity tools, such as its namesake virtual private network (VPN). You can read our full review of NordVPN to see where we rank it among other leading providers. The company also regularly publishes helpful studies regarding cybercrime and security trends.
Its latest report calls out several popular types of smartphone apps for seeking excessive permissions and not prioritizing user privacy.
On Android, social networking apps seek the most permissions while also being among the greediest for unnecessary permissions, the report said. Apps in categories like navigation, health and fitness, lifestyle, and travel also request permissions outside their functional purview.
“Of particular note is that lifestyle, dating, navigation, business, and health and fitness Android apps were also found to make regular ‘special,’ ‘dangerous,’ or ‘biometric’ permission requests (S/D/B), which deal with highly sensitive or personal information and system-critical processes,” the report stated.
“On iOS, health and fitness, social networking, navigation, dating, and lifestyle apps asked for the most permissions on average. At the same time, health and fitness, social networking, navigation, weather, and education apps asked for the most unnecessary permissions,” it added.
NordVPN found that 42% of the studied apps asked for permissions pertaining to a user’s activity outside the app, 37% sought access to user location, and 35% of the app pool requested access to the camera. Additionally, 22% of all apps asked for photo gallery permissions, and 16% for access to the device’s microphone.
Apps in Hong Kong and Taiwan ask for Most Permissions
The study also contains information on the permissions track record across different countries. NordVPN found that apps in East Asian countries generally sought the most permissions, with Hong Kong and Taiwan ranking at the top of both the Android and iOS app charts.
The company speculates that this is likely due to the regulatory environment in the region. Android apps in Japan and Singapore were also near the top of the most-requests list.
Apps from Mexico requested the fewest unnecessary permissions. They also asked for the lowest number of sensitive data requests and also requested the fewest permissions in general for Android.
“For iOS, apps from Spain and the US made the least of overall requests, while apps from Spain, the US, Italy, and Poland made the least unnecessary requests.”
How to Keep Your Data Safe
In all, NordVPN found that, across the studied categories, the top five apps requested 1,808 permissions of Android and 421 on iOS. Among these, Android apps requested 433 unnecessary permissions, while 73 of the iOS apps requests also fell foul of their functional needs.
Everyday smartphone users can implement certain best practices and learnings from NordVPN’s study to keep their information secure.
For starters, it would be a good idea to be wary of apps in the social networking, health and lifestyle, and navigation categories due to their track record. Some specific apps to look out for are TextNow, Facebook, and Wyze.
Carefully read any access request from an app when it pops up and do not grant any permission that is not necessary for its function. It’s a good idea to think about whether an app really needs a particular permission to accurately serve you.
Additionally, smartphone users ought to conduct periodic checks of their devices and delete any apps that they do not use. When signing up for a new app, consider using your email or phone number instead of your social media account, as social networking apps are known to cross-share information.
