Sensitive User Data Collected By Indian Mobile Banking Apps


wealthymattersMany Indian mobile banking apps record/collect information like your contact list, call record data, info about apps installed on a phone, and even gain access to your calendar schedule.These apps are meant to interact with secured banks server and retrieve information about your bank account, make IMPS, NEFT, RTGS transfers within the app. So in this case, it is justified if these apps request ‘network permissions’ to privately connect to the bank servers?

1)Retrieve running apps

This permission allows the requesting app to find out what other applications are currently/recently running on your phone on real-time basis, and different sub-task (activities running in an app) running on the phone. According to Android developer guidelines, this permission was discontinued since roll out of Android Lolliop due to security risks. The permission can however be granted and work on phones with Android version below Lollipop. Read more of this post

User Data Collected By Indian Mobile Wallet Apps


Even as you try out mobile wallets , be aware of the data they collect from you and be sure you really wish to part with it. Don’t just automatically accept permission requests while installing apps without reading them. Safety and privacy are at stake.

1. Read your Web bookmarks and history
The Paytm app on Android requests access to “read your Web bookmarks and history”.

2. Read sensitive log data

Every app logs device and app specific information every time it executes a command, completes an updates, or when a user logs-in with his/her User ID. In some cases, the app can gain access to sensitive data like MAC ID, IMEI no, saved WiFi networks info, and other apps installed on the device. Sometimes a user authenticates with an app using his/her Gmail or Facebook account, and the app can read info of these accounts from the log. Read more of this post

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