iPhone app found collecting data when sending notifications

According to Gizmodo , security researchers have just discovered a vulnerability that allows iPhone applications to collect user data through notifications, regardless of whether the privacy settings have been enabled. This raises concerns about privacy on the iOS operating system and questions Apple's "data on iPhone, stays on iPhone" commitment.

Phát hiện ứng dụng iPhone thu thập dữ liệu khi gửi thông báo- Ảnh 1. — iPhone app found silently collecting data with notifications

According to experts at Mysk Inc., a software development company, many popular apps such as Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, Twitter and countless others are using notifications to 'bypass' user data collection. Even when users close the app, they can still send device data to servers through notifications.

Researchers found that these apps were collecting data such as IP addresses, phone reboot times, free memory space, and other details. Combining this information, companies were able to identify users with high accuracy.

Mysk said that this behavior is not limited to a few specific apps or developers, but is a widespread problem in the iPhone ecosystem. Previously, Mysk also discovered similar vulnerabilities related to Wi-Fi security and sharing of device analytics data on iPhones. It can be seen that although Apple has made many efforts to reassure users about privacy, these new findings show that the company's commitment has not been truly realized.

Companies like Facebook and LinkedIn have disputed the claims, saying they only collect data through notifications to deliver more effective notifications, in compliance with Apple's APIs. However, researchers say that the collection of data such as phone restart time or free storage space is unrelated to the notification function, suspecting the real purpose is to track users and serve ads. Apple has not yet officially commented on the matter.

Overall, the findings reveal a serious flaw in the iPhone's security system that puts users' privacy at risk. Apple needs to take stronger action to address this issue and ensure transparency in how apps collect data.

In addition, users also need to pay attention to privacy settings on iPhone and only install applications from reputable developers.

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