Robocall Blocking Tools Might Transfer Your Data Without Permission

Saanvi Araav - Aug 15, 2019

Many companies like the above ones earned profits by violating users' privacy while they were also defending their accounts from robocall intrusions.

We all know how helpful robocall blockers could be. However, they can also create their problems sometimes. Dan Hastings (a security researcher from NCC Group) has found out a few of the popular apps that are developed to block robocall have been transferring data to analytics firms without your permission.

Privacy Violation

Truecaller and Hiya sent data from your device even before you accept the privacy policies. And TrapCall sent your contact data while it even didn't mention it in its privacy policy. Similarly, some other tools send data directly to Facebook just after loading it.

Some of these companies have delivered their responses. Truecaller said that it has fixed the problem relating to data transmissions via a recent app update. After Dan Hastings contacted with Apple, the team at TrapCall adjusted its privacy policy. Hiya stated that it did not transfer users' personal data. However, they will boost their privacy more by making sure that the app does not send data without permission from users.

The Irony

Data harvesting is usually meant to make money on information, that has been a part of the whole problem. Many companies like the above ones earned profits by violating users' privacy while they were also defending their accounts from robocall intrusions.

robocall-transfer-data-without-permission — Many companies earned profits by violating users' privacy while they were also defending their accounts from robocall intrusions.

Dan Hastings chastised the tech giant Apple by accusing it of not reviewing privacy policies, as well as not catching misuses such as Truecaller and Hiya.

They Still Help. Just Be careful.

But that does not mean you should totally avoid using robocall blocking tools (lots of carries in the United States will increasingly use that by themselves). However, you should read the app policy carefully before you allow it to screen your calls.