A new report by Symantec has revealed that Facebook for Android sends out the users’ phone number even before a user could login into the app.
We all know by this time that Google Play has got a lot of applications which intentionally or unintentionally steal user data. Unfortunately, this kind of stealing exists in some of the most used apps, and one such app is Facebook.
Symantec, known for its anti-virus software, has published a report revealing that they’ve identified Facebook for Android to be sending out users’ phone numbers even before a user could log in into the app with his/her account.
“The first time you launch the Facebook application, even before logging in, your phone number will be sent over the Internet to Facebook servers. You do not need to provide your phone number, log in, initiate a specific action, or even need a Facebook account for this to happen. “
While this is on one side, Facebook has confirmed Symantec that they will fix this issue. But wait, data is NOT sent unless you write code with open eyes and push it to the users. Right? Then how come Facebook will FIX this issue?
Symantec also reveals that its new product, which analyzes the leaks and information that apps send to the developers’ servers, has revealed that there are millions of applications on Google Play which does this kind of acts, without users’ consent.