Oxford researchers warn of violation of fundamental rights: 'Data sharing out of control'

According to the researchers, data that is collected particularly frequently can contain details such as age, gender, location and information about other apps on the user's smartphone. "The data can then be used for a number of purposes, including targeted advertising, credit scoring or targeted political campaign messages," says the report from the Department of Computer Science in Oxford. Many people are unaware of how data flows from smartphones to advertising groups and other intermediaries.

In addition to the 88 percent of apps from the Google Play Store that share data with Alphabet, almost 43 percent of free Google apps also share data with the social network Facebook, while significant percentages are also shared with Twitter, Verizon, Microsoft and Amazon. Following the publication of the study, Google stated in a statement that it did not agree with the methodology of the research. "The study misunderstands common functional services such as crash reporting and analytics and describes how apps share data to provide these services," Google's statement reads.

Lack of transparency as a problem

However, experts consider this argument to be a cop-out. "It's impossible for the average user to understand how their data is being used - and ultimately to prevent it. Companies track people, then they use that data and target people in a way that most of us would find very intrusive. It's no longer about the need to collect data to show relevant ads - it's about maximizing profits at the expense of people's fundamental rights," says Frederike Kaltheuner from the human rights organization Privacy. (pte)

To the paper "Third Party Tracking in the Mobile Ecosystem": Link (PDF)