Bitdefender has published a new study based on the company's Clueful technology

Jun 18, 2013 08:21 GMT  ·  By

Android apps that collect too much information from the devices they’re installed on are problematic. However, experts believe apps that ask permission to collect data that they don’t really need are just as bad as applications that actually collect it.

According to a recent study from Bitdefender – performed with the aid of the company’s Clueful technology on 260,000 free Android apps from Google Play – over 25% of apps can track the user’s location while they’re open.

In addition, over 13% could be capable of uploading the Unique Device ID, allowing the app’s owner to track the user’s behavior across multiple applications.

And that’s not all the information that many of the free Android apps hosted on Google Play could collect. 9.14% are capable of reading contacts, and 9.91% can collect and upload the phone number.

Over 6% of the analyzed apps could upload the user’s email address, and around the same percentage can also read the device’s browsing history.

As you can imagine, this information can be used, or abused, for a wide range of purposes.

“No matter if mobile developers and adware networks are collecting private data or not, asking for permission to collect such data is as wrong as actually doing it” said Catalin Cosoi, chief security strategist.

“It’s just like a stranger that asks for permission to enter your house whenever he wants too, so he can search through your library or private things,” Cosoi added.

If you’re interested in learning what your mobile apps are up to, check out Bitdefender’s Clueful app. It’s available for both Android and iOS.