Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Google Collects Android Users' Locations Even When Location Services Are Disabled (qz.com)

Posted by msmash on from the OMG dept.

Google has been collecting Android phones' locations even when location services are turned off, and even when there is no carrier SIM card installed on the device, an investigation has found. Keith Collins, reporting for Quartz: Since the beginning of 2017, Android phones have been collecting the addresses of nearby cellular towers -- even when location services are disabled -- and sending that data back to Google. The result is that Google, the unit of Alphabet behind Android, has access to data about individuals' locations and their movements that go far beyond a reasonable consumer expectation of privacy. Quartz observed the data collection occur and contacted Google, which confirmed the practice. The cell tower addresses have been included in information sent to the system Google uses to manage push notifications and messages on Android phones for the past 11 months, according to a Google spokesperson. They were never used or stored, the spokesperson said, and the company is now taking steps to end the practice after being contacted by Quartz. By the end of November, the company said, Android phones will no longer send cell-tower location data to Google, at least as part of this particular service, which consumers cannot disable.

1 of 196 comments (clear)

  1. Re:I like it. by invalid_user · · Score: 4, Interesting

    When I first started reading Slashdot about 20 years ago, I was impressed by the wonderfully liberal ideas that abound in the comments section of the site, for example,

    "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." (Benjamin Franklin)

    "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." (Evelyn Beatrice Hall)

    They gave me character, and shaped my world view.

    Fast forward 20 years, and I find this generation to be more than willing to give up their freedom for a little convenience, or to be with the trendy in Silicon Valley, or simply because they can't stand a certain politician.