Comment on Hundreds of smartphone apps are monitoring users through their microphones
Kecessa@sh.itjust.works 11 months agoWell these days Android asks for more permissions so I guess it would prevent it in many cases by preventing access to the microphone for apps where you don’t want it…
Yeah, most people just click beyond that in a millisecond because it’s just an an annoyance between them and the needed dopamine.
I think app stores can do a whole lot more, especially with he insane amounts of money they’re earning from it (hello and fuck you, apple). They can make microphone access a special privilege that requires the developer to make a special request that gets verified on the app store before the app can be released, for example
I think a middle ground may be having that requirement for background mic usage, or usage without a specific user prompt that turns on a mic.
Lots of apps have legitimate use for the mic. Apps having legitimate use for the mic while you’re not actively using the app on screen are more limited and need stricter permissions.
Android also shows an indicator when any app is accessing the microphone or camera now.
nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-21083
There are probably other exploits around that as well
While these bugs happen, they are fixed very quickly, and wouldn’t be used by any marketing agency. Just keep your phone updated.
WhyJiffie@sh.itjust.works 11 months ago
it has always asked for mic permission so no change on that front