Android users have received a warning that Google Chrome automatically shares their phone’s motion data with the websites that they visit on their device, prompting calls for the app to be deleted permanently.
This discovery was reportedly made by Security researcher Tommy Mysk revealed in a thread of Tweets on 29 October .
In his posts, Mysk wrote that “the Chrome browser on Android gives any website you visit access to your phone’s accelerometer data.”
Smartphone accelerometers detect a user’s orientation and position and are considered to be very sensitive. That sensor makes it possible to switch from portrait to landscape mode, as well as track your position on a map. Researchers have previously found that using that sensor alone, an app or site can gather information about your emotional state, heart rate, sleeping habits, and more.
Mysk reportedly discovered that Google Chrome allows any website a user click on to request that motion data. Websites do this to monitor ad interactions, check ad impressions and track a device.
Mysk claims that Google even does this when the browser is set to “Incognito Mode”.
Despite calls to delete the app, there are a number of benefits to keeping it especially considering Google designed Android.
For anyone who does not wish to delete Google Chrome, there is a more simple solution to stop Chrome from tracking your movements.
To disable Google from sharing this data, you can simply toggle a setting to disable motion-data-sharing from Chrome’s settings.
To do so, follow the below instructions:
- Open the app, tap the three dots in the top-right corner, then choose “Settings.
- Then, scroll down, tap “Site settings,” then “Motion sensors.”
- Turn off the toggle to make sure no more third-party sites can ask for your motion data from now on.
In a statement responding to Mysks’ research, Google said: “We intentionally limit the resolution of motion sensors in Chrome, and since 2019 we’ve had controls that allow users to block websites from accessing a device’s motion sensors altogether.”
Sources: Forbes, The Sun
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