Android apps secretly tracking users by listening to inaudible sound hidden in ads

“An increasing number of Android applications are attempting to track users without their knowledge, according to a new report,” The Independent reports.

“Over recent years, companies have started hiding ‘beacons,’ ultrasonic audio signals inaudible to humans, in their adverts, in order to track devices and learn more about their owners,” The Independent reports. “Electronic devices equipped with microphones can register these sounds, allowing advertisers to uncover their location and work out what kind of ads their owners watch on TV and which other devices they own. The technique can even be used to de-anonymise Tor users.”

“‘Throughout our empirical study, we confirm that audio beacons can be embedded in sound, such that mobile devices spot them with high accuracy while humans do not perceive the ultrasonic signals consciously,’ reads the report from researchers at Technische Universität Braunschweig in Germany,” The Independent reports. “They found that, while six apps were known to be using ultrasound cross-device tracking technology in April 2015, this number grew to 39 by December 2015, and has now increased to 234.”

Read more in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: Ah, the land of iPhone knockoffs. It never ends.

But, hey, you Fragtards think you saved a nickel or something along the way, so… further proof that you’re not a genius (as if that pretend iPhone in your hand isn’t a neon sign screaming “I’m with Stupid” every day of your life).

Hey, dummy, wise up:

If it’s not an iPhone, it’s not an iPhone.

SEE ALSO:
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Secret backdoor in U.S. Android phones sent location, text, contact data to China – November 15, 2016
Google to pay $5.5 million for sneaking around Apple’s privacy settings to collect user data – August 31, 2016
Cybersecurity researchers: Fitness trackers vulnerable to tracking, privacy breaches – but not Apple Watch – February 2, 2016
EFF files complaint asking for federal investigation; says Google broke privacy pledge, tracked students – December 1, 2015
Tim Cook gets privacy and encryption: We shouldn’t surrender them to Google – June 4, 2015
Apple CEO Tim Cook champions privacy, blasts ‘so-called free services’ – June 3, 2015
How Google aims to delve deeper into users’ lives – May 29, 2015
Apple CEO Cook: Unlike some other companies, Apple won’t invade your right to privacy – March 2, 2015
Edward Snowden’s privacy tips: ‘Get rid of Dropbox,” avoid Facebook and Google – October 13, 2014
Apple CEO Tim Cook ups privacy to new level, takes direct swipe at Google – September 18, 2014
U.S. NSA watching, tracking phone users with Google Maps – January 28, 2014
U.S. NSA secretly infiltrated Yahoo, Google data centers worldwide, Snowden documents say – October 30, 2013
Google has already inserted some U.S. NSA code into Android – July 10, 2013
Court rules NSA doesn’t have to reveal its semi-secret relationship with Google – May 22, 2013
Google Street View cars grabbed locations of cellphones, computers – July 26, 2011
Consumer Watchdog calls for probe of Google’s inappropriate relationship with Obama administration – January 25, 2011
Wired: Google, CIA Invest in ‘future’ of Web monitoring – July 29, 2010
37 states join probe into Google’s questionable Wi-Fi data collection – July 22, 2010
Google Street View Wi-Fi data included passwords and email – June 18, 2010