Poor data management put 100 million Android users at risk

Over 100 million Android users had their data exposed due to faulty database configurations in multiple popular apps on the Google Play Store.

According to security research company Check Point Software, 23 apps mishandled user data through poor implementation of real-time data syncing.

Affected apps include lifestyle software including Astro Guru, iFax, Screen Recorder, and others. Some of these apps have over 10 million downloads.

Check Point states the main problem is a poor implementation of data storage, primarily with cloud-oriented databases and data syncs. Check Point also claims that these oversights may have leaked personal user data, including phone numbers, browser history, locations, and more.

Check Point researchers were able to exploit some apps to capture user information themselves with relative ease, pointing to major weak points that malicious parties could take advantage of. Some of these weak points could even allow bad actors to send phishing messages while posing as the app developer.

What do you think about the poor data management practices exposed by Check Point? Let us know in the comments.