Does TikTok Spy on You? What Researchers Say

Technology Science and Technology Security

August 26, 2022

Last Updated date: August 26, 2022

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TikTok could be thought of as the most important social network right now, and it keeps growing even though it has been called a security risk for users ever since it became popular.

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In fact, before Donald Trump left office as president of the United States, he was thinking about banning it. Some government workers are already not allowed to use it on their devices because it could collect a lot of information about users and could be used as a spy app. TikTok has denied every claim.

Risk?

Now, research done by a software engineer named Felix Krause shows that TikTok can keep track of every touch you make on your screen as you use its app (particularly the iOS app). This means that while you’re using the app or your browser, it can track every key you press, every link you click, and more. So, the app can get your credit card numbers, personal information, and more this way.

Krause put out a report in which he looked at the JavaScript code that platforms on third-party sites use to track what users do. This would also give it more points to figure out what the users like or are interested in. This is on top of a pretty complicated algorithm that has made the app very addictive for those who use it. Krause used a program called InAppBrowser to show that the TikTok iOS app can track every move we make on screen.

But it’s not clear how TikTok is using this information, if it can be used maliciously, or if it poses a security risk to users. In reality, though, any app that closely watches what users do on the screen is a risk.

TikTok responded to the report by saying that it does not collect this data and that it is only used for performance monitoring, which sounds vague. Other experts, on the other hand, have said that the app’s surveillance features are very strong compared to others.

But this doesn’t mean that the others are safe. It was recently found out that Instagram was also tracking users in the browser of the app.