Apple removes Facebook's security app from App Store
Gadgets Now Bureau | Aug 23, 2018, 05:54PM IST
Apple has confirmed to have removed Facebook's Onavo security app from its App Store. The app reportedly did not follow the privacy guidelines set by Apple. Back in 2013, Facebook had acquired Israel-based Onavo and had positioned it as a security app that allowed users to browse through a virtual private network (VPN). However, Facebook is said to have never mentioned this fact clearly that it owns the app.
Also, this is the same Onavo app that was questioned by the Congress in the US over concerns that the app had collected information about users. In its response, Facebook denied this but admitted to have used Onavo to gather information like other popular apps and how people use them. Now, Apple has removed the Onavo app from tits App Store for exactly these reasons.
"With the latest update to our guidelines, we made it explicitly clear that apps should not collect information about which other apps are installed on a user's device for the purposes of analytics or advertising/marketing and must make it clear what user data will be collected and how it will be used," Apple said in a statement to CNBC. Facebook defended this by stating that, "as a developer on Apple's platform we follow the rules they've put in place."
The report further stated that Apple had alerted Facebook beforehand about the violation in its privacy policy and even suggested Facebook to voluntarily take down the app.
Facebook’s stock has taken a severe beating ever since the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke out. According to a report in Reuters, Facebook’s share price has lost as much as a quarter in the past few days. This is after executives said that profit margins would drop for several years due to the costs of improving privacy safeguards and slowing usage in the biggest advertising markets.
In a related news, Facebook cautioned investors to expect a big jump in second-quarter costs because of its efforts to address concerns about poor handling of users' privacy and to better monitor what users post.
Also, this is the same Onavo app that was questioned by the Congress in the US over concerns that the app had collected information about users. In its response, Facebook denied this but admitted to have used Onavo to gather information like other popular apps and how people use them. Now, Apple has removed the Onavo app from tits App Store for exactly these reasons.
"With the latest update to our guidelines, we made it explicitly clear that apps should not collect information about which other apps are installed on a user's device for the purposes of analytics or advertising/marketing and must make it clear what user data will be collected and how it will be used," Apple said in a statement to CNBC. Facebook defended this by stating that, "as a developer on Apple's platform we follow the rules they've put in place."
The report further stated that Apple had alerted Facebook beforehand about the violation in its privacy policy and even suggested Facebook to voluntarily take down the app.
Facebook’s stock has taken a severe beating ever since the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke out. According to a report in Reuters, Facebook’s share price has lost as much as a quarter in the past few days. This is after executives said that profit margins would drop for several years due to the costs of improving privacy safeguards and slowing usage in the biggest advertising markets.
In a related news, Facebook cautioned investors to expect a big jump in second-quarter costs because of its efforts to address concerns about poor handling of users' privacy and to better monitor what users post.
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