Which mobile apps give russian authorities access to users' personal information and money?
About 50% of financial apps popular in Ukraine are of russian origin. Find out more about which apps are dangerous to use and which ones can transfer personal data to the aggressor country
Most of the financial mobile apps for tracking expenses used by Ukrainians are of russian origin or were developed in russia. According to Artem Borodatiuk, co-founder of Netpeak Group, russian apps successfully mimic international ones and still remain in Ukrainian mobile phones. Thus, more than 50% of all installations in Ukraine are made by apps developed by the aggressor country.
Dangerous apps: which apps can steal your personal data and money
According to a study by Saldo Apps and ASObot, an analytical service for mobile applications, there are more than 1,000 personal finance apps in the App Store and Google Play, about 100 of which are popular in Ukraine, and 34 of which have "russian roots" or were developed in russia. But, as Saldo Apps CEO Radomir Novkovic notes, Ukrainians simply do not know about the origin of these apps.
Here is a list of russian apps that should not be used
● Moneon
● Money Manager
● Expenses OK
● Home Bookkeeping
● Wallet: Finance
● MoneyFlow
● Zenmoney
● CoinKeeper
● MoneyPro
● CoinKeeper 3
● Heavy
● MoneyBox
● 1Money
● Budget Tracker
● Simpler Expense
● Expense log
Photo: screenshot from Saldo Apps and ASObot infographics
According to the study, since the beginning of March 2022, 700 thousand installations of these apps have been made in Ukraine, which eventually brought russian developers $250 thousand. This means that out of ignorance, users unknowingly sponsor a terrorist state. And this applies not only to Ukrainians, but also to people around the world.
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How can russian mobile apps use users' personal data?
The listed mobile apps ask for permission to use users' personal data. And according to the federal law 152-FZ "On Personal Data", personal data of russian users must be stored in russia and processed by federal government agencies. Thus, information about users can be transferred to the FSB.
"If russian developers have not allocated separate servers outside of russia to store Ukrainians' data, this may mean that all actions of Ukrainian users, including donations to the Armed Forces, are recorded in russia," the researchers emphasize.
In addition, at least 5 of the listed apps ask for access to the user's geolocation after installation. This poses a direct threat to the life and health of users, as the location of people can be used for the terrorist plans of the aggressor country.
Moreover, the use of these applications poses a threat not only to personal data but also to bank accounts. For example, the Zenmoney app requires a login and password to the Ukrainian Privat24 app.
Don't sponsor the enemy and rid your smartphone of russian junk!
We remind you! Several hundred Western companies, some of which are known all over the world, continue to operate in russia despite its invasion of Ukraine. Read our previous article to find out why, despite the obvious damage to their reputation, some companies are still sponsoring russia's aggression and are in no hurry to leave the country.
Photo: Unsplash
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