Just in time for Christmas,Brunette | Adult Movies Online here's a friendly reminder that technology isn't always your friend.
Popular messaging app ToTok has been removed from the iOS App Store and Google Play Store, and if you have it on your phone you should probably remove it from there too. U.S. officials and a New York Timesinvestigation published on Sunday found the app to be a spying tool for the United Arab Emirates, making it much less benign than it initially appears.
ToTok was released on July 27, and quickly grew in popularity in the U.A.E. Other messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Skype are blocked in the country, so users were thrilled to have a free, functional alternative. The app quickly spread to other Middle Eastern countries and then the rest of the world, even trending in the U.S App Store.
However, while it let people chat easily with friends and family without expensive data packages, ToTok was reportedly gathering information on its users' contacts, locations, and conversations at the same time. Further, it was doing this entirely legitimately — from a certain point of view.
"Our analysis showed that ToTok, simply does what it claims to do… and really nothing more," former National Security Agency hacker Patrick Wardle wrote in his breakdown of the app. "[It] is really the genius of the whole mass surveillance operation: no exploits, no backdoors, no malware."
ToTok did what it claimed, in that it functioned as a messaging app. It also explicitly requested access to the phone's microphone, camera, photos, location, calendar and contacts — all permissions that are often granted to messaging apps.
However, rather than sticking to strictly messaging-app-like activities, ToTok reportedly intended to use that access to surveil its users. And by blocking other chat apps in the country, the U.A.E. practically ensured the app's success.
SEE ALSO: How to do a data detox when you're super lazy"You don’t need to hack people to spy on them if you can get people to willingly download this app to their phone," Wardle told the New York Times. "By uploading contacts, video chats, location, what more intelligence do you need?"
Even without the help of invasive apps, the U.A.E. is heavily surveilled. Human Rights Watch's 2019 World Report found that the country "arbitrarily detains and forcibly disappears" people within its borders who criticise the government, including in comments made on social media. The idea that authorities could comb through an individual's private communications as well is discomforting.
A blog post by ToTok on Sunday made no note of the allegations against the app. Instead, it emphasised ToTok's "tens of millions of users across hundreds of countries," thousands of positive reviews, and "high-security standards." It also addressed its sudden disappearance from Apple and Google's app stores.
"Indeed, ToTok is temporarily unavailable in these two stores due to a technical issue," wrote ToTok. "While the existing ToTok users continue to enjoy our service without interruption, we would like to inform our new users that we are well engaged with Google and Apple to address the issue."
SEE ALSO: 'One of the most sophisticated pieces of cyberespionage software' uncovered at Citizen LabTheNew York Times report states ToTok was actually removed from Google's store for violating "unspecified policies", and that Apple is still investigating the app.
ToTok claims it's still available on Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi and Oppo's app stores, and says that Android users can install it directly from their website. We'd advise against it, though.
"Uninstall it yesterday," Wardle told Wired.
Topics Apps & Software Cybersecurity Privacy
NYT Connections Sports Edition hints and answers for April 17: Tips to solve Connections #206
The Ruin: Roosevelt Island’s Smallpox Hospital
The Insouciant Sentence by Jeff Dolven
Essential Apps You Should Install on a New PC Running Windows or macOS
Trump signs AI education order to train K
The Electrifying Dreamworld of ‘The Green Hand’
Eternal Friendship: An Unlikely Cold War Connection by Anouk Durand
Thelonious Monk and Me
Samsung Unpacked stream is set for May 12, 2025
What's Scarier: Library Fines or Turning Into a Scarecrow?
Waymo data shows humans are terrible drivers compared to AI
Redux: Grace Paley (and Our New Book) by The Paris Review
Thelonious Monk and Me
Reappearing Women: A Conversation Between Marie Darrieussecq and Kate Zambreno by The Paris Review
Best portable power station deal: Save $179.01 on the EcoFlow River 2 Max
The Screen of Enamoration: Love in the Age of Google by Alfie Bown
Ain’t That a Shame: Fats Domino
George Plimpton on ‘Playboy After Dark’
Best portable power station deal: Save 44% on the Jackery Explorer 100 v2
Life After Empathy: On Philip K. Dick and ‘Blade Runner 2049’
No selfies here, just the best iPhone photos of 2016Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey tweets opening testimony during congressional hearingAsos is selling a denim waistband and we've reached a new low in terrible jeans trendsNewlywed honeymoons without husband, copes through Facebook photo comedyNo selfies here, just the best iPhone photos of 2016Dave Bautista might not return to 'Guardians of the Galaxy'A truck full of Axe body spray blew up and the reactions are pricelessDave Bautista might not return to 'Guardians of the Galaxy'From Milo to Alex Jones: What is Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey doing?Wisconsin becomes the latest state to float 'Blue Lives Matter' billPoliticians throw 404 error page shade at Britain's new prime ministerKim Kardashian stumped by a toddler who asks her why she's famousThis beautiful sunset cloud looks like a giant, magical unicorn penisDon't worry, this tiny dog is not mad at you, humanVictoria Beckham recreates iconic Spice Girls moments in hilarious Vogue videoIt's true, 'Pokémon Go' is becoming a fitness crazeTwitter CEO Jack Dorsey tweets opening testimony during congressional hearingIf you want baby soft skin, try this exfoliating mittdELiA*s may be a thing of the past, but its aesthetic is stronger than everAmerican and Canadian firefighters share a nice moment while fighting wildfire at the border 'Black Mirror' Season 6: 'Loch Henry,' explained. Newest luxury sex toy is a real innovation in suction stimulation Kraven the Hunter is the horny antihero of our dirty dreams Decadent Prose: An Interview with Translator Kit Schluter by Sarah Gerard Jimmy Ernst, Untitled, 1976 by The Paris Review Faulkner Nobel on the Block, and Other News by Sadie Stein Everything They Cook Takes Five Hours: An Interview with Director Alexa Karolinski by Tim Small Laughing in the Face of Death: A Kurt Vonnegut Roundtable One Ring to Rule Them All by Sadie Stein Paula Fox, Work in Progress by The Paris Review Google Pixel 8 could have way better refresh rates Sofia Coppola's Priscilla Presley biopic gets stunning teaser trailer No, the missing Titanic sub did not rely on Starlink for communication New Emotion: On Kirill Medvedev by Lucy McKeon Good Little Girls, and Other News by Sadie Stein This Is a Bookstore by Sadie Stein Let the Memory Live Again by Sadie Stein Pornhub bans downloads and unverified uploads following backlash The Most Expensive Book in the World, and Other News by Sadie Stein Summer solstice: How to see Mars and Venus in the night sky
2.1759s , 8224.84375 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【Brunette | Adult Movies Online】,Exquisite Information Network