Subj : Push notifications could be used to snoop on Google and Apple use
To   : All
From : TechnologyDaily
Date : Thu Dec 07 2023 16:15:05

Push notifications could be used to snoop on Google and Apple users, US 
Senator warns

Date:
Thu, 07 Dec 2023 16:10:38 +0000

Description:
Push-notifications could be supplying foreign agencies with a constant stream 
of your data.

FULL STORY
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Governments could be using push notifications to spy on phones, a top US 
Senator has warned. 

Google and Apple phones process push notifications through servers belonging 
to the tech giants, allowing governments to potentially demand access to this 
data. 

Messages, breaking news, and other priority updates all generate 
push-notifications, meaning that encrypted data, potentially including the 
actual message itself, could be accessed. Push for Apple and Google 
transparency on notifications 

Ron Wyden, who sits on the Senate Intelligence Committee, shared his concerns 
in a letter to the US Justice Department, stating that Apple and Google are 
in a unique position to facilitate government surveillance of how users are 
using particular apps. 

Apple and Google should be permitted to be transparent about the legal 
demands they receive, particularly from foreign governments, just as the 
companies regularly notify users about other types of government demands for 
data. 

These companies should be permitted to generally reveal whether they have 
been compelled to facilitate this surveillance practice, to publish aggregate 
statistics about the number of demands they receive, and unless temporarily 
gagged by a court, to notify specific customers about demands for their data. 

According to Reuters, both Apple and Google have been approached in requests 
for push-notification data from both foreign and US government agencies, with 
Apple spokesperson Shane Bauer stating in an email to TechCrunch that, Apple 
is committed to transparency and we have long been a supporter of efforts to 
ensure that providers are able to disclose as much information as possible to 
their users. 

In this case, the federal government prohibited us from sharing any 
information and now that this method has become public we are updating our 
transparency reporting to detail these kinds of requests. 

In a similar statement, Matt Bryant of Google said, We were the first major 
company to publish a public transparency report sharing the number and types 
of government requests for user data we receive, including the requests 
referred to by Senator Wyden. 

 Via TechCrunch More from TechRadar Pro This crafty iPhone attack makes you 
think your phone is safe...until it's hacked Looking to protect your devices? 
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Link to news story:
https://www.techradar.com/pro/push-notifications-could-be-used-to-snoop-on-goo
gle-and-apple-users-us-senator-warns


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