Xiaomi Devices Found Tracking And Recording Browsing Data Of Millions

guest · May 1, 2020

Xiaomi Devices Found Tracking And Recording Browsing Data Of Millions
The tracking extends to browser's Incognito mode as well
May 1, 2020
https://fossbytes.com/xiaomi-devices-found-tracking-and-recording-browsing-data-of-millions/

Xiaomi has been tracking and recording an insane amount of private data, from user’s phone habits to queries in the Xiaomi’s default browsers.

According to a cybersecurity researcher, Cirlig, Xiaomi records all the search queries and items viewed on its default browser (Mi Browser Pro) as well as on the Mint browser. The tracking extends to Incognito mode as well.
The researcher was able to confirm the same pattern on other Xiaomi phones, including Mi 10, Redmi K20, and Mi MIX 3.

When shown with proof, Xiaomi said, “collection of anonymous browsing data, is one of the most common solutions adopted by internet companies.”
Click to expand...

Is it really anonymous?
When the information tracked in browsers is compiled with phone’s “metadata” collected by Xiaomi, Cirlig says the company can easily identify a single person.

My main concern for privacy is that the data sent to their servers can be very easily correlated with a specific user
Upon much digging, the researcher was able to connect the app’s data monitoring with SensorDataAPI, which enables third-party access to app data. In the case of Xiaomi, the third-party was Sensors Analytics, a startup known for tracking users.
Click to expand...

Neowin: Xiaomi smartphones are tracking usage habits and browsing data of their owners

Another security researcher Andrew Tierney discovered the same behavior in Xiaomi's Mi Browser Pro and Mint Browser, both of which are available on the Google Play Store and have over 15 million downloads combined. What's even more worrying is that despite Xiaomi's claims that the data was being encrypted for security reasons, Cirlig found that he was easily able to decode and find readable information from it.

When reached out by Forbes, Xiaomi did confirm that it was collecting users' browsing data, though it was anonymizing them for privacy reasons. It also claimed that users consented to have their browsing history tracked. The company, however, denied that it was tracking data when incognito mode was used in the browser.
Click to expand...

Xiaomi is seemingly collecting the data to understand users' behavior.
Xiaomi confirmed its relationship with Sensor Analytics, though it noted that all the collected data are stored on its own servers and not shared with any third-party company.
Click to expand...

guest · May 2, 2020

mood said: ↑

Neowin: Xiaomi smartphones are tracking usage habits and browsing data of their owners
Click to expand...

Updated (May 2, 2020):

Update: Xiaomi has issued a new statement about the entire matter. The company says that its original communication was "misunderstood" and that user's privacy and internet security is a top priority for it. It notes that under incognito mode, a user's browsing data is not synced but aggregated usage statistics is collected. It has also posted the relevant screenshot of the code as proof.

The aggregated usage statistics data is used by the company for internal analysis and its a common approach by many internet companies. For any data Xiaomi collects, it makes sure that they are anonymous and encrypted.
Click to expand...

guest · May 4, 2020

Xiaomi Updates Mi Browser and Mint Browser Incognito Mode After Security Concerns
May 3, 2020
https://www.lowyat.net/2020/212392/...owser-incognito-mode-after-security-concerns/

In light of the recent Forbes report that put Xiaomi in the spotlight, the Chinese brand responded with a statement, saying that the article in question was riddled with inaccuracies. Now it appears that the company is addressing the concerns of privacy by updating the affected browsers.

According to the official Mi blog, Xiaomi says that it will be updating its incognito mode for all users on its homemade browsers. This includes the Mi Browser, Mi Browser Pro, and Mint Browsers. Specifically, Xiaomi says that users of its Mi devices will now find an option within the incognito mode that will allow them to either switch on and off the aggregated data collection.
Click to expand...

While the action is clearly a gesture of good faith, it’s hard to tell whether the on/off function genuinely turns off data collection entirely while in incognito mode, or if it will simply mask the phone’s data collecting activities.
In any case, the updates to the browsers are now live and can be downloaded via Google Play.
Click to expand...

reasonablePrivacy · May 4, 2020

I use Xiaomi smartphone that is a part of Android One project. It doesn't have vendor-heavily-modified version of Android called MIUI. It also doesn't have these browsers included.
Is there evidence that Xiaomi have done this also to smartphones that are part of Android One Project?

Log in or Sign up

Xiaomi Devices Found Tracking And Recording Browsing Data Of Millions

guest Guest

guest Guest

guest Guest

reasonablePrivacy Registered Member

Log in or Sign up

Xiaomi Devices Found Tracking And Recording Browsing Data Of Millions

guest Guest

guest Guest

guest Guest

reasonablePrivacy Registered Member

Useful Searches