Facebook and Twitter data was exposed to developers through app store bug

guest · Nov 25, 2019

Facebook and Twitter data was exposed to developers through app store bug
‘Hundreds of users’ were impacted
November 25, 2019
https://www.theverge.com/2019/11/25/20982224/facebook-twitter-user-data-exposed-oneaudience-photofy

On Monday, Facebook and Twitter announced that the data of “hundreds of users” may have been improperly accessed after their accounts were used for logging into Google Play Store apps on Android devices. The issue was first reported by CNBC. So far, there is no indication that iOS users were affected.

The companies were notified of the vulnerability by third-party security researchers, Twitter said in a blog post disclosing the issue. The researchers discovered that a development kit named One Audience gave outside developers access to personal information, including usernames and email addresses.
CNBC said that users of photo editing apps like Giant Square and Photofy could be affected.
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Reached for clarification on the specific data revealed, Facebook said any data shared with the app could have been leaked, but the specific information “depends on the app and the permissions users allowed.”

In a blog post published on Monday, Twitter said that the “issue is not due to a vulnerability in Twitter’s software, but rather the lack of isolation between SDKs [software development kits] within an application.” The company will notify users of Twitter for Android who may have been impacted.
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guest · Feb 27, 2020

Facebook sues SDK maker for secretly harvesting user data
February 27, 2020
https://www.zdnet.com/article/facebook-sues-sdk-maker-for-secretly-harvesting-user-data/

Facebook filed today a federal lawsuit in a California court against OneAudience, a New Jersey-based data analytics firm.

The social networking giant claims that OneAudience paid app developers to install its Software Development Kit (SDK) in their apps, and later used the control it had over the SDK's code to harvest data on Facebook users.
According to court documents obtained by ZDNet, the SDK was embedded in shopping, gaming, and utility-type apps, some of which were made available through the official Google Play Store.

"After a user installed one of these apps on their device, the malicious SDK enabled OneAudience to collect information about the user from their device and their Facebook, Google, or Twitter accounts, in instances where the user logged into the app using those accounts," the complaint reads.
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guest · Aug 27, 2020

Facebook sues maker of advertising SDK for refusing to participate in audit
Facebook also sued the operator of a website selling Instagram followers, likes, and comments
August 27, 2020
https://www.zdnet.com/article/faceb...ing-sdk-for-refusing-to-participate-in-audit/

Facebook has filed lawsuits today in both the US and the UK against MobiBurn, a UK software company that provided advertising tools for mobile app developers.

In particular, MobiBurn provided an advertising software development kit (SDK) that allowed app developers to embed ads inside their applications and monetize user behavior.
But in a lawsuit filed today, Facebook claims the SDK contained malicious code that illegally collected the personal data of Facebook users.

"Security researchers first flagged MobiBurn's behavior to us as part of our data abuse bounty program," said Jessica Romero, Facebook's Director of Platform Enforcement and Litigation.
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MobiBurn declined to participate in an audit
However, while Facebook was handling this report internally, these findings also made it into the press in November 2019, when CNBC run an article detailing MobiBurn's practices.
The same article also accused OneAudience, another company that provided an advertising SDK, for engaging in similar practices.

A day after the CNBC report, both SDK makers posted messages on their websites claiming they only provided the tools but were not involved in the data collection, shifting blame to the mobile app developers who abused their SDKs.
Both companies also discontinued their respective SDKs.
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However, at the time, as part of its internal investigation, Facebook also wanted both SDK makers to cooperate and submit to an audit, so Facebook could confirm their statements and make sure the companies deleted any Facebook user data they had illegally obtained.

Both companies declined to cooperate. Facebook sued OneAudience in February, and, today, the social network is following through with its lawsuit against MobiBurn.
Second lawsuit also filed today
But Facebook also sued a second company today. The social network also sued Nikolay Holper for operating Nakrutka, a website that sold Instagram likes, comments, and followers.
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Facebook: Taking Legal Action Against Those Who Abuse Our Platform

Today, as part of our ongoing efforts to enforce our Terms of Service and protect against abuse, we filed separate lawsuits in the UK and the US. This is the first time Facebook is pursuing a lawsuit against an app developer in the UK as well as seeking an audit and an injunction to reinforce our ban against the developer’s use of our platform.
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