Recently, government has been debating the issue of apps on mobile devices. The issue is that people who use android services can download apps through the android market for free. Sounds great to me, right? And who doesn't love open source programming?
(For all of you who do not know what open source means, basically that means I can go get the code to the android software for free, and from it make my own apps to use with my android device.)
So where's the problem???
Apparently, some people don't understand what that means and think that anything they are downloading from the android market is safe and android approved. That is not the case. You never want to download anything that asks for credit cards, bank accounts, or anything personal like that. People are gaining access to other's bank accounts by coming up with apps to do online banking. Thus, if I download and input my information, whoever created that app now has all they need to wipe out my bank account.
There are safe ways to get apps, that are not as much of a concern. Here are some things that I do to protect my personal information...
1. If you want to use an app for your banking, or to pay bills, you must go to their 'official' website and download the app from there. You can even speak with an operator to see if there have been any security issues with the app.
2. Some apps, like kindle, do ask for a credit card number, but as I said, make sure you download it from the kindle store, not just the android market.
3. Read the comments and warnings under the download section of the market, they really do offer good feedback.
4. Last, make sure you put a password on your actual device. I know it's a pain, but most people I know use their phones or tablets to pay bills, read email, even watch netflix, and all these things store passwords. Once someone can get into your email, they can see where your bank statements are sent and do a password reset. Granted, they would still have a safe guard or two to get past, but it's not that difficult to find maiden names or birthplaces when you already have so much personal info. on someone. If you password or use a swipe code to protect these items, the only way to get into it if stolen is to wipe it clean and install knew software, also wiping out any traces of your personal information.
So people, please, let's be smart about these things. :-) Research 'before' you use it, because the last thing anyone needs is for the government to have another reason to take over control of the Internet and technology! Happy androiding all!
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