More Than 50% of Top Shopping Apps Collect Users' Personal Information Through Trackers

OSLO, November 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

More than half of the top 60 Android shopping apps collect users' personal information through trackers, a new study finds.

The result is from a privacy risk assessment on Opera Max, a leading data management and data savings app for Android. The 60 most popular shopping apps were reviewed using privacy mode on this app.

Some of the most "leaky" shopping apps, such as Amazon, BestBuy, JC Penney and Newegg, send relatively high numbers of trackers.

The study also shows that as many as 96% of the shopping apps did not use full encryption to connect the apps to their servers. This poses privacy risks to mobile shoppers when they are using these apps.

Personal data can be shared with third parties through trackers on shopping apps or unencrypted http connections over mobile carrier connections. Sensitive data such as bank account numbers and other financial information, which are stored in online retailer accounts or shopping apps, can be intercepted and read by identity thieves via public or unsecured Wi-Fi networks.

New Opera Max enhances Android users' privacy 

Today, Opera Max brings its new privacy mode feature to all users. It offers real-time alerts on the privacy mode timeline so that users can easily see which apps are sending high-risk requests, thus putting their privacy at risk. Once Opera Max's privacy mode is activated, it also encrypts virtually all app data traffic and blocks almost all types of data trackers to ensure users can shop with peace of mind.

"Once you know how many trackers and unsecured connection requests your apps have sent out, you may want to ensure all your app traffic is protected and encrypted by Opera Max. You can then protect your privacy when shopping. Just take a look at what your apps are doing and decide for yourself," adds Sergey Lossev, Head of Product, Opera Max.

Learn more about Opera Max's privacy mode by visiting our developer blog post here.

Download the new Opera Max with privacy mode for free at http://opr.as/omx

For images and infographics, please visit our press site

SOURCE Opera Software AS