Communications of the ACM
TikTok Browser Can Track Users' Keystrokes
While major technology companies might use trackers as they test new software, it is not common for them to release a major commercial app with the feature, whether or not it is enabled, researchers said.
Credit: Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Privacy researcher Felix Krause found the TikTok video application's Web browser can track users' keystrokes, demonstrating that the Chinese-owned app can monitor users' online behavior.
Independent software engineer Jane Manchun Wong said Krause's discovery suggests a TikTok user "might enter their sensitive data such as login credentials on external Websites," adding that the in-app browser could "extract information from the user's external browsing sessions, which some users find overreaching."
Researchers said although big technology companies might use such trackers when testing new software, they seldom issue a major commercial app with such features, enabled or not.
TikTok refuted Krause's findings, claiming the tracker was for "debugging, troubleshooting, and performance monitoring."
From The New York Times
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