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Everyone knows your location: tracking myself down through in-app ads

(timsh.org)
1957 points apokryptein | 1 comments | 02 Feb 25 17:07 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
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password4321 ◴[02 Feb 25 17:56 UTC] No.42910316[source]▶
Is WiFi access point geolocation by SSID or MAC address? Do mobile OS's require additional permissions for apps to get either of these data points?
replies(3): >>42910398 #>>42910465 #>>42914320 #
radicality ◴[02 Feb 25 18:14 UTC] No.42910465[source]▶
iOS definitely requires Precise location permission allowed for the app to see your WiFi name / ssid and other WiFi around you
replies(1): >>42910834 #
matthewdgreen ◴[02 Feb 25 19:00 UTC] No.42910834[source]▶
But all it takes is one app with that permission to tie you to all the others. And there are always apps that need your location at some point to provide useful data. At this point I’m not sure there’s any single app I trust.
replies(1): >>42914354 #
1. ignoramous ◴[03 Feb 25 02:44 UTC] No.42914354[source]▶
> apps that need your location

And, triangulating client's public IP address will also give away location with decent precision: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37507355

btw, we need a securephones.io [0] part 2 focusing on apps.

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