Android App Secretly Uploads User GPS Location, Warns Symantec

Anti-virus software vendor Symantec has issued a warning about a free Android game application which secretly uploads the users' GPS location to a third party server.

According to the advisory, the free Android game, Tapsnake, uploads users' GPS data on a server after every 15 minutes.

The server belongs to a separate $5 Android application called GPS Spy, which uses the data to monitor users' location in real-time.

The security firm said: “Interestingly enough, the developer has published a number of applications that make use of GPS location services, so he or she obviously had some experience with device-tracking technologies.”

Symantec has reported that Tapsnake had been downloaded 1,000-5,000 times and that GPS Spy had been downloaded 100 to 500 times.

The security firm acknowledged that the application was not a major threat and its use was not widespread, but it suggests how malicious applications could be engineered for the platform in the future.