World-famous security firm Kaspersky has warned users that Facebook may have easy access to their text messages, photos, and other confidential information thanks to the social network’s mobile app.
The report from Kaspersky confirms that Facebook can access text messages and private information through its mobile application. Luckily for some, not all mobile users seem to be vulnerable to the potential invasion of privacy from Facebook; Kaspersky’s security researchers have found that Android device users are the ones at risk.
“Buried within the latest update for Facebook’s Android app is a feature that is causing growing concern among some users,” Kaspersky stated, warning about the potential breach of personal privacy that users risked by trusting the new mobile app. “We’d urge people to carefully check the permissions requested by any app when you first install it.”
When downloading the latest version of the app, users are being asked to allow Facebook to read text messages. The process in question is supposedly used by Facebook to confirm the phone number added to your account by checking for the code sent via text message. While this may seem like a useful measure, the introduction of this feature has had Android users concerned about privacy since it first appeared.