Are your Android apps secretly sharing your location with advertisers? Some developers are accidentally leaving on this critical data-invading setting when using third-party SDKs

Android apps are secretly sharing users' location data with advertisers, according to a warning from the Electric Frontier Foundation (EFF). This data is often collected unintentionally through third-party software development kits (SDKs) that developers use to monetize their apps. These SDKs, which come preloaded with data collection mechanisms, can transmit the information to advertisers and even law enforcement agencies.

Location data is highly valuable for advertisers, enabling them to target specific users with ads, and precise data can even narrow down a user's location to just 10 feet. Developers, regulators, and legislators should collaborate to eliminate the incentive for SDKs to gather location data. While some apps require location data for their core functionality, many apps grant default consent for third-party SDKs to share and collect this data.

The EFF has proposed several recommendations for developers, regulators, and legislators, including checking third-party SDKs for data-sharing practices, penalizing developers and companies that deliberately collect excessive user data, and pushing for a federal law similar to GDPR to protect users from privacy violations.