By REBECCA RUTHERFORD
Los Alamos
For the Los Alams Daily Post

You know that app you downloaded because it had a cute filter? The one that wanted access to your camera, your contacts, your location, and possibly your firstborn?

Yeah. The FBI noticed.

Last month, the bureau dropped a Public Service Announcement with a message for every smartphone user in America: some of your most popular apps may be quietly handing your personal data to the Chinese government. Yikes! Apps that maintain digital infrastructure in China are subject to that country’s national security laws – and those laws give the Chinese government the ability to access your data. Not hypothetically. Done deal.

China’s 2017 National Intelligence Law requires any organization or citizen to support, assist, and cooperate with state intelligence work. Companies don’t get to opt out.

Here’s where it gets personal. Some of these apps may collect your entire contact list – names, phone numbers, email addresses, physical addresses – of people who never even downloaded the app. Your Aunt Grace who is still on a flip phone? Her information might be in a database she’s never heard of.

And it gets sneakier. These apps can persistently collect data even when you only grant permission while the app is active. You said “only while using the app.” The app said “that’s adorable.”

The FBI also flagged the risk that some foreign-developed apps may contain malware designed to collect data beyond what users authorized – including hard-to-remove code that exploits known vulnerabilities and installs backdoors for escalated access. Double yikes!!

The FBI is not telling you to delete every app that wasn’t made in the USA. The warning isn’t a blanket instruction to stop downloading any apps from Chinese developers – but it IS telling you to stop sleepwalking through the install process.

Here’s what to actually do:

• Check your permissions. On iPhone, go to Settings > Privacy > Security and turn on App
• Privacy Report – it shows you which apps are accessing your camera, microphone, location, and contacts, and how often.
• On Android, go to Settings > Security & Privacy > Privacy > Permission Manager. Revoke anything that doesn’t make sense. A shopping app does not need your microphone.
• Only download from official stores. The FBI recommends reading the terms of service or end user license agreement (EULA) before downloading apps. I know. Nobody does this. At least skim for the words “third-party sharing” and “servers located in”. If you use an AI assistant, consider having them review the EULA for you! Make that robot work!
• Keep your phone updated. Every update. No excuses.
• Delete what you don’t use. If you haven’t opened it in six months, it’s not your app anymore. It’s just a tiny surveillance program you forgot about.

If you believe your data has been compromised or you’ve experienced suspicious activity related to a foreign-developed app, you can file a complaint at ic3.gov.

Stay safe out there, and maybe go check what TikTok has been doing with your contacts since 2021. I’ll wait.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Editor’s note: Rebecca Rutherford works in information technology at Los Alamos National Laboratory.