Specialists from URL Genius published a large study of mobile applications and found out which of them collect the most user data. TikTok turned out to be the "Leader" among social networks, and the most trackers were identified in the category 'Newspapers and magazines'.
The study was conducted using the built-in iOS application activity recording function, which allows you to track which domains applications interact with. The specialists emphasized that in most cases, applications communicate not only with their own networks, but also with third-party networks, the origin of which is difficult to determine. Researchers' attention was drawn to 200 popular apps from 20 App Store categories.
The study was conducted on iOS devices and all installed applications were not prohibited from collecting user data. Each application started once with minimal interaction and then closed. The researchers did not go through the authorization process and rejected all forms of account creation. The reports were recorded on screenshots and recorded all the data in one dataset.
General results of the study:
most of all trackers appeared in applications of the category “Newspapers and magazines”, while 93% of domains belong to third-party resources;
the ranking of "leaders" by total number of online contacts is as follows - iHeartRadio (56 contacts), Wall Street Journal (48), ESPN (42), Popeyes (42) and WattPad (36);
apps with the fewest online contacts include Whatsapp (1), Zoom (2), MyChart (2), DuckDuckGo (3) and Bank of America (3);
DuckDuckGo (100% of contacts with own services), Google Play Books (100%), Google Classroom (100%), Microsoft Onenote (100%), Google Drive (88%) contact third-party domains the least.
Results in the category "Social networks":
n total, we analyzed 10 popular apps from the category, including YouTube, TikTok, Telegram, Whatsapp, and Snapchat;
6 contacts is the average number of online contacts for apps in the category. 60% of them are third-party domains, 40% are their own domains;
YouTube and TikTok have the most interactions with external networks, with 14 contacts per app. At the same time, YouTube has 10 of them related to its own resources and 4 to third-party resources, while TikTok has 13 third-party resources and 1 its own;
Facebook, Snapchat, Messenger and Whatsapp make one contact each.
Results in the category "Newspapers and magazines":
a total of 10 popular apps from the category were analyzed, including HBR Global, Cosmopolitan, Time Magazine, The New York Times, and Wall Street Journal;
on average, 28 contacts were found in applications: 93% - with third-party services, 7% - with their own;
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) app had the most connections, with 48 contacts, with 45 (94%) of those being third-party;
WIRED Magazine has the fewest contacts — 8.
Results for the category "News":
a total of 10 popular apps from the category were tested, including CNN, Washington Post, NBC News, NPR, and Foxs News;
on average, there were 22 contacts in applications: 90% - with third-party networks, 10% - with their own;
CNN installed the most contacts — 34 contacts, with 29 (85%) of them related to third-party resources;
SmartNews has the smallest number of contacts - 8.
Results for the category "Food and Drinks":
n total, we analyzed 10 popular apps from the category, including Popeyes, Publix, McDonald’s, DoorDash, and Uber Eats;
average number of contacts - 19: 92% with third-party domains, 8% with their own;
Popeyes links to 42 domains, which puts him at the top of the list. All domains are third party;
Uber Eats has the fewest contacts — 4.
Results for the category "Entertainment":
a total of 10 popular apps from the category were tested, including Hulu, Disney+, Netflix, Ticketmaster, HBO Max;
an average of 20 contacts per application: 69% - third-party services, 31% - own;
Hulu has the most connections with 31. Three-quarters of nicknames are directed to third-party domains;
Netflix has the fewest connections with 9.
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