Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) is asking the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Apple and Google, charging that both steal users’ private contacts and photos without users’ consent, reports “Mashable” (http://macte.ch/jcR9K).
“These uses go well beyond what a reasonable user understands himself to be consenting to when he allows an app to access data on the phone for purposes of the app’s functionality,” Schumer says. “When someone takes a private photo, on a private cell phone, it should remain just that: private.”
Such usage violates both Apple’s and Google’s terms of service, Schumer argues. Apple hasn’t commented.