Why TrueCaller Is the WORST attack on Your Privacy since Facebook
There are a handful of information about me that I consider to be Personal Sensitive Information (PSI). My home address, my birthdate, my picture, and my phone number among others.
You probably can guess my gripe with Truecaller now based on this article’s title and the last sentence. But if you assume that I only have an issue with my phone number being collected by Truecaller (without my direct consent) then you are wrong. It’s not only my phone number that they collect, it’s all the other information I mentioned: address, birthdate, and pictures, and maybe even more than that.
If you are using Truecaller you should be worried. If you are NOT using Truecaller you should be SUPER worried.
According to the Truecaller’s own website they collect their data in 3 different ways:
- Through partnerships with various directory providers globally — Ok, but WHICH providers?? Under which privacy laws are they governed, if at all? Are the clients of those directory providers consenting to their data being shared in this manner?
- Social networks — How unsurprising. Of course the…