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ABSTRACT
The interface allows the user to search for an arbitrary application on the Play
Store; the permissions list and the privacy policy are then automatically
retrieved, whenever possible.
The user has then the ability of selecting a specific permission, and a list of
relevant sentences are extracted by the privacy policy and presented to them,
along with an accurate description of the permission itself.
Such an interface allows the user to quickly evaluate the privacy-related risks
of an Android application, by highlighting the relevant sections of the privacy
policy and by providing useful information about sensible permissions.
We presented a novel approach to the analysis of privacy policies in the
context of Android applications.
The tool we implemented greatly eases the process of understanding the
privacy implications of installing third party apps and it has already been
proven able to highlight worrisome instances of applications.
The tool is developed with expandability in mind, and further developments
in the approach can easily be integrated in order to increase the reliability and
effectiveness.
In addition, if your app handles personal or sensitive user data, please also
refer to the additional requirements in the “Personal and Sensitive
Information” section below.
These Google Play requirements are in addition to any requirements
prescribed by applicable privacy or data protection laws.
INTRODUCTION
Mobile devices of various operating systems have exhibited a steep increase in the
past decade, thus leading to an increase in the number and variety of applications
that run on mobile devices. Smartphones are recently used either in a
complementary manner to a desktop computer or even to replace it. A closer look at
the purpose of using mobile phones reveal that they are mostly used for web
browsing, social networking, and online banking. In addition, they are used for
mobile-specific functions such as SMS messaging, read-time broadcasting of
location, and ubiquitous access. As the capabilities in mobile phone functionality
increase (e.g., applications for personal health), mobile phones become more and
more attractive for a wider population. Market data surveys reveal that the number
of smartphone sales worldwide reached 208 million in 2012.
This was a 38.3% increase compared to the sales in 2011. The development of
smartphones and mobile applications has resulted in a major change in people’s
way of doing tasks in various aspects of daily life, such as making business and
conducting social communication. Mobile phone applications exhibit a rich variety
not only in common daily life activities but also for users with more specific needs.
From games to multimedia applications, navigation systems, and health-related
applications, recently available mobile application markets, such as Google’s Play
Market, Apple’s App Store, or Microsoft’s Windows Store offer a wide variety of
applications to users with different needs.
