‘Pokemon Go’ issues: Dev responds to privacy issues, new malware spotted
“Pokemon Go” may be the biggest thing to hit mobile gaming—and it’s about to hit even harder once it gets released to other countries. But it seems that there is also a catch when using the app.
Specifically, there are two issues recently spotted, one of which developer Niantic Labs has already responded to. This issue involves the alleged iOS linked accounts for those who played “Pokemon Go” on iOS devices.
Previous reports have suggested that signing in to one’s Google account while using the iOS phone with the “Pokemon Go” title may have led to allowing the app to access some information via the Google account.
The fear was that Niantic or those with access to the servers may be able to access all of the files in the email, Google Drive, search history and even the Google photos, Engadget reported. Thankfully, the developer has gotten in touch with the publication and confirmed that it will be reducing access soon enough.
“’Pokemon Go only accesses basic Google profile information (specifically, your User ID and email address) and no other Google account information is or has been accessed or collected. Once we became aware of this error, we began working on a client-side fix to requeset permission for only basic Google profile information, in line with the data that we actually access,” said Niantic to Engadget.
The developer did confirm that though the game does not access crucial information at the moment, the fix will still take place. While this does bring some iOS users some reassurance, Android device users still need to take precaution for the APK they may be installing.
Since “Pokemon Go” is not yet out in several areas, there is supposedly an APK that one can access to side-load the app early on, VG 247 reported. This is where the problem starts, since an indirect APK code that’s officially not from the Google Play Store can have malware.
The source showcases some screenshots that marks permissions that “Pokemon Go” players should be wary of. If they are present, it's best to remove the app. Hopefully, “Pokemon Go” will be released in more areas. For now, it’s currently available in Australia, New Zealand and the U.S., with expected releases for the U.K., Europe and Japan soon.
