2021-06-22 17:56:25
Vaccinated Android users in Massachusetts alarmed to wake up to automatically installed COVID tracking apphttps://reclaimthenet.org/massnotify-android/
Even devices that use parental controls to prevent app downloads have had the app forced.
Massachusetts recently released a contact tracking app for COVID-19, called MassNotifyApp, to track the spread of the virus in the state. But there's a big problem with the app; it's installing itself on Android devices without users' consent and even on devices with parental lockdown.
"Thank you MA / Google for silently installing
#MassNotify on my phone without consent. But I have a request: can you also silently install an app that makes my phone explode and kill me?" someone wrote on Twitter.
The story is perhaps one of the most egregious violations of an app during the pandemic. It also contradicts what Governor Charlie Baker, a Republican, said about the app; that it would be voluntary.
Launching the app last week, the governor said, "As we adopt our new normal, MassNotify is a free, voluntary tool to provide additional peace of mind to residents as they get back to doing the things they love."
The app, which Google and Apple helped develop, also claims that contact tracking is "completely anonymous, with no location tracking or exchange of personal information." It also claims that it does not share location data or any other personal information with Apple, Google, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, or any other entity.
But the claims directly contradict reality. The app had over 300 reviews on Saturday, most of them with one star due to its intrusive nature.
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