Gadgets and gizmos

If you have an Evo 3D or Thunderbolt phone then you will want to know about the latest HTC Android security findings.

It seems that any app you put on the phone with internet permissions can get into your contact details and your email account among other things and then send it off to someone else. That’s right, any old app which can access the internet can spirit away the most private details on your phone.

The research into this matter was released in the Android Police blog and the issue seems to be down to a recent update which causes HTC devices to bring together a lot of the most sensitive information on the phone. An app which has internet permission then just has to grab the info on these files and whisk it off to the malicious person looking to use it.

This means then even a cheeky little game or a sports news app could lead to your contact’s phone numbers, your text messaging history and your GPS data being accessed by other people. It was even suggested on the blog that it is “theoretically” possible to clone the phone with the stolen information.

The person who brought this issue out in to the open is called Trevor Eckhart and he said that he has heard nothing back from HTC after telling them his concerns before he put the story onto the blog. The company’s subsequent response was that they take their “customers’ security very seriously” and are “working to investigate” the issue. Which sounds like a bit of flim flam to us but let’s hope that they are genuinely on the job and that they will get any changes done as quickly as possible.

They need to get things sorted out very quickly and protect the information of the people who use their devices.