It is far too much work to adjust the privacy options on each and every app we have installed on our mobile devices. The majority of users simply accept the permissions that pop-up after they install an app without taking a moment to think of why they may need them. Later, they don’t even worry about what these downloaded programs do with the access.
Investigators at Carnegie Mellon University have developed an intelligent system that is capable of controlling privacy options without trying. The goal is to manage preferences automatically, benefitting the users who share certain information with social media, games or instant messaging services.
The objective is to manage user privacy options automatically.
After users fill out a questionnaire about the apps they use, the privacy assistant can determine what primary group the user belongs to after thanks to Machine Learning algorithms and response analysis. After, the app’s job is to adjust the privacy options on all of the programs that follow those established patterns.
Additionally, Carnegie Mellon’s system advises the user when the application use their location or other relevant data. This information will increase user awareness of their privacy adjustments and they will feel more comfortable knowing that their apps do not access more information than they should.
Users feel more comfortable knowing that permissions on their device are well managed.
The application will be available on Google Play at the end of summer. At the moment, this application assistant will only work with rooted Android devices and we will have to wait a little longer for it to be available for the rest of smartphones and operating systems.