On privacy in user tracking mobile applications

In mobile applications, user tracking with Global Positioning System (GPS) can be very beneficial, making life easier for the user, by e.g. finding points of interest nearby, such as gas stations, super markets, restaurants etc. Nevertheless, the location of the user can be misused and hence privacy issues can become a relevant problem in mobile application development. Technically, location is determined either internally by the device or externally by interacting systems and networks. The resultant location information may be stored and used under various conditions and applications can track the position of the user without his/her consent and eventually misuse it for instance with the intent of sending redirected publicity or even getting logs of the user's location. However, the user's location may not always be obtained using the most precise location function available. In this work we discuss and propose different options for the accuracy geo localization in an application can be and uphold that it is up to the developer to decide which method is appropriate or that the the user should have the freedom to define his/her privacy thresholds. These thresholds can be extremely variable both between users and scenarios, and we present a survey to approach this issue. Results show that users are concerned with privacy issues, but they are not necessarily acting accordingly to keep their privacy at a high level of protection. Finally, we point out that developers shouldn't misuse possibilities of tracking and users should be more cautious with application permissions as will be shown in a real case study.