Pokémon GO: Security Risk Averted With Update

By Ellie Drabnis on July 21, 2016

The smartphone application Pokémon GO has taken the world by storm as both iOS and Android users all across the United States have downloaded the app and have begun catching pocket monsters in real life.

http://static.pulse.ng/img

While the Pokémon themselves are not real, the people playing on the app are. And, so are the Google accounts that need to be linked to the application in order to play. That then poses the question, is Pokémon GO a security risk?

Well, before the recent update, it was thought to be because at least for iOS users, on their Google accounts it came up that Pokémon GO had full access when they had never granted such a thing or known that they had.

Pokémon GO access before the update (gizmodo.com).

However, Niantic Labs, the developer behind the app, was unaware of this issue and offered a public statement:

“We recently discovered that the Pokémon GO account creation process on iOS erroneously requests full access permission for the user’s Google account. However, Pokémon 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 request permission for only basic Google profile information, in line with the data that we actually access. Google has verified that no other information has been received or accessed by Pokémon GO or Niantic. Google will soon reduce Pokémon GO’s permission to only the basic profile data that Pokémon GO needs, and users do not need to take any actions themselves.”

Back on the subject of the Pokémon GO update, the app now only has basic access to the Google account of the user. The app specifically asks for view of one’s e-mail address and to “know who you are on Google.” Viewing a user’s e-mail address means that Google wants to see what e-mail address a user had decided to sign-in with, but they are not looking through a user’s e-mails, their personal information or selling that personal information in any way.

The app now only asks for basic access to the user’s info (screenshot from July 13th, 2016)

Now the, “[knowing] who you are on Google,” is different. In layman’s terms, Pokémon GO just wants to view your public Google profile and again, they are not going through your posts or anything of the sort.

screenshot I took

What the Pokémon GO app asks for since the update

Trainers, friends of trainers, and iOS and Android users alike, take a deep breath of relief. There is no security risk regarding Pokémon GO thanks to the update. Screenshot I took of what the Update includes

Now, get out there and catch ‘em all (within the limits of your phone data plans, of course).

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