Study reveals smartphone spyware apps are hard to detect and remove

Smartphone spyware apps that allow people to spy on each other are not only hard to notice and detect, they also will easily leak the sensitive personal information they collect, says a team of computer scientists from New York and San Diego. 

While publicly marketed as tools to monitor underage children and employees using their employer’s equipment, spyware apps are also frequently used by abusers to covertly spy on a spouse or a partner. These apps require little to no technical expertise from the abusers; offer detailed installation instructions; and only need temporary access to a victim’s device. After installation, they covertly record the victim’s device activities — including any text messages, emails, photos, or voice calls — and allow abusers to remotely review this information through a web portal.

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