Free Apps are More Likely to Invade User Privacy

In comparison to paid Apps, free Apps are more likely to infringe on the privacy of their users. This is according to a study carried out by network equipment manufacturer Juniper. For example, approximately 24 percent of Apps in the Google Play Store disclose the user’s position. Free applications are also considered three times more likely to access your address book. Similarly widespread is the clandestine initiation of background telephone calls. For this analysis, 1.7 million Apps from the Google Play Store were investigated by Juniper between March 2011 and September 2012.

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This chart shows the percentage of apps in the Google Play Store that have access to selectetd functions.

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Share of free and paid Android apps in the Google Play Store from June 2019 to October 2026
Handling of personal data among mobile apps for children in 1st quarter 2022, by app store
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Leading monetization method of highest-ranking mobile apps in the Google Play Store worldwide as of February 2022, by category
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Number of free and paid apps on the Google Play Store in 2nd quarter 2022, by category
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Google Play Store transparency and policy violation prevention in 2023
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Distribution of free and paid apps in the Apple App Store and Google Play as of October 2026

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