I recently read this article that states that iOS apps are riskier than Android apps. I make a point of not trusting news articles… I’m an Android developer, so I like hearing Android doing well. And it would be easy to just rejoice that Android is awesome, but instead I decided to look a little deeper.
First, the PCWorld article itself But let’s face it, Android @ 83% vs iOS @ 91% hardly makes me feel good. It is akin to saying, all your data is stolen 9 out of 10 times on iOS but only 8 out of 10 times on Android. So… you’re telling me all my data is stolen? Great.
Second, what does ‘risky’ even mean? So I decided to pull down the report and take a look myself. Here were the things they considered risky…
- Location Tracking
- Access Address Book
- Access Calendar
- Single Sign-On (via social network)
- Identify User (UDID)
- In-App Purchases
- Ad Networks
Really? These are the scary ‘risky’ behavior you are basing things off of? Some I would consider the price of wanting a free app (in-app purchases, ads). While others may be considered features, depending on the app function (location, address, calendar, single sign-on).
My conclusion? More FUD, carry on, there’s nothing to see here.