Apple and Google confirm governments spy on users through push notifications

A US senator asked the Department of Justice to let Apple & Google disclose how governments surveil users through push notifications

Apps rely on push notifications to alert smartphone users to incoming messages, breaking news, and other updates
Now, ALL notifications travel over Google & Apple's servers.

Because Apple and Google deliver push notification data, they are forced by governments to reveal this information.
This could tell governments how users interact with certain apps, give them access to a notification’s complete text, and disclose some unencrypted content.

Apple & Google confirmed that Government agencies have been spying on smartphone users through push notifications sent out by apps.

Apple said that the US Government stopped it from being transparent about the practice

Google & Apple have now updated their transparency reporting to detail these kinds of requests.

WASHINGTON : 

Senator Ron Wyden raised concerns on Wednesday about potential surveillance by unidentified governments targeting smartphone users through push notifications on apps, urging the Department of Justice to address this issue.  

Wyden highlighted that foreign officials were reportedly pressuring Google and Apple to provide data, although specific details were scarce. The letter outlined a new method for governments to potentially track smartphones, utilizing the pathway of push notifications.  

Push notifications serve as alerts for various app updates, messages, or news on smartphones. However, users often overlook the fact that these notifications typically traverse through Google and Apple servers. 

 This situation grants both companies unique access to the data flow between apps and their users, potentially facilitating government surveillance on specific app usage patterns, as per Wyden's concerns. 

The senator called for the Department of Justice to amend any policies restricting public discourse on this form of spying via push notifications.  Apple responded, noting that previous federal regulations prohibited them from disclosing information on this matter, but now they intend to update their transparency reporting to shed light on such requests. Google echoed a commitment to informing users about these types of inquiries.  

The Department of Justice refrained from commenting on push notification surveillance or any constraints placed on Apple and Google regarding this matter.  Wyden's letter referenced a "tip" as the source of information on surveillance via push notifications. While the tip's details weren't elaborated upon, a source familiar with the issue confirmed that both foreign and U.S. government agencies have requested metadata related to push notifications. 

These requests aimed to link anonymous messaging app users to specific Google or Apple accounts.  The source, declining to disclose the involved foreign governments, described them as allied democracies with the United States. However, the duration of such data collection remains unknown.  Despite push notifications being a routine part of app usage, they've drawn attention from tech experts due to the challenge of deploying them without inadvertently sending data to Google or Apple.

 French developer David Libeau previously highlighted the unawareness among users and developers about the data transmission to these tech giants via push notifications, labeling it as a "privacy nightmare."