Data is everything in the modern age, and if anyone has data on millions of people, they can use it to their advantage. The apps on our phones store a significant amount of our data. In this article, we will share 12 apps that keep tab on you even after you delete them.
One would assume that once they delete an app from their phone, all the permissions to access the location, contact list, gallery amongst other settings would be removed until you reinstall it or create your account again on the app. However, many apps continue to track users long after they have uninstalled them from their phones and even deleted their accounts.
A list of Apps that keep tabs on you :
Facebook collects the browsing data of its users and shows targeted ads. It continues to store and use this data long after account deletion. To stop this, the user can go to Facebook settings and clear history from the off-Facebook activity option.
Kind of data they collect: Browsing data
Google Maps
One of the most used apps, the Google Maps app, stores the location history of its users and creates a detailed map of the movements of the users over time. To delete this stored data –
Sign into your Google Account – Delete location history – Turn off Location Tracking.
Kind of Data they collect: Location history
Instagram keeps on its servers the photos uploaded by the users, the interactions like likes, comments and shares, which then helps Meta make a user profile from your digital footprint years after the account and app is deleted from the user’s phone. Request your data download and submit the request for account deletion. Your data will be permanently removed after 30 days.
Kind of data they collect: Photos and interaction
Spotify
Spotify maintains the listening history and preferences of its users on its servers long after the user deletes their account which is then used to influence the algorithms. Users can contact Spotify support for the complete deletion of their data.
Kind of data they collect: Listening habits
Uber
Trip history of users is collected by apps like uber. Uber retains information of their users, including their travel/trip history upto 7 years, which creates with the app, a record of your travel patterns. Users can contact Uber support for the complete deletion of their data.
Kind of data they collect: Trip history of the users.
Fitness Apps
Fitness apps tend to create a detailed health profile of their users. Users can request this data to be deleted from the records of these apps by requesting complete account and data deletion.
Kind of data they collect: Users’ health metrics, GPS
Shopping Apps
With the rise of digital shopping, users tend to browse through these apps alot, which gives these apps a lot of data regarding the browsing patterns and habits and ultimately the purchase history. All this information is then used to influence prices. Users can, however, contact the privacy team of these apps to have their complete purchase history deleted and in this manner, you can prevent your personal data from the shoppings apps that keep tab on you.
Kind of data they collect: Purchase history and browsing patterns
Dating Apps
Dating apps are also amongst the list of apps that keep tabs on you, as they tend to include your pictures and conversation history, which is stored on their server,s making the users personal information vulnerable. The users can request the complete deletion of their profiles through support options to make sure that their personal and sensitive data is not stored or is at risk of being potentially exposed.
Kind of data they collect: Pictures and personal information shared
Browser Apps
Everyone uses some or the other kind of browsing apps on their phones and other devices, and these apps tend to keep a history of the browsing data. You can clear the browsing data and reset everything by turning off the sync option across all devices.
Kind of data they collect: Browsing history
LinkedIn is used by professionals globally. It has your entire professional history, which includes your connection history too, amongst other things, if you are a user of the app. To delete this data, you can simply download your data archive first and then make a request for full account closure so that the information provided by you is not shared or sold to recruiters.
Kind of data they collect: Professional digital footprint
Netflix
Online Streaming Platforms tend to collect viewing history and preferences long after the user decides to stop using the app by deleting their account. This helps them with algorithms and analytics. However, you can request full data deletion of your entertainment watch history from their systems, which they use for making recommendations. You can also email them about getting your personal information deleted.
Kind of data they collect: Viewing history and preferences
Payment Apps
The apps that are used for making payments digitally store the users’ transaction history, and this is done for regulatory compliance and creates a financial profile of the user long after the user decides to stop using this app by deleting their account. Apps such as PayPal, for instance, maintain the transactional history of their users for up to 10 years, tracking their spending. This creates a financial profile for the user who believes that their account history will be deleted once they close their account.
Kind of data they collect: Transactional History
So what can the users do?
Managing the privacy of your data is key in the digital age. While the data that is collected for the purpose of regulatory compliance is for bigger reasons, you can still limit the kind of data you want to give the app permission to collect by changing and managing the privacy settings for each app by clicking on the ‘data & privacy’ option in the settings. In this way, you can protect yourself from these apps that keep tab on you long after you delete them from your phone.
Settings – Data and privacy – Manage your privacy settings – Request data deletion
This way, you can protect your data from marketing use.
