DuckDuckGo wants to stop apps tracking you on Android

DuckDuckGo is rolling out a tool to allow users of its Android app to block hidden trackers on their devices. It said that its “App Tracking Protection for Android” feature would help reduce the targeted advertising that Android users see. The idea is we block this data collection from happening from the apps the trackers don’t own,” said Peter Dolanjski, a director of product at DuckDuckGo.

“You should see far fewer creepy ads following you around online. This will provide Android users with a similar experience to Apple’s “App Tracking Transparency” feature, allowing users to opt out of data tracking within apps. The tool is available through DuckDuckGo’s private browser application but will work across your device. DuckDuckGo said the tool would block “trackers it identifies in other apps from third-party companies”.

The company also said that the tool causes your device to behave like a virtual private network (VPN).

“This is because App Tracking Protection uses a local ‘VPN connection’ which means that it works its magic right on your smartphone,” DuckDuckGo explained. However, App Tracking Protection is different from VPNs because it never routes app data through an external server. According to DuckDuckGo, more than 96% of some of the most popular Android apps contain trackers of which users are unaware.

Source: mybroadband

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