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Developers: Beware of Ad Libraries that Betray Your Users’ Location Privacy

Across mobile platforms, advertising companies provide developers with software development kits (SDKs) that make it easy to monetize their apps.

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Aug 4, 2026 Source eff.org

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Across mobile platforms, advertising companies provide developers with software development kits (SDKs) that make it easy to monetize their apps. But those same SDKs can automatically feed users’ location data into ad systems that location data brokers use to track people. Many developers may not even be aware of this privacy violation, let alone the users who are directly affected. When developers let advertising SDKs collect location data, they’re putting users at risk of more than just creepy ads. Location information sourced from the advertising industry has been used for ICE investigations, global spy tools, outing a gay priest, tracking union organizers, and tracking US military personnel. Defaults matter, not just for users, but for app developers as well. An EFF investigation has identified several advertising SDKs that publicly acknowledge collecting and sharing users’ location by default when embedded in Android apps granted location permissions. Defaults matter, not just for

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