A player catches Metapod on Pokémon GO in the public (Photo : YouTube / UnlistedLeaf)
Pokémon GO has swept nations even if it hasn't been rolled out to all of the regions yet but there have been rising concerns regarding the privacy of users due to the excessive app permissions.
Android and iOS users know that every time an app is installed on their devices, they need to grant it certain permissions first. In this case, Pokémon GO has been found to have full access to a user's Google account.
It means that Niantic Labs' app can access a Pokémon GO player's Gmail and Google+ account. They could probably read their emails and search through them.
Fortunately, Niantic themselves confirmed that the excessive permissions of their app was just erroneous. The company said that they will be fixing Pokémon GO's app requests for both Android and iOS platforms and they will be coordinating with Google to resolve the problem, Ars Technica has learned.
In addition, Niantic said that Google already confirmed that they did not access the users' accounts even if they were able to. The search engine giant will be reducing the app permissions of the popular AR game.
Earlier reports have claimed that the Pokemon GO app is a gold mine for hackers due to the permissions it was granted by users. One right man in the middle attack and hackers can instantly access the Google accounts, where they can search for passwords or even use to gain access to other accounts.
Niantic said that they did not access or collect any information from Pokemon GO users but they do access some data which they have not specified, Polygon reported. However, that does not prevent the Pokemon GO APK files that users download from third-party sites from containing malware that could do more damage to their files and accounts.
Several reports have shown that researchers found out that some of the Pokemon GO app files in the wild contain malware that can grant hackers remote access to their phone's files and accounts even without their consent or knowledge. Even the official Pokemon GO Twitter account announced that players should only download the app from the Google Play Store or the Apple iTunes app store.
Trainers, only install Pokémon GO via the Play Store or App Store. Downloads from other sources may contain malware or viruses.
— Pokémon GO (@PokemonGoApp) July 11, 2016
Pokémon GO is now available in the United States, New Zealand and Australia. The international rollout for United Kingdom, Japan and the rest of the world has been pushed back due to the huge number of players still trying to access Niantic Lab servers.
