If you have ever found yourself marveling why an application requires access to a microphone when there seems to be no logical reason why you should look for sounds in your environment, consider that thought and take a closer look at the T & Cs .
Because it could happen that espionage is exactly what the creators of the application have in mind.
Namely: La Liga, an application for Spanish football fans who was discovered using the microphone access combined with the exact GPS position of Android users to listen to the environment of the people during the times of the games, in the attempt to capture the bars that may not have a license to broadcast the game you're watching.
While surveillance capitalism leaves, it is a diabolically creative modification of its users as, well, unintentional spies and voluntary alerters.
It is also, of course, a terrible human behavior. Behavior that earned La Liga much criticism of a star for the Android application, in the line of "this application makes you a police whistle without you noticing it" and "I'll tell you through the microphone and the GPS". Trash can. Do not install. "
The spy function has arisen largely as a result of the new EU data protection framework, GDPR, which requires application vendors to explain more precisely what they do with people's data. Ergo, La Ligo users began to notice what the application wanted to do and discuss and report in social networks, where it became a trendy topic, as reported by El País.
In a statement on its website in response to the informers scandal, the League defends its writing actions that has "the responsibility to protect the clubs and their fans" unlicensed broadcasts performed in public places, claiming that such activity involves loss about 150 million euros a year from the league.
It is also specified that the function is implemented only in its Android application, stating that it appears to have been active only since June 8th. He also says that it is used only in Spain.
The Lega also claims that the spy feature is only used to detect football broadcasts without a license. (According to his explanation of how it works, the captured audio is converted locally into an irreversible binary code and says that "never access the content of the recording").
Other technical measures implemented to limit the use of the function means that the Liga only activates the microphone and the geolocation of the mobile application devices of the application during the time intervals of the competing parties on its team. So, tl, dr, the league is only spying at a time.
He also defends himself by stating that information on the spy and the information function is provided to users in a transparent manner and in particular they request consent for people and can choose not to allow or revoke them at any time.
Although the description of the application in the Google Play Store does not include some features listed, such as "minute-by-minute comments" and "times, scores, positions" and "notifications and alerts in real time from the beginning". "-" Activate the microphone to sniff during playtime "... It's fun.
According to Google Play Store statistics, the La Liga app has had more than 10 million downloads to date.