If you develop or have a mobile application and think the limited space of mobile devices gives you a pass on privacy disclosures, think again. The Federal Trade Commission – the nation’s Chief Privacy Agency – believes it is incumbent upon you to also be transparent with your app’s data collection.
The FTC’s concern stems from the substantial increase in the number of mobile devices and the fact that these devices are on most of the day. This allows for the collection of a significant amount of data considering that the devices are generally not far from their human counterparts.
The FTC has advised that privacy policies – or links to them – should be easily accessible to end users. The apps should also adopt just-in-time disclosures so that end users have the necessary information to make an informed decision before accepting the app. The FTC also encourages app developers to incorporate Do Not Track options into the apps.
Data privacy is a big issue and one that is only gaining in popularity amongst the various enforcement agencies. Mobile app developers and owners would be wise to take into account the FTC’s guideance when developing their apps.