Privacy standards for smartphones reviewed

Privacy standards for smartphones reviewed _ Unique Times

Taiwan has identified 12 smartphone brands that do not conform with its privacy standards, and the handsets makers could face fines or even an outright ban unless they address these breaches, an official at the telecoms regulator said on Friday.

Taiwan’s government began to review privacy standards two months ago after media reports said smartphones made by Chinese firm Xiaomi Technology Co Ltd could be sending user data to its home servers in mainland China without users’ permission.

Hsiao-Cheng Yu, vice chairman of Taiwan’s National Communications Commision (NCC), did not name any of the 12 brands, but said the investigation found that some of these smartphones could allow their manufacturers to collect users’ data without their permission.

Others contained “imperfections” which do not conform with the law, Yu said, without elaborating.

The NCC’s findings will be released within weeks, he added.

Denisha Sahadevan