In the recent past, the process of creating a Pokémon Go account on iOS has been characterized by full access permission errors to the Google account of the user. However, it should be noted that, Pokémon Go can only access the Google basic profile information of the user specifically the email address and the user ID. It does not access or collect information from any other Google account. The minute the developer became aware of the error, they began working towards fixing it.
Google now says that there are no any other information details that has been accessed or received by Niantic or Pokémon Go. It is working to limit the permission of Pokémon Go so that it can access the basic profile information of the user it only requires. This means that, users have no reason to take actions by themselves.
It now appears that the game developer, Niantic Labs has successfully fixed the security problem. This issue was alleged that, it gave them a full access to Google accounts of users. The new update comes with a full fix to the issue that had raised a lot of privacy concerns specifically to the game’s iOS version.
The game caught the world by surprise over the weekend when it grabbed peoples’ attention making everyone to talk about it. Arguably the best Smartphone reality game in the market today, Pokémon Go allows the player to search, find and capture the Pokémon monsters such as Pikachu and Squirtle in real life. After its debut in Australia, New Zealand and the U.S., it was the most downloaded game soaring to the peak of download charts on Google Play and the iPhone App Store as well.
It all started when security specialists raised privacy issues. They said that, users who had signed up for the game through their Google accounts were at risk since the game had a full access to all of their details. Initially, this issue was brought up by a renowned principal architect from Red Owl known as Adam Reeve. He had posted on his personal blog warning users of a possibility by Niantic Labs to read their emails, send emails from their accounts, browse their search history and access their Google drive documents.
The developers responded by issuing a statement to a number of media outlets explaining that it only had access to email addresses and user IDs. According to the statement, Niantic Labs expressed its concern about the possibility of the game to issue erroneous full access permission requests to the Google accounts of the users especially the iOS users. The statement went ahead to explain that, the moment they knew about the error, they began work to fix the permission requests and allow for basic Google profile details only.
On its part, Google was quick to verify that no any other information that had been accessed or received by the developer or Pokémon Go. The statement also touched on the plans by Google to reduce the game’s permission to the basic profile information it needs only. It also stated that, there was no need for users to take any action whatsoever.
The craze on the Pokémon Go has literally swept the entire world. Only some days after its debut and Pokémon Go has been downloaded by many Android users compared to the old dating app, Tinder. According to statistics released by SimilarWeb, which analyzes web activity, the game has a daily activity similar to that of Twitter. However, the game’s popularity has some dark side where several reports have shown that teenagers are using it in armed robberies.
In addition, trainers or users have become too much involved in Pokémon Go to the extent of injuring themselves. This is evident from numerous reports on minor injuries that have occurred from the falling and tripping of the users when their eyes are glued on the screens. There is a case whereby, a girl aged 19 years discovered a body while trying to catch Pokémon. Currently, Pokémon Go has not been officially released in Canada, but users there have come up with ways to gain access to the app.
If you are an iOS user and have plans to download the game or you already have it, you do not have to worry about your Google account data being accessed by Pokémon Go. This is because the developer has finally provided users with an update to the software that will successfully resolve the security issue.
However, Niantic Labs had confirmed that the game cannot access all type of information tied to the Google account of a user and there is no any other information that concerns the user that had been compromised apart from the email address as well as the user’s Google ID. Many users had resolved to using a different Google account or completely uninstalling the app to prevent a possible information breach.
The game’s updates have been released on iOS App Store only and have not been availed on Google Play Store for Android Smartphone users just yet. The new update has successfully fixed the app permission issue and has addressed a problem that was forcing users to enter their password and username several times. This issue could forcefully close the game. In addition, the update has stabilized the Pokémon Training Club, fixed a number of crashes and account log-in is now easier.
Conclusion
The fact that there are more people actively using this game on a daily basis compared to Twitter and Tinder, it is great news to witness the ongoing efforts by Niantic Labs to bring updates to users to ensure the game’s optimal performance.
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