Delete These 6 Apps if You Have Them on Your iPhone

TikTok

A hugely popular app that's been in the public eye lately is TikTok. While this app is mostly for watching silly videos and weird trends online, there have been many concerns about how it handles privacy.

The biggest security risk right now is the possibility that ByteDance, the company behind TikTok, could possibly share the data of its users with the Chinese government.  This data could include your location, preferences, watching and browsing history, and any identifiers you use on TikTok.

Additionally, some people are worried that, given the popularity of the app, some third parties might use it to spread misinformation in the US. It's telling that many government agencies, including New York City, have banned TikTok on employee's devices, and Montana is trying to outlaw it entirely.

Temu

At its core, Temu is a useful app that not many people will even worry about. However, the popular shopping might not be as safe as people think.

As it turns out, Temu collects a lot of information about you. According to Komando, some of the data Temu collects include:

• Your name, address, phone number, and birthday.
• Your picture and social media profiles.
• Your IP address.
• Your GPS location.
• Browsing data.
• The operating system of the device you're using.

Not only that, as the article says, Temu "also gathers more about you from third-party sources, including Temu sellers, public records, social media, data brokers, credit bureaus, and marketing partners."

Granted, a lot of this information you have to provide and even manually agree to share with Temu. With that said, since this app is from China, many people are worried that their data might be used for the wrong reasons. Plus, Temu's sister company, Pinduoduo, was caught earlier this year developing an Android app to exploit security vulnerabilities that would allow it to “monitor activities on other apps, check notifications, read private messages, and change settings.”

While there's no evidence that Temu is doing this, it still raises a red flag. If you're worried about sharing this much information, you should delete Temu now. 

Facebook

One of the most popular social media apps is also one of the most dangerous when it comes to keeping your privacy safe.

Meta, the company behind Facebook, has had its fair share of security breaches and controversies regarding its users' data.

There have been multiple reports of Meta and Mark Zuckerberg using the data on Facebook to make some profit. Some reports say that Facebook allowed third parties to check the private messages, contacts, information, and other details of its users. Not only that but there have been reports that Mark Zuckerberg himself has used Facebook data to help his friends.

Needless to say, Facebook doesn't feel as secure as it once was, and the same goes for Meta's other apps.

Messenger

Another app from Meta, Messenger, previously known as Facebook Messenger, is part of Facebook's portfolio of successful apps that may have leaked your data in the past.

Just like the Facebook app, there have been many reports pointing to the fact that Meta may have misused the data it gathered about you.

Reports say that Meta lets third-party companies get a hold of that information in order to sell you stuff. That means that they can know or understand when you're talking about a product or service you're interested in and all of a sudden, you'll start seeing ads about it.

Words with Friends

The extremely popular crossword game Words with Friends is fun, easy to play, and even addictive. So, we can't blame you if you're having trouble deleting it from your iPhone.

With that said, this game gathers a lot of information about you, and to be frank, a crossword app doesn't really need that type of data.

Some of the information it collects includes:

• Your name and username.
• Your birthday and your age.
• All the messages you've sent within the app.
• The contacts from your phone. 
• Your Facebook ID and email address.
• Your location.

Sure, some of this information might be useful. After all, how will you play with your friends if the app doesn't know which contacts are playing? However, it really doesn't need to get a hold of your messages and your location. 

If the game is addictive enough to make you want to share that data, then feel free to keep using it. If not, you might want to find a solid replacement.

WeChat

WeChat is one of the most popular instant messaging apps you'll find on your iPhone. You can talk and call people at a moment's notice, which makes it great to stay in touch with friends or family.

However, there's a tiny issue with this app. As it turns out, it's not as safe as you'd expect. For starters, the app doesn't offer end-to-end encryption for your messages.

Encrypting messages has become a staple in the instant messaging world, so it's weird to see that WeChat doesn't have this. To be fair, the app says it is the only messaging app to be certified by TRUSTe, which theoretically means the app is still safe to use. 

However, there have been reports in the past of people in China getting in trouble for speaking badly of the Chinese government when using WeChat. 

If they can easily access the messages of people in their own country, it's possible the company is also checking the messages of people all over the world. Even Forbes calls WeChat "China's Other Trojan Horse," with the first being TikTok. 

In Conclusion: Beware of the Apps on Your iPhone

As you can see from the list, most apps that have reportedly had security breaches and pose a threat to your privacy are social apps. Whether it's social media platforms or instant messaging apps, you can never be too safe.

Be sure to either delete these apps completely or be wary about what type of data the app can gather and what type of information you store in it.

Related: All-in-One Privacy App and How to Easily Opt-out From Data Brokers That Track You Online