A Snapchat notification twinkles out at you from the phone. It’s midterms week and you’re craving a break from studying. Before you can open up the (probably very funny) “snap” your best friend sent you, an ad for something called SnapNSave pops up. “Save and view snaps as many times as you like,” reads the app’s description. You think to yourself, What a great idea!
But little do you know, the Snapchat you’re about to save will be hacked and exploited like the other 500Mb of photos that were just stolen by this app.
Legitimate third-party applications can offer entertainment or functionality. But use caution when you decide to enable any application on a device. Avoid applications that seem too good to be true, or significantly change the operation of a trusted app. Also, adjust your settings to limit the amount of information an application can access.
Read more about third-party app risks in this article from FireEye.
By Nicole Kagan, Fordham IT News Editor