How did this happen?

According to the report, most AI apps in the Google Play Store use an insecure encryption technique called “hardcoding,” which means that sensitive information (such as API keys and passwords) are stored directly in the app’s source code. Apparently, 72 percent of the apps analyzed contained at least one hard-coded “secret” in their code.

Meanwhile, 81 percent of the secrets discovered were related to Google Cloud projects and allowed third parties to access Google services. Some of these could be exploited through automated attacks.

This is a widespread problem that primarily affects newer apps that follow current trends. These apps end up in the Google Play Store without developers having had the opportunity to incorporate adequate security mechanisms. The typical reason for this is time pressure, as apps in the field of AI are developed quickly and rushed to market in order to keep up with the competition.

Apart from that, however, a large amount of data belonging to Facebook clients has also been leaked. In total, the Cybernews research team examined 1.8 million Android apps from the Google Play Store.

What is the risk for users?

This leaked data poses a particular risk when it’s linked to services that process financial, analytical, or customer data. API keys can be used, for example, to act on behalf of users, manipulate accounts, or falsify transaction histories.

You don’t need to worry that your conversations with LLMs like ChatGPT have been leaked. The APIs of these well-known services were largely unaffected, as they weren’t created with hardcoding.

But you do need to be aware that the security of most of these apps haven’t been improved even after leaks were detected. For many, the access points for attacks remain in place.

Here’s what this means for you: Always be careful when installing new apps from the Google Play Store, especially if they require you to disclose sensitive data about yourself. You can never know how well the developers have secured their own code.

At the end of the report, the researchers also state that it’s not only Android apps that are affected by this problem. Apps in the iOS App Store also show the same dangerous trend of secrets being hardcoded into apps. However, the sample size was significantly smaller here, with only 156,000 iOS apps examined (of which around 70 percent also contained at least one hardcoded secret).