SMEX is warning that Israeli-linked software secretly embedded in Samsung phones across the MENA poses a serious surveillance threat.

A nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing human rights in digital spaces across West Asia and North Africa — is warning that Israeli-linked software secretly embedded in Samsung phones across the MENA region poses a serious surveillance threat.

According to SMEX, Samsung’s A and M series devices either come preloaded with the app “Aura” or install it automatically through system updates, without the user’s consent. The application reportedly collects a wide range of personal and device-specific data, including IP addresses, device fingerprints, hardware details, and network information.

​​In 2022, Samsung MENA partnered with Israeli tech company IronSource, integrating its Aura software into Galaxy A and M series phones across the region. The partnership was publicly marketed as a way to “enhance user experience” with AI-powered apps and content suggestions.

  • eldavi@lemmy.mlEnglish
    1·
    3 hours ago

    the phone i used was a redmi note 13 pro.

    i had it on tmobile prepaid for a little bit over year or so and i had the account since 2009 w 2 other chinese phones in the past. i tried switching to at&t in january and it worked for the first day, but then i got a text from at&t saying that my phone is no longer compatible and i had no signal. the store told me that the imea number had to be whitelisted and that i had to put in a request at their website. the signal reception sucked anyways, so i tried switching back to my old t-mobile account by popping in the sim, but it didn’t work either and the t-mobile store said that chinese phones aren’t allowed on prepaid anymore for “public safety”. (he literally used air quote fingers and rolled his eyes. lol)

    google recommended mvno’s to get around the ban, but they’re just as unaware as most that this is a thing in the united states; their websites still show that my redmi is compatible but i’ve literally tried them all and none have worked.

    chatgpt recommended getting around the ban by purchasing phones that share the same hardware like they do with oneplus, oppo, etc. and that was the approach i was going to take until i decided to get a fairphone and put eos on it instead.