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Google and Apple remove alleged UAE spy app ToTok https://t.co/BOc3ufA8PV
— Hassan Hassan (@hxhassan) December 23, 2019
?My favorite voice call app is gone.
— Ssuna Ronald (@OfficialSsuna) December 23, 2019
Google and Apple have removed an Emirati messaging app called ToTok amid claims that it is used for state spying. https://t.co/7sf9dMWly8
애플, 토톡 앱이 UAE 정부 감시 도구로 사용된다는 보도 후 이 앱 앱스토어에서 삭제.
— Wan Ki Choi (@wkchoi) December 23, 2019
- NYT, 어제 인기있는 메시징 앱 토톡이 UAE 정부의 감시 도구로 사용되고 있다고 보도
- 이 앱, 엔드-투-엔드 암호 사용하지 않아 회사가 모든 메시지 자유롭게 읽을 수 있어https://t.co/q5s1k2goHA
ほら来たhttps://t.co/RWUepxsapN via @NYTimes
— モーリー・ロバートソン (@gjmorley) December 23, 2019
New York Times reporters were told that this popular messaging app was secretly an Emirati spy tool. They asked Apple and Google for comment. Both removed it from their app stores https://t.co/VJFx2VIQdp
— Amy Fiscus (@amyfiscus) December 22, 2019
"It is billed as an easy and secure way to chat by video or text message with friends and family.
— #AJ #Grassroots Activist/#Centre-Left (I) (@SJW_ForAll) December 23, 2019
ToTok, is actually a spying tool used by the government of the UAE to try to track every conversation of those who install it on their phones."?
https://t.co/xd9a2bvG2z
Delete the messaging app #ToTok! Gov't of #UAE uses the app as a spy tool to track every conversation, movement, relationship, appointment, sound & image of the millions of people who install it on their phones. https://t.co/cG0fps58xz#FLDDigitalProtection #Digital_Protection pic.twitter.com/rWklNJJnpf
— Front Line Defenders (@FrontLineHRD) December 23, 2019
"the company is run by Andrew Jackson, an Irish data scientist who previously worked at Palantir, a Silicon Valley firm that works with the Pentagon and American spy agencies" https://t.co/MtedgNUxYR
— Jacob Silverman (@SilvermanJacob) December 22, 2019
ToTok claims it was removed from the Apple and Google stores for a “technical issue.” It was removed because of our story: https://t.co/xCNqD0EGhH pic.twitter.com/flXDhsiWst
— Nicole Perlroth (@nicoleperlroth) December 23, 2019
We wish people would understand what's actionable *for them* in this sort of story: If an app asks for overly broad permissions, uninstall it. Yes, no matter how cool the thing it promises to do is.https://t.co/3TaITspTy1
— Irenes (many) (@ireneista) December 22, 2019
ToTok, a messaging app that as of last week was one of the most popular in the Apple and Google stores, is billed as a secure way to chat by video/text message with friends/family
— Yashar Ali ? (@yashar) December 22, 2019
But it turns out that it's actually a spying tool for Emirati intelligencehttps://t.co/z6cUmatgm7
New: A massively popular app that has been downloaded millions of times is actually an Emirati spy tool @MarkMazzettiNYT and I confirmed. https://t.co/AO3rkENYmh
— Nicole Perlroth (@nicoleperlroth) December 22, 2019
スカイプやWhatsAppが制限されている国で人気のあるチャットアプリのToTokは、実はUAEのスパイソフトだったとNYT。これまでUAEは米国やイスラエルの企業と組んで情報を集めようとしていたが、アプリを使う方が効率的と開発したものとのこと。 https://t.co/mtrG1sLlXX
— Kazuto Suzuki (@KS_1013) December 23, 2019
'A technical analysis and interviews with computer security experts showed that the firm behind ToTok, Breej Holding, is most likely a front company affiliated with DarkMatter, an Abu Dhabi-based cyberintelligence and hacking firm' https://t.co/YtEmJTpp1q
— Kristian Ulrichsen (@Dr_Ulrichsen) December 22, 2019
The UAE created a messaging app just to spy on people who use it. ToTok has been downloaded millions of times including in the US. https://t.co/ac6nE5kPMf
— Liz Sly (@LizSly) December 23, 2019
It Seemed Like a Popular Chat App. It’s Secretly a Spy Tool. https://t.co/1n6phZY1zO
— Senator John Cornyn (@JohnCornyn) December 23, 2019
Delete #TOTOK NOW “ToTok, is actually a spying tool, It is used by the government of the #UAE to try to track every conversation, movement, relationship, appointment, sound and image of those who install it on their phones” https://t.co/i3qXY5h79c
— ود البيه (@khalidalbaih) December 22, 2019
The “Year of Tolerance” ends with a malicious app. https://t.co/E7PgBTgTxf
— Walid Alhathloul| وليد الهذلول (@WalidAlhathloul) December 23, 2019
The Conversation ends with a guy in 1974 shredding what's left of his life because of his fear someone might have planted a listening device in his apt. in 2019 we all just walk around with like 15 different intelligence agencies in our pocket https://t.co/1bmtqHNdli
— Christopher Hooks (@cd_hooks) December 23, 2019
From the @nytimes newsroom: "ToTok is a cleverly designed tool for mass surveillance," @MarkMazzettiNYT, @nicoleperlroth and @ronenbergman report https://t.co/1gEVN0F7fH
— Privacy Project (@PrivacyProject) December 23, 2019
If the UAE is such a stable/moderate/liberal/tolerant (bla, bla, bla) political system -- that US officials frequently cite as a model for the Arab world -- why does have to go to such extreme lengths to monitor its own citizens? https://t.co/Q2Xn3g1pZB @sarahleah1 @JamalsNews
— Nader Hashemi (@naderalihashemi) December 23, 2019
This is really really really bad. “It has access to users’ microphones, cameras, calendar and other phone data.” Basically, spyware... https://t.co/vqrATwdLhZ
— John Panzer (@jpanzer) December 22, 2019
“..the firm behind ToTok, Breej Holding, is most likely a front company affiliated with DarkMatter, an Abu Dhabi-based cyberintelligence and hacking firm ... DarkMatter is under F.B.I. investigation” https://t.co/83JUkfNe0U
— Omar Kassim (@okassim) December 23, 2019
Piece says the app has been downloaded millions of times, but considering this was an intel operation wonder how many of those downloads were from real users and how many were to boost app ratings/perception of legitimacy.
— Joseph Cox (@josephfcox) December 22, 2019
Still managed to jump the fence into Apple’s walled garden... https://t.co/re4GOBu7Qn
— Callum Jones (@callumj) December 23, 2019
delete the sketchy thing ?https://t.co/FqC7YY603a
— Lily Hay Newman (@lilyhnewman) December 23, 2019
In retrospect...took nation/states a long enough time to get into this business. We really do need some form of new clearance house for this stuff. And you can’t trust the national regulators. https://t.co/WO2ZXqLmFh
— Keep It Surly (@surlyurbanist) December 22, 2019
ToTok is billed as a secure chat app, but it’s a spying tool used by the UAE government to track every convo, movement, relationship, and image of people who installed it on their phones. https://t.co/BDx73gHLZc
— Hunter Schwarz (@hunterschwarz) December 22, 2019
nyt reports that an app, "ToTok," downloaded millions of times on android and iphones is actually a secret spying app developed by notorious emirati spyware developer darkmatter https://t.co/My9xiWfh5k
— William Turton (@WilliamTurton) December 22, 2019
We regret to inform you the duck is a CIA operative https://t.co/jnNMTiEgnF
— tinybaby (@tinybaby) December 22, 2019
ToTok, an increasingly popular chat app, turns out to be a spying tool for the Emirati government. Map contacts, location, etc it users. “Unclear whether ToTok allows the Emiratis to record video or audio calls of its users.” https://t.co/Ye72redJ1a
— Joseph Cox (@josephfcox) December 22, 2019
Wait, I thought It spied for China? Maybe it’s a double agent. Wait. ToTok? Tic-tac ? Which are the mints? https://t.co/CXXLLfvKoI
— Larry Rosenthal (@LarryRosenthal) December 22, 2019
I feel like it's time for verified apps. https://t.co/MSPZVRrSJD
— Molly McKew (@MollyMcKew) December 23, 2019
Users searching for TikTok, downloading UAE spyware instead: https://t.co/dPIU2tLrRf pic.twitter.com/uxSBWYaZ5v
— Chris Messina (@chrismessina) December 23, 2019
This reporting entailed a ton of work and helped cut off Emirati surveillance of millions, including Americans. If you can’t read it, please consider a subscription to the @nytimes Its journalism like this that I’m so proud and grateful to do. https://t.co/dUHl4CyVru
— Nicole Perlroth (@nicoleperlroth) December 22, 2019
Tick tock, ToTok https://t.co/UNS1Uah686
— Mandy Stadtmiller ? (@mandystadt) December 22, 2019
I’ve been thinking for awhile that we will likely come to see this time in history as a world war. We’re in a cyberpunk timeline now https://t.co/fc255H0t1l
— Brooke Binkowski (@brooklynmarie) December 22, 2019
State sponsored mass data abuse camouflaged by all the regular commercial mass data abuse hidden in everyday apps #DeleteToTok https://t.co/Dpzln1Hb5e pic.twitter.com/zgAgBSsuIm
— David Carroll ? (@profcarroll) December 23, 2019
Incredible long con by the UAE.
— Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai (@lorenzofb) December 23, 2019
First they outlawed and blocked WhatsApp, Skype, and other VoIP/chat apps.
Then they launch their own app, that of course EVERYONE instala because there’s no alternative.
This is the future of surveillance. https://t.co/0GRFeQQlO5
If you’re one of the hundreds of thousands of people who downloaded ToTok, delete the app immediately. It’s likely a surveillance tool that can funnel data to the government of the United Arab Emirates https://t.co/L1eaNvzGVH
— WIRED (@WIRED) December 23, 2019
1. "ToTok" lol
— Jennine (@jennineak) December 22, 2019
2. The Emirati government is trying to track every conversation, movement, relationship, appointment, sound and image of those who've got the app on their phone
3. The likely firm behind it employs former Israeli military spies and NSA spies https://t.co/VKeVeQuPXl pic.twitter.com/8729wJ8mE1
NEW: the popular messaging App ToTok, one of the most-downloaded in Apple and Google app stores during the last months, is in fact, a sophisticated hacking tool used by the government of the UAE .
— Ronen Bergman (@ronenbergman) December 22, 2019
W\ @MarkMazzettiNYT @nicoleperlroth https://t.co/YUMHVsRA4C
For all of our military spending, why the HELL are American citizens so consistently vulnerable to:
— Brianna Wu (@BriannaWu) December 23, 2019
✅ electronic surveillance
✅ cyberwarfare
✅ information warfare
Our information and communication infrastructure is the 21st century battle space, and civilians are combatants. https://t.co/hz7C0ooTit
So TikTok... glad I never installed that. I’m only selling records and music related business, but still, if a new app shows up you can bet it is there to mine data or worse. In the case of TikTok, worse.https://t.co/GIfthvwoCb
— dB Kooper (@rezzyredhonky) December 23, 2019
#App#Chat#ToTok
— EMPIntelligenceNet© (@Megavolts001) December 23, 2019
Popular chat app ToTok is reportedly secret United Arab Emirates spying tool
If this app is on your phone, uninstall it nowhttps://t.co/YsbOgihc0P
Popular chat app ToTok is reportedly secret United Arab Emirates spying tool https://t.co/0eFeJhV5Pk pic.twitter.com/eddDxMrNyg
— The Verge (@verge) December 23, 2019
Good morning. @OrtaineDevian @BIBBI02374449 @carmindabrendel UAE spying ? https://t.co/SNDpFARW0K
— Just_Listening (@JustLis71565329) December 23, 2019
#totok (and a few others) have always been #spy #apps. Now it’s come to light. Always research when you download apps, if only just to know where you stand. https://t.co/ahif4TuKVM
— ??????? ????????, ???. (@mellyventures) December 23, 2019
Citing American officials as sources, the NYT reported that ToTok (not to be confused with TikTok) gives UAE spies access to citizen's conversations, movements, and other personal information like photos. https://t.co/jl9ebonfkP
— Wardah Khalid (@wardahkhalid_) December 24, 2019
Google and Apple remove alleged UAE spy app ToTok https://t.co/bl3RXkVGZx
— Richard Hine (@richardhine) December 23, 2019
Looking through the glass front doors & out mirrored back doors of mass societal surveillance technology: When a popular chat app downloaded by millions quietly captures one’s digital life as a subversive Trojan Horse spy tool from the inside out—for free. https://t.co/ykWUEwURt3
— Thomas Drake (@Thomas_Drake1) December 23, 2019
Popular chat app #ToTok is actually a #spying tool of #UAE government!
— blackorbird (@blackorbird) December 24, 2019
The relationship behind is complicated:
ToTok->Breej Holding->DarkMatter->Pax AI->Emirates’ signals intelligence agency!
Permission King↓!
report:https://t.co/3V3B9Yq6xC
APK download:https://t.co/iFFp1UHdGf pic.twitter.com/4DHzpUuHRD
It Seemed Like a Popular Chat App. It’s Secretly a Spy Tool https://t.co/jc4GOUHtwt
— Whitney Merrill (@wbm312) December 22, 2019
It Seemed Like a Popular Chat App. It’s Secretly a Spy Tool. https://t.co/YsIjtKm5qA
— Office of the Privacy Commissioner (@NZPrivacy) December 22, 2019
TikTok and now ToTok -
— Daniel W. Dieterle (@Cyberarms) December 24, 2019
I mean, from an intelligence point of view, it just makes sense - You get location, videos, personal texts, relationships - a treasure trove of info. https://t.co/OwLgbQ8gvp
nyt reports that an app, "ToTok," downloaded millions of times on android and iphones is actually a secret spying app developed by notorious emirati spyware developer darkmatter https://t.co/My9xiWfh5k
— William Turton (@WilliamTurton) December 22, 2019
It Seemed Like a Popular UAE-made Chat App. It’s Secretly a Spy Tool. Its maker hired Israeli hackers even though the 2 countries were once enemies. https://t.co/MkpG4cZvtm
— Tikun Olam (@richards1052) December 23, 2019
The United Arab Emirates says it's "a modern, moderate Arab nation" but it uses technology to suppress dissent, "hacking Western journalists, emptying the banking accounts of critics, and holding human rights activists in prolonged solitary confinement." https://t.co/j2cBvF0VS2 pic.twitter.com/gudhm1WQao
— Kenneth Roth (@KenRoth) December 23, 2019
The #UAE is becoming a cyber powerhouse with ambitions that conflict with our Western interests - Totok is used by the UAE to try to track every conversation, movement, relationship, appointment, sound and image of those who install it on their phones https://t.co/nM3f6MjotM
— Dr Andreas Krieg (@andreas_krieg) December 23, 2019
ToTok is a spying tool according to American officials and a NYT investigation.
— Amarnath Amarasingam (@AmarAmarasingam) December 22, 2019
“It is used by the UAE to try to track every conversation, movement, relationship, appointment, sound and image of those who install it on their phones.” https://t.co/88NM18Imx8
ToTok, an Emirati messaging app that has been downloaded to millions of phones, is the latest escalation of a digital arms race. It is used by the government of the UAE to try to track every conversation, movement, relationship, appointment, sound & image https://t.co/qTr9IG1pWJ
— Robert Went (@went1955) December 24, 2019
Delete the Scammy 'ToTok' App, and Use It As a Lesson in Avoiding Spyware https://t.co/whfUQUXDI4 #lifehacker #android
— Derek Ross (@derekmross) December 23, 2019
#ToTok is a UAE spying tool, say US officials. Delete it now. https://t.co/bJWGXKekvZ
— JarOCats™ ?️????? (@Jar_O_Cats) December 24, 2019
UAEを中心として、米国でもけっこうな人気を集めたメッセンジャーアプリが、実はUAE政府による監視を目的としていたことが判明した、そうですが、「ToTok」ってすごい名前ですね…。
— SAKASHITA Hirosi (@SakasitaHirosi) December 24, 2019
なお同国は一般的なメッセンジャーアプリが一部ブロックされる環境です。https://t.co/XPX99I2CIE
Popular chat app ToTok is reportedly secret United Arab Emirates spying tool https://t.co/p3ldOfAgsC
— The Cyber Security Hub (@TheCyberSecHub) December 23, 2019
Popular chat app ToTok is reportedly secret United Arab Emirates spying toolhttps://t.co/0VcJgxvQdv#cybersecurity #infosec #security
— Vishal Sharma (@vishne0) December 24, 2019
Popular chat app ToTok is reportedly secret United Arab Emirates spying tool https://t.co/gm6GVsCXHh #privacy #security
— Rob Viglione (@robviglione) December 23, 2019
The popular ToTok app, downloaded millions of times, is actually a spy tool for the UAE government, per a report. It's a mass surveillance tool, capable of monitoring every conversation, movement, relationship, appointment and image of its users. LATEST: https://t.co/436kHtk4eR pic.twitter.com/txwzGt054p
— CBS Los Angeles (@CBSLA) December 23, 2019