Duo Mobile is a cybersecurity app that helps you protect your identity from hackers in the online world. I am not talking about Google Duo here, some people confuse the Google Duo app with Duo mobile app. Both are different apps, one is used for video calling while the other is used for cybersecurity.
Being a cybersecurity app, Duo Mobile needs some permissions from you while you are installing the app on your phone. It requires these permissions so that it can protect your cell phone from all kinds of threats.
However, providing so many permissions to an app makes people suspicious of it. And therefore they ask questions like “is Duo a spy app?” or “is Duo a tracking app?”. If you also have these questions in mind then keep reading the article. Here you will know whether Duo is a safe app or not.
Is Duo Mobile A Spy App?
To tell if the Duo app is a spyware, you must know what permission the Duo app requires on your phone.
TikTok is considered a spy app by many just because it collects a lot of data on your device by accessing lots of permissions. Duo Mobile also requires lots of permissions on your phone, so does it mean that Duo is a spy app as well? We can only comment on that after looking at what all permissions it requires. So let’s see what permissions does Duo app requires.
1. Push Notifications: The first permission the app requires is to send push notifications. The app needs to send push notifications for the following reasons
- To notify you about security issues that are detected on your device.
- To send login requests.
2. Camera Access: The app also requires permission to access your phone’s camera in order to scan QR codes. By scanning QR codes you can quickly add multiple authentication accounts to your Duo mobile app.
3. Usage Analytics: The app tracks the analytics data to measure the usage pattern. By reading these patterns, app developers can update the software for better usability and fix bugs.
4. Clipboard Access: Duo Mobile can read your clipboard data i.e. the text you copy-paste. But they delete your clipboard data after processing it so you don’t need to worry.
5. Google Drive: By granting permission to your Google Drive you allow the app to create an app-specific folder so that it can back up important data there.
If an app has so many permissions then it can easily be called a spy app because it can see everything you do on your phone. But don’t worry according to Duo Mobile it cannot view your user data. For example, it cannot see your contact list or read your messages. Although it has access to your cell phone camera, it can’t see your photos.
It uses the camera permission to access your phone camera to scan QR codes. Moreover, the app cannot manage your device, like erasing content from it or accessing your files. Also, it cannot see what you do on other applications of your device.
Does Duo Mobile track location? Is that what you want to know? Then let me inform you that, No, it does not track your location either. Overall, Duo Mobile does not spy on you so you are safe with it. This means Duo Mobile is not spyware and you can use it with full confidence.
If you still feel unsafe while using the Duo Mobile app then you can stop them from collecting your data by following these steps.
- Launch the Duo Mobile app and go to the Menu section by tapping on the hamburger icon(three vertical lines) at the top left corner. Now select Settings.
- Now to stop sharing your data with the Duo mobile app, you need to toggle off the Send Usage Data option.
Is Google Duo A Spy App?
Just in case you wanted to know whether Google Duo is spyware or not then let me tell you that, NO, Google Duo isn’t a spy app. Google is a reputed company hence it won’t do anything that is against the privacy of its users.
Just like the Duo Mobile app, Google Duo needs lots of permissions on your device but they never use it for spying on you. You will be glad to know that the calls and messages that you send on Duo are end-to-end encrypted. This means no one except the sender and receiver can see or hear the message that is being conveyed.
According to Securitygladiators, Google Duo is one of the safest apps for Video calls looking at its security features. Overall, Google Duo is a safe app and you can use it to stay in contact with your friends and loved ones without compromising your privacy.
Final Verdict
Duo Mobile does have access to lots of permissions on your phone but they never use it for any ill purpose, it’s at least what they say. Moreover, there hasn’t been any case of Duo Mobile spying on someone ever reported. Hence we cannot say that Duo Mobile spy on you. Overall, Duo is a safe app to use. Moreover, it allows you to manage the permissions which means you are in control of your privacy and not anyone else. The same is true for Google Duo as well, it is also a totally safe app to use.
