Samsung Galaxy Tablets

Warning: *privacy not included with this product

Samsung Galaxy Tablets

Samsung
Wi-Fi Bluetooth

Review date: Nov. 8, 2021

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Mozilla says

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People voted: Very creepy

You want a tablet but you don't want an iPad. Samsung's Galaxy Android tablets—of which it feels like there are a million versions—are a good option. Use them like an iPad. Use them like a laptop. Use them like a giant phone or little TV. It seems there is an option and price range for everyone.

What could happen if something goes wrong?

Not gonna lie, it sure seems Samsung likes to collect a lot of data on users, share (and possibly sell) that data around lots of places, and make it hard for you to figure out how to opt-out of that data sharing.

Your dogged privacy researcher spent quite a lot of time on Samsung’s website trying to understand how to opt-out under their “Do Not Sell” option as part of California’s privacy law called CCPA. It was clunky and complicated and she was never quite clear if she succeeded or not. Samsung does extend the rights that protect California users under CCPA to all residents of the United States, which is good. And Samsung users in Europe are protected by their privacy protection law, GDPR, to a degree.

What could go wrong? Well, Samsung likes to show ads tailored to you through various ad networks, and say they do a lot of tracking of your online activities to do so. Samsung could know you like to doodle on your tablet with their S Pen. They assume you’re an artist and you start getting ads for art school. You drop out of law school, go to art school, and hey, you end up living happily ever after. OK, that’s actually cool. It’s also not likely...or is it, in our kinda creepy digital ad economy?

Tips to protect yourself

  • In the browser of your Samsung Galaxy Tab, you can determine for yourself which information you share while surfing the Internet.
  • Check Samsung Galaxy privacy controls.
  • Chose your Android privacy settings.
  • mobile

Can it snoop on me? information

Camera

Device: Yes

App: N/A

Microphone

Device: Yes

App: N/A

Tracks location

Device: Yes

App: N/A

What can be used to sign up?

What data does the company collect?

How does the company use this data?

Samsung may share your personal information with their subsidiaries, affiliates and service providers. This includes consumer data resellers and social networks. For business purposes, it may have shared your personal data and geolocation. It may have sold other personal information such as personal identifiers, products purchased, and browsing history, prior to October 1, 2021. Samsung participates in various advertising networks and say, "These networks can track users’ online activities over time by collecting information through automated means, including through the use of browser cookies, web beacons, pixels, device identifiers, server logs, and other similar technologies. The networks use this information to show ads that may be tailored to individuals’ interests, to track users’ browsers or devices across multiple websites and apps, and to build a profile of users’ online browsing and app usage activities."

How can you control your data?

No retention details nor deletion rights are stated for users not covered by CCPA and GDPR in Samsung's privacy policy. CCPA deletion rights are mentioned and Samsung says they extend CCPA rights to all in the United States.

If you do not have a Samsung Account or an email on file, your deletion request will not be processed. Users with a Samsung Account can go here to delete your data.

What is the company’s known track record of protecting users’ data?

Average

In February, 2020, Samsung had a data breach on its UK customer account pages, affecting less than 150 people.

Can this product be used offline?

Yes

User-friendly privacy information?

No

Links to privacy information

Does this product meet our Minimum Security Standards? information

Yes

Encryption

Yes

Uses encryption in transit and at rest.

Strong password

Yes

Security updates

Yes

Manages vulnerabilities

Yes

Samsung has a bug bounty program, which means that anyone who finds a security issue and discloses it responsibly may get paid.

Privacy policy

Yes

Samsung has a page highlighting it's privacy principles

Does the product use AI? information

Can’t Determine

Is this AI untrustworthy?

Can’t Determine

What kind of decisions does the AI make about you or for you?

Is the company transparent about how the AI works?

Can’t Determine

Does the user have control over the AI features?

Can’t Determine

*privacy not included

Dive Deeper

  • Samsung cops to data leak after unsolicited '1/1' Find my Mobile push notification
    The Register
  • Galaxy users, take note: Samsung's probably selling your data
    JR Raphael

Comments

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