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AI.type data leak: 31 million users affected

Millions of users’ personal data has reportedly been leaked by the custom keyboard app AI.type. Luckily for our readers, it looks as though iPhone and iPad users are in the clear.

According to security researchers, the app – a third-party extension providing a heavily customizable virtual keyboard – was collecting user data in a secure database, only for the database to accidentally be made public. Security experts Kromtech found and reported the data store as a leak, claiming it contained personal details including names, phone numbers, emails, and more for over 31 million users.

The CEO of the company hasn’t denied the leak, but did stress it wasn’t as complete as Kromtech made out. He says it was a “secondary database” that contained less information, and the geo-location data found was not accurate. He added that AI.type only collects usage data about what type of ads are clicked, not all browsing habits. Still, it’s pretty scary stuff that a keyboard app is storing this kind of data at all.

Though AI.type is available on both iOS and Android, Kromtech could only find leaked data for Android users. This is likely thanks to Apple’s strict approach to user privacy making it difficult for the app to capture the data in the first place. If you use the app on an iPhone or iPad, you may want to reconsider whether or not you trust the company behind it, but for the moment at least it seems your data is safe.