ToTok is back… The mobile messaging application, developed by a company in the United Arab Emirates, which had been removed from the main download platforms against suspicion of spying by its users, is once again available on Google Play Store . "We are happy to inform you that ToTok is now available for download on the Google Play Store," ToTok said on its Twitter account on Saturday.
Google and Apple had deleted ToTok last month from their application store after the American daily newspaper New York Times published an article accusing the UAE intelligence services of having direct access to messages, video conversations or geolocation data, cameras and phones microphones.
A series of "novelties" concerning the "update"
On its platform, Google lists a series of "new features" regarding the "update" of the application, including a clearer mechanism allowing users to authorize ToTok's access to their data and contact lists.
ToTok has grown rapidly in the Middle East where several countries, including the Emirates, restrict or even ban most other calling services via VoIP applications such as WhatsApp.
The app still unavailable on the Apple Store
Launched in 2019, ToTok is developed by Breej Holding which, according to the New York Times , is actually a front company for DarkMatter, a cyber intelligence and hacking firm linked to the UAE government.
The UAE Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) has denied accusations from the US newspaper that the current regulations prohibit "data breaches" and "illegal interceptions". The application remains today still unavailable on the Apple Store.
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Apple and Google have removed ToTok, a suspected UAE spy application, from their application stores
- By the Web
- cybersecurity
- Emirates
- Spying
- Piracy
- Social media
- Mobile app