Your Android Phone Keyboard May Be Tracking You: Here's How to Stop It

The keyboard app on your Android phone may be collecting more information than you realize. Many popular keyboard apps, including those that come pre-installed on phones, track your typing patterns, words you use, and other data. Some keyboards send this information back to companies for advertising purposes or to improve their products.

This means your texts, searches, and passwords could be monitored by your keyboard app itself. This affects anyone using an Android phone or tablet.

If you use the default keyboard that came with your phone, or if you downloaded a popular keyboard app, it may be collecting data about everything you type. This includes personal messages, passwords, search terms, and anything else you enter using that keyboard. Your iPhone is not affected by this particular issue, as Apple's keyboard works differently.

Here is what you should do right now. First, open your Android Settings, go to Privacy, then Permission Manager, and look for Internet or Network permissions for your keyboard app. If your keyboard has internet access, it can send your typing data elsewhere. Second, consider switching to a privacy focused keyboard. The article recommends looking for keyboards that specifically advertise no tracking and no internet connection requirement. Third, avoid using keyboard apps that offer lots of free extras like GIFs, themes, and emoji packs, as these often track you to pay for those features. For long term protection, remember that many free apps make money by collecting your data. This applies to keyboards, flashlight apps, weather apps, and many others. Before downloading any app, check what permissions it requests. A keyboard should not need access to your location, contacts, or camera. Teach older children and teens about this too, since they often download trendy apps without checking privacy settings.

Make it a family habit to review app permissions once every few months and remove apps you no longer use.