Carrier IQ was found in New Android Applications

The company behind the now-notorious Carrier IQ software that has been found to log every keystroke pressed, website visited and text message sent by 150 million mobile phone users. Carrier IQ, of course, professes its innocence, but the company has also received some public support from security researchers who say Carrier IQ software is only tracking diagnostic information and likely is not violating user privacy. Now, Carrier IQ has elaborated upon many arguments with a more detailed breakdown of how its software functions, and a more substantive defense of its practices.

During a recent interview with the Register, Carrier IQ VP of marketing Andrew Coward acknowledged that his company's mobile software logs keystrokes, intercepts text messages and gathers geographic data, but insisted that the overwhelming majority of this information is discarded almost as soon as it comes in, thereby posing virtually no threat to user privacy.

Carrier IQ only retains text messages or keystroke patterns that carry proprietary tags. These tags identify all transmissions that could be used to populate analytic data, including some that may be considered sensitive. If a user drops a call, for instance, the system will note his or her location, and the numbers of each party. In other cases, the company may receive a special SMS, which provides Carrier IQ with important diagnostic information.

Now, Carrier IQ has legal and publicity problems to handle. One new class-action lawsuit names both Carrier IQ and HTC, accusing the companies of violations under the Federal Wiretap Act. Another lawsuit was filed against Carrier IQ as well as HTC and Samsung, both of which have confirmed installing Carrier IQ software on their Smartphone, saying they do so at the request of wireless carriers.

Why Android only? Carrier IQ is no longer supported as of iOS 5 (Apple insists its customers have to opt-in before any information about their Smartphone is shipped off to Apple HQ), and blocking its effects on your iOS 5-based iPhone is super-easy: Click on your Settings button, then General, About, Diagnostics & Usage, and select " Don't Send."

However, Carrier IQ is a bit more integrated within the Android OS – so much so, that you'll need to root your device prior to attempting any removal efforts. But the first step in the process is finding out whether your Smartphone has Carrier IQ installed to begin with. And Lookout's new application makes this a one-touch affair.

Carrier IQ boasts that its software is deployed on more than 141 million handsets, and has operated for several years without any major level of controversy. Clearly, Smartphone would be capable of tracking much of our activity even if Carrier IQ never existed. But the lawsuits filed against Carrier IQ and its customers, and forthcoming responses to Franken's letters, should shed more light on exactly what information is collected and how it is used.

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