87 percent children’s apps in India seek dangerous access; Google to invest $1 bln in Bharti Airtel; 5Gi merger with 5G closer

The vast majority of mobile apps aimed at children in India ask for dangerous permissions, according to the latest annual survey by Arrka, a company that offers a privacy management platform to businesses. Overall, Google—no surprise—by far is the biggest tracker of personal data in India, according to Arrka. Separately, Google is investing $1 billion in Bharti Airtel for an equity stake and joint go-to-market strategies. Notes: Most children’s apps in India seek dangerous permissions The vast majority of mobile apps aimed at children in India ask for dangerous permissions, according to the latest annual survey by Arrka, a company that offers a privacy management platform to businesses. The report, State of Data Privacy of Indian Mobile Apps and Websites, finds that 87 percent of all children’s apps ask for at least one dangerous permission. Of the apps that Arrka reviewed, 21 percent had access to the smartphone’s camera, 28 percent had access to phone details and 55 percent had in-app ads. Arrka says it has been studying apps and websites from 100 organisations worldwide for the last five years. In its latest report it says, Google is the single largest third-party that is collecting our personal data on mobile apps as well as websites. Google to invest $1 in Bharti Airtel In more Google news, the company will invest up to $1 billion in Bharti Airtel as part of its Google for India Digitization Fund, which includes $700 million in equity investment and up to $300 million towards implementing commercial agreements in the coming years. These investments will include expanding the reach of Android devices on Airtel’s network, and co-creating India-specific applications on 5G. Airtel is already using Google’s 5G-ready Evolved Packet Core and Software Defined Network platforms, according to the press release. Stakeholders agree on a plan for 5Gi’s merger with 5G Telecom and wireless industry stakeholders around the globe agreed to a plan of action that will allow the merger of 5Gi into 5G, at the Radio Access Network plenary meeting of global standards development body 3GPP, according to a press release by Telecommunications Standards Development Society, India, an industry-academia standards development organisation. According to TSDSI, 5Gi is an extension of the 3GPP 5G standards to meet the rural (extended) coverage requirements of India. It is under deliberations with the industry ecosystem in India under the consultative process of the Telecom Engineering Centre and TSDSI. Moglix, Dealshare raise more money from Tiger Global Moglix, an ecommerce marketplace for businesses in Bangalore, has raised $250 million in series F funding at a valuation of $2.6 billion. The investment was led by Tiger Global and Alpha Wave Incubation, an India-focused fund from US VC firm Falcon Edge, with Hong Kong-based Ward Ferry joining in, the company said in a press release on Jan 28. In another transaction, Dealshare, a social ecommerce startup in Bangalore, has raised $165 million in the first close of its series E funding. Investors include Dragoneer Investments Group, Kora Capital and Unilever Ventures, and existing investors Tiger Global and Alpha Wave. Theme music courtesy Free Music & Sounds https://soundcloud.com/freemusicandsounds