Third-party apps are any applications that aren’t created or supported by the maker of the device the app is installed on. While these apps are generally safe, especially if downloaded from an official app store, they could put your personal data at risk. Keep reading if you want to learn how to keep your devices clear of dangerous software and how mobile security software like Norton 360 Deluxe can offer even more protection.
Hardware manufacturers of smart devices create applications for their own devices. Those are first-party or “native” apps. A third-party app is a software application made by someone other than the manufacturer of the mobile device or its operating system. While manufacturers frequently create new apps to ship with their devices, most available applications are third-party apps.
Here’s an example: An email application that comes with your mobile device—likely with the manufacturer’s name on it—would be a native app. Uber is a third-party app because it wasn’t created by Apple or Google for use on their devices.
While there are third-party applications for nearly everything you can think of, they fall into one of four main categories depending on where they’re downloaded, what they’re used for, and who they were designed to be used by.
These are the apps that people are most familiar with because they download and use them regularly. If you want to play a new game or find a way to track how much water you drink every day, you click on the app store icon on your phone, tablet, or computer and search among the apps listed there.
In order for one of these apps to be listed on official app stores, they are checked for malware, and they are supposed to meet certain criteria for privacy, data collection, and operating system compatibility.
While those measures aren’t always bulletproof, the apps you get from an official app store will usually be safe to use.
There’s nothing inherently bad about unofficial app stores or websites where you can download applications. For specialized applications with limited user bases, it might not make sense for a developer to jump through all the hoops required by Google or Apple just to get an app listed. These unofficial app stores make it possible for them to distribute their application.
However, because those marketplaces are usually smaller, they may not have the resources to thoroughly check each program available for download. In other words, those apps can be more susceptible to infecting your mobile device with malicious codes like ransomware and adware. That’s because the ads or codes violating your privacy can be “injected” into popular apps you might buy through a third-party store.
The stores might sell popular apps for cheaper prices, which may sound appealing. But that bargain buy can put user privacy at risk.
Custom apps (also called in-house or enterprise apps) are designed and used by businesses. Many of these apps aren’t available on an app store because they’re only used internally. These apps can be developed to meet any need a business has—from inventory management to appointment scheduling to logistics. These apps are usually safe because they’re often installed on company devices and may have many other features disabled or limited to reduce the risk of problems.
This type of app is different from the other apps mentioned because it may not even be downloaded directly to a device. Instead, it could be an application that is connected to another app and is authorized to use the data from that app to perform another function. For example, some of these apps use certain information accessed from a Facebook or Google account to enhance or add something to those profiles. Because these apps, like Zoom’s Google Calendar integration, connect directly to these accounts, they generally follow strict compliance requirements.
Not all apps are what they appear to be. Some third-party software may look like other popular apps, but these fake apps can turn out to be a big headache when they damage your phone or compromise your privacy. Don’t be fooled into thinking that one kind of operating system is necessarily more secure than another: both Android and Apple devices are vulnerable.
Apps found in official app stores must adhere to strict data protection standards to be listed, while unofficial app stores (and the apps they list) may not have those same standards in place. Because your devices are filled with everything from your photographs to your financial information, having this information exposed could increase your risk of identity theft.
Because of the potential security and privacy risks of having that information exposed, consider your security settings and where you download third-party apps from.
In addition to exposing your personal information, some apps create or exploit existing vulnerabilities that can put the security of yourself, your business, or even the government at risk. The United States government banned TikTok from being installed on all government-issued devices after concerns about cybersecurity and privacy.
If you download an app from an untrustworthy store, site, or link , you could be downloading a program full of viruses or malware. These kinds of apps function properly, so you may not know anything bad is happening. Other apps might be part of a mobile ransomware scheme where your data is stolen, and you are forced to pay a criminal to get it back. Worse yet, once the app is installed, you may not be able to remove the malware or virus, even if you uninstall the application.
