It allows you to run Android applications on your computer. Every update has the potential to fix bugs and patch security exploits before they become a problem.Bluestacks is an Android emulator for PC. A BlueStacks spokesperson told Insider that they "actively track of updates to open source Android and the latest patches on a regular cycle, in addition to resolving issues reported directly." They're also led by former members of McAfee, one of the computer world's leading cybersecurity firms.īut incidents like that highlight why it's so important to keep all your apps fully updated, Tomaschek said. Since then, there haven't been any notable issues. BlueStacks patched the vulnerabilities immediately, and it was probably fixed before any hacker had a chance to exploit it. However in 2019, security researcher Nick Cano alerted BlueStacks to a major security flaw in the program that could potentially let hackers steal users' personal data and install malware on their computers. As such, they handle your data pretty carefully. They also said that this data "is not stored in the cloud," meaning in theory they're the only ones with access to it.īlueStacks has had one major security incident in the pastīlueStacks is a popular app that's maintained by a major company with plenty of industry clout. It sounds like a lot, but it's the sort of data that most modern apps collect.Ī BlueStacks spokesperson told us that they take this info "to make the user experience better," and it helps optimize the app to run well on a variety of different computers.
In other words, BlueStacks will see what browser and computer you're using, your general location, and some information about your computer setup. According to Tomaschek, it'll see "info regarding your OS, hardware, unique device identifiers, and network information." Once you start using it, it'll also "collect and analyze data related to your device, like your device's IP address, location preferences, system configuration data, app activity, transaction timestamps, Android app metadata, and more." Secondly, BlueStacks will see some of your computer's data.
This might include your phone number, gender, address, and picture. As such, BlueStacks will get access to your name, email address, and any other public information on your Google account. When you download BlueStacks, you share data in two ways.įirstly, when you download BlueStacks, you'll have to log into your Google account. Every app you download gets some amount of access to your device's data.