Are Samsung phones and tablets really running Chinese spyware?

“Chinese Spyware Pre-Installed on All Samsung Phones (& Tablets)” declares the title of a post from earlier this week that’s kicked up quite a storm on Reddit. In it, the author launches into an analysis of a utility in Samsung’s Device Care mobile application — specifically, the storage scanner feature inside the application (which can’t be removed by the user). The scanner is useful, in that it can find unnecessary files junking up your phone and remove them to free up space. The problem, though, is that the writer of this post says he found the scanner to be apparently sending data to domains based in China.

What added fuel to the fire, at least for the writer, is discovering that the scanner was made via a partnership with a Chinese company called Qihoo 360 that’s made news in the past for caving to censorship demands from the Chinese government. You can probably see how the conclusions in the post arose from that, along with the fact that a scanner would presumably need access to everything on your phone to determine what is, in fact, junk, right?

“We, as consumers, paid a premium on our devices, but why are we exposed to the same privacy threats rampant on Chinese phone brands?” the Reddit post continues. “I get it that Samsung somehow has to monetize their devices with partnerships, but please, partner with a much more reputable company.”