Motorola ends Amazon app hijacking, calls it ‘unintended’
▼ Summary
– Motorola confirmed that its Smart Feed app’s behavior of injecting affiliate data into the Amazon app was “unintended” and has been corrected.
– The issue caused some U.S. users launching the Amazon Shopping app to be routed through a web tracking link before the app opened.
– Motorola stated the behavior resulted from an app search and suggestion experience co-developed with Device Native for the Moto App Launcher.
– Motorola has since removed the routing configuration, ensuring all installed apps launch directly as intended.
– Device Native removed its public developer documentation following the report, though Motorola did not address the redirect through a fake fashion influencer website.
Following the discovery that Motorola phones were redirecting the Amazon app to inject affiliate tracking data, the company has now confirmed to 9to5Google that the practice has been stopped. Motorola describes the behavior as “unintended.”
Earlier this week, reports surfaced about an update to Motorola’s Smart Feed app that began hijacking the Amazon app to insert affiliate codes. The odd occurrence would quickly inject an affiliate code loosely linked to a random fashion influencer whenever a user opened the Amazon app from the app drawer.
Motorola has since acknowledged the situation and clarified that this was not a deliberate change. In a statement provided to 9to5Google, the company explained that the behavior was “unintended” and has now been corrected.
Motorola and Device Native collaborated to create an app search and suggestion feature for the Moto App Launcher, aimed at helping users find and launch apps already installed on their devices. Recently, Motorola acted swiftly to fix an issue that caused some U. S. users opening the Amazon Shopping app to be routed through a web tracking link before the app opened. This behavior was unintended and created an inconsistent user experience. After identifying the problem, the company promptly corrected the routing configuration. Users can now expect all installed apps to launch directly as intended. Motorola takes user experience, privacy, and platform integrity seriously and will continue monitoring the system closely to ensure expected behavior across devices. The company is committed to responsible disclosure and transparent, collaborative engagement with researchers to quickly identify and address potential issues.
Notably, Motorola acknowledged its partnership with Device Native, which appears linked to this behavior. Our earlier coverage highlighted publicly available documentation about this integration, which Device Native has since removed entirely. This includes not just the Motorola integration but all of its public-facing developer documentation.
Motorola did not address the unusual method by which its phones redirected traffic through a fake website for a fashion influencer. We have asked the company for more details on this aspect.
Regardless, Motorola states the issue has been resolved. We no longer observe this behavior on our Razr Fold, which still runs the same version of the Smart Feed app.
(Source: 9to5google.com)
