Google News App Bug Uses Gigabytes of Data without Users Knowing It

Android users found a bug in the Google News App that eats up your data while running in the background. Apparently, this issue started as early as June but has yet to be fixed by Google News.

Google News App Bug Uses Gigabytes of Data without Users Knowing It

Google News App Bug – The Full Story

A quick glance at the Google News Help Forum shows dozens of users experiencing a major data leach that’s eating up their gigabytes. One specific user emailed The Verge with his experience, showing a whopping 12 gigs of eaten up by the Google News App. What was most concerning about this user’s experience is that he had the “Download via Wi-Fi” setting enabled. In other words, the bug is using up mobile data despite users specifically requesting the app to only update while on WiFi.

Even though users first reported this bug at the start of June, Google News only verified its existence in September. To date, there have been no updates trying to fix this particular bug. Users affected by this mobile data leach have reported paying up to $385 in overage charges because of the Google News app bug.

So far, no one knows what the bug is doing to use up that much data. Some users speculate that the default auto-play option in Google News is to blame, while others point to more nefarious reasons for the leach.

How to Stop The Google News App Bug

Sadly, Google News has yet to release a solution for this particular bug. Users face one of two options to curb this ridiculous data use: uninstalling Google News completely or disable its background data.

If you’re not an avid Google News user, or don’t want to risk the app siphoning off your data at all, uninstalling the app is your best option. Otherwise, follow these steps to disable its background data:

1. Go to Settings.
2. Click on Apps.
3. Go to Google News Apps and select Data Usage.
4. Toggle off Background Data and Mobile Data (just to be on the safe side)

In general, it’s better to manually check all of your App settings to make sure what permissions each app has. Most apps enable the background data and mobile data options by default. In this age of continuous privacy concerns, it’s up to you to make sure that you’re on top of all of your settings.