A little-known application pre-installed on millions of Samsung smartphones has sparked a major privacy controversy and user backlash across West Asia and North Africa. The app, called AppCloud, cannot be fully removed and has been traced to an Israeli-founded company, raising legal and ethical concerns in a region where many countries ban Israeli products.
The issue was first highlighted in a detailed investigation by digital rights group SMEX in February 2025 . The group found AppCloud deeply embedded in the operating system of Samsung's popular Galaxy A and M series phones sold in the WANA region. Users cannot uninstall the app without using advanced technical methods that void their device's warranty .
AppCloud was developed by ironSource, a company founded in Israel and now owned by the American firm Unity . ironSource has faced criticism in the past for its software practices. One of its previous programs, Install Core, was investigated by cybersecurity firms for installing software without user permission and bypassing security checks .
The problem for users is simple but serious. AppCloud comes pre-installed on their devices without their knowledge. It operates in the background and cannot be easily removed. Even when disabled, users report the app can reappear after system updates . This forced installation has drawn anger from customers who feel they have lost control over their own devices.
The controversy touches on two major issues: digital privacy and regional politics. On the privacy front, investigations show AppCloud collects sensitive user data. This includes biometric information, IP addresses, and detailed device fingerprints . The app's privacy policy is difficult to find online, and users are not clearly informed about what data is collected or how it is used .
Politically, the Israeli origins of the software create legal problems in several countries. Lebanon, for example, has had a law banning Israeli companies and their products since 1955 . The presence of software linked to an Israeli company on devices sold in these markets potentially violates these laws.
SMEX published an open letter to Samsung in May 2025, demanding the company stop forcing the software on users . The letter asked Samsung to provide clear information about AppCloud's data practices and to offer a real way for users to remove the app. The situation has since gained momentum on social media, drawing thousands of comments from users upset about the privacy violations .
Samsung has not directly addressed the AppCloud issue publicly. The company has pointed to its general privacy protections, like Knox Vault, which secures user data at the hardware level . However, this has not satisfied concerned users or digital rights advocates.
The scale of the problem is significant. Samsung holds about 28% of the smartphone market in the WANA region . The Galaxy A and M series are among the top-selling Android phones globally, with tens of millions of units shipped each year . This means millions of people could be affected.
Cybersecurity experts warn that the risks go beyond simple data collection. Ahmed Al-Omari, a cybersecurity professor in Jordan, explained that such pre-installed apps can request broad permissions . They can access contacts, device information, usage habits, and network data. This allows for large-scale harvesting of behavioral information .
The company behind AppCloud, ironSource, states in its privacy policy that it collects data for advertising purposes . This includes information like advertising IDs, IP addresses, and device technical details. The policy says data is generally kept for up to six months . However, this policy is not easily accessible to the average Samsung user.
Meanwhile, on online forums, Samsung users have expressed frustration for months. One user on Samsung's community forum described AppCloud as an "annoying, useless piece of adware" that exists only to push game downloads . Its notifications cannot be swiped away, and the uninstall option is greyed out .
Some context for the concern comes from the wider reputation of Israeli surveillance technology. The industry includes firms like NSO Group, known for its Pegasus spyware, and Cellebrite, which specializes in data extraction from phones . While AppCloud is a marketing app, not spyware, its origins within this ecosystem have raised eyebrows .
For now, users have limited options. They can go into their phone settings and disable AppCloud, though this does not delete it and the app may reactivate after updates . The only way to fully remove it requires "rooting" the phone, a complex process that voids the warranty and poses security risks . This leaves many users feeling trapped with software they do not want and cannot remove.