Pokemon Go May Be Reading Personal File Names on Phones

Pokemon Go players are alleging that the game's newest update is searching through personal files on phones to determine whether or not the phone is rooted.

The rather explosive claim comes from the /r/pokemongodev community on Reddit, which is dedicated to breaking down the game's code and exploring how the game works. A player claims that Pokemon Go's newest update is reading through personal files on phones and searching for evidence that a phone has been rooted.

For those unfamiliar with technical jargon, rooting a phone is the Android equivalent to jailbreaking and gives users access to the Android operating system code. Rooting one's phone removes certain restrictions placed on the phone by manufacturers, which raises the potential of a phone getting irreparably damaged. The process also falls into a legally gray area.

Pokemon Go doesn't allow players to use a rooted or jailbroken phone to play their games, but the manner in which the game detects rooted phones has always been a bit of question. However, a /r/pokemongodev user claims to have discovered that Pokemon Go doesn't work when your phone (or your phone's SD card) has files named after Magisk, a popular rooting software. The thread is filled with multiple confirmations, along with claims that Pokemon Go is "accessing" personal files - which isn't quite true.

Here's where this situation gets a bit murky. Pokemon Go's Terms of Service states that the game is allowed to collect information about third party applications on your phone, but it doesn't state that it can access personal files to do so. But the thread has only proves that Pokemon Go is reading file names, which doesn't seem to be against any rules.

However, this new method of detecting rooted phones does seem to have its flaws. Having a file named after Magisk or another rooting software doesn't necessarily mean that a phone is actually rooted.

Although some players are making a big deal about this, Pokemon Go did warn players in their Terms of Service several months ago. However, it's good to know what apps are doing on your phone - and that includes Pokemon Go. Also - this issue is limited to Android phones only, so if you have an iPhone, you won't be affected.

You can read through some threads on the subject here and here and make your own decision about how problematic the changes are.