【Busty Cops on Patrol (2009)】

Last week,Busty Cops on Patrol (2009) the internet was filled with adorably beautified selfies and odd portraits of polarizing political figures as we all discovered Meitu, a Chinese photo-editing app.

But now the chance to dress up our pics using Meitu is much less appealing as the full extent of the app's permissions has been revealed.

SEE ALSO: This article about WhatsApp made security experts furious

Once Meitu photos started blowing up our feeds, some information-security skeptics took to Twitter to warn of the extent of access users were giving up to make themselves look like anime characters.

The Android version of the app required a particularly long list of permissions. Along with the typical photo and camera access you'd expect, Meitu asks Android users for access to:

• full network access

• the phone's status and ID

• USB storage

• contacts

• messages

• IMEI number

To make matters worse, that info gets sent to multiple servers in China, according to Ars Technica.

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

Let me get this straight...
All of you just installed a photo app from China that requires these permissions? Let me know how it works out. pic.twitter.com/wGDUYbRdSA

— Greg Linares (@Laughing_Mantis) January 19, 2017

Take a look at the entire list of permissions from the the Meitu app. pic.twitter.com/AkSw2Z50T7

— FourOctets (@FourOctets) January 19, 2017

According to a blog post written by infosec expert Will Strafach, the iOS version of Meitu isn't as intrusive.

"Overall, the information collected by this app would appear to be on par with analytics information collected within most iOS apps which are currently live in the App Store," he wrote after conducting a quick assessment of the app.

In an official statement, Meitu denies that the data collection is excessive or nefarious in any way. Instead, the information is collected to "optimize app performance," nothing more. "Meitu DOES NOT sell user data in any form," it reads.

Instead, the statement claims that the app uses so many tracking systems because the company is based in China, where "many of the services provided provided by app stores are blocked." In order to keep the tracking consistent, the multiple layers are necessary.

The company did provide some insight into how it protects user data:

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Mashablereached out to Meitu for further comment, and will update the story upon receiving a response.

If you're still beautifying your selfies, take a look at the permissions and decide for yourself if you're cool with giving up that much personal info. But let's be real — Meitu had it's 15 minutes of viral fame. In all likelihood, it's over. Better solution: Just find a new way to mess around on Twitter and go about your day worry-free.

---

Featured Video For You

---

Now you can experiment with makeup in augmented reality

---

• Digital Culture
• Science
• Shopping
• Deals
• Life
• Social Good
• Games
• Tech

• Today's Hurdle hints and answers for May 9, 2025
• Jesse McCarthy, Nonfiction by Jesse McCarthy
• In Memoriam: Richard Howard by The Paris Review
• Ina Cariño, Poetry by Ina Cariño
• The Sound and the “Furious”
• Venice Dispatch: from the Biennale by Olivia Kan
• On Thomas Bernhard and Girls Online by The Paris Review
• How 'True Detective: Night Country' brought the corpsicle to life
• Best roborock deal: Save $400 on Q5 Pro+ Robot Vacuum and Mop
• Venice Dispatch: from the Biennale by Olivia Kan

• Ah, Underpants! by Sadie Stein
• The Immortality Chronicles, Part 4 by Adam Leith Gollner
• Frederick Seidel’s “Widening Income Inequality” by Hailey Gates
• 'Quordle' today: See each 'Quordle' answer and hints for July 10
• 'Quordle' today: See each 'Quordle' answer and hints for July 11
• Ground Down by Michael Croley
• Facebook gives middle finger to Australia as Google strikes multi
• William Faulkner’s Unexpected Art, and Other News by Sadie Stein
• Nothing Phone 2 gets U.S. availability date, price
• This Book Is Controversial, and Other News by Sadie Stein

• Skype is finally shutting down
• On Liberated Women Looking for Love by The Paris Review
• Why is everyone freaking out about the posters in 'True Detective: Night Country'?
• Alexis Pauline Gumbs, Nonfiction by Alexis Pauline Gumbs
• Put Me In, Coach!
• Nana Nkweti, Fiction by Nana Nkweti
• Shark Tank keto gummies are a scam. Yet, Google keeps letting scammers run search ads.
• Anaïs Duplan, Nonfiction by Anaïs Duplan
• Outdoor speaker deal: Save $20 on the Soundcore Boom 2
• Diary, 2010 by Adam Levin

• Q&A with tendercare founder and CEO Shauna Sweeney
• Tricks, Tension, Surface, Suspense by Andrew Norman Wilson
• Why is everyone freaking out about the posters in 'True Detective: Night Country'?
• Cooking with Sergei Dovlatov by Valerie Stivers
• Q&A with tendercare founder and CEO Shauna Sweeney
• Taylor Swift and shirtless Jason Kelce put on a show at the Chiefs, Bills game
• Ina Cariño, Poetry by Ina Cariño
• How to reopen closed tabs
• Best Max streaming deal: Save 20% on annual subscriptions
• Best TV deal: Get the 75