Amid growing concern about their personal information being pulled by mobile applications (“apps”) and taking a lead from the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), whose recent report raised concerns about the lack of privacy information available to mobile app users before download, California Attorney General Kamala Harris announced a privacy agreement with the six largest mobile app providers – Amazon, Apple, Google, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft and Research in Motion – that will impact how millions download apps to their smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices.

The six companies have agreed to privacy principles designed to bring the industry in line with California’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“the Act”), most significantly requiring mobile apps that collect personal information to have a privacy policy, and to display it in prominent fashion and in easy to understand language before the app is downloaded. 

Two important features of the agreement are that consumers...

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