Linerock Investments, LTD et al Plaintiff: Rakiem Williams, Tony Brown, Meagan Lehnert and Christina Glenn: Defendant: Linerock Investments, LTD and Vicman LLC: Case Number: 1:2022cv02531: Filed: May 12, 2022: Court: US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois: Presiding Judge: Robert M Dow: Nature of Suit: The newprofilepic.com domain was originally registered in Russia, but now its registered in Florida. "The top management of the company and the managers of the majority of the projects, including myself, are based out of these countries. WebLinerock Investments, LTD | 139 followers on LinkedIn. The Standard has reached out to Google Play and Linerock Investments ltd for comment. Its from a Russian based company and there are already reports of them wiping out bank accounts.". Another popular social media rumor claimed that people had money taken out of their bank accounts shortly after downloading this app. Snopes says the app, though, was developed by a company in the British Islands and some of their international developers live in Russia. AppGrooves offers you "Best 10 Apps" for over 600 micro categories. The company behind the App is called Linerock Investments Ltd, who according to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists Offshore Leaks NewProfilePics founder was born in Russia and the company has some offices in Russia. (Was this charge for a subscription? Now you know it, update and enjoy. Everything seems to be controlled by Andersen Business Services which is still registered in Russia, Ritter said. NewProfilePic does not store users accounts or any personal information, Polezhaeva told VERIFY. For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click this link: thesun.co.uk/editorial-complaints/, Internet users are being warned about the New Profile Pic app as it may be stealing their personal info, one expert has claimed, Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). Let it be different, always new and made by AI! From the privacy policy: For example, we collect your name, email address, user name, social network information and other information you provide when you register, set up an account, contact us by e-mail or use our services.. "We collect your name, email address, user name, social network information and other information you provide when you register.". Joan Rivers was killed for revealing that Barack Obama is gay and Michelle Obama is transgender. If youve downloaded the new app fad going around making your pictures into characters DELETE IT!" Something went wrong, please try again later. Black Americans are not descended from people who were taken from Africa to be enslaved. She and others have seen the pictures filling up their Facebook feeds. Our Android team - mostly Ukrainian, Sazhins post said. Key Principal: Victor Sazhin See more contacts Industry: Computer software development There are legitimate uses for offshore companies and trusts. She said the firm was only in the Russian capital as that was the former home of the founder of the company, who has now moved. In a word, no. The firm claims the 'detected key points may be kept along with the photo on the servers of our providers for up to two weeks from the last interaction with the photo to speed up further processing of the same photos'. Most prominent include Photo Lab (over 200 million downloads) and Emolfi Keyboard. We collect your name, email address, user name, social network information and other information you provide when you register.. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google. This is one example: We have not been able to confirm or disprove that this actually happened. Enter your password to log in. Heres everything you need to know about The Grinch sequel, plus the best books your kid can check out now. According to a spokesperson for the app, its safe for people to use, they told Snopes. In May 2022, a new profile pic app, officially named "NewProfilePic Picture Editor" in the Apple Store and "NewProfilePic: Profile Picture" in the Google Play store, shot to the top of mobile charts with hundreds of thousands of downloads. Let it be different, always new and made by AI! The app developers explain: "Whenever you choose an effect that involves face manipulations we use special face recognition technologies to detect a photo; find required facial key points, and apply the effect to your photo.". While it may be a concern for some, Elle Josten said she isnt worried. You can choose to stop sharing this information with us at any time by going to Facebook or other third-party accounts and removing our access, the policy says. The app has so far proven to be extremely popular and on Apple's App Store, it has surged to the summit of the photo and video chart while on the Google Play Store, more than 25,000 people have rated it. The app is available on Google Play and the AppleApp Store. The app can be downloaded to your device, and allows the sending of data including your location and access to other social media images on your feeds. Users can bypass that and head to the apps home screen, which includes a "choose photo" button. This account already exists. However, a check of Sunbiz found no company named Linerock Investments Ltd operating or doing business in Florida. A new phone app is making waves on social media as people use it to recreate their selfies into caricatures of themselves. Linerock Investments Ltd, the company that owns the photo editing app, was first registered in Moscow, according to the International Consortium of Investigative The app can Our Apps are server-based and user images are uploaded to Amazon AWS [and] Microsoft Azure servers located in the US. And it should be again. While there is no evidence of anything malicious, Ritter offered advice for anyone downloading the app. Case Details Parties Documents Dockets. WebLinerock Investments LTD We know everything about easy photo editing and provide innovative still handy mobile applications and web tools to users all over the world Photo Android, Android. Internet users have been warned against using a free new photo avatar creator, The website for for the company is registered in Moscow, Russia, according to the who.is database, The firm offers high quality digital avatars if people are willing to upload a photograph to their computer servers, The developers use special recognition technology to pinpoint required facial key points to apply the effect to the photograph. The firm claims the "detected key points may be kept along with the photo on the servers of our providers for up to two weeks from the last interaction with the photo to speed up further processing of the same photos". ;)'. The number of employees ranges from 1 to 25. To connect with Linerock Investments, LTD employee register on SignalHire. I saw a lot of my friends from high school and family posting photos of themselves in this portrait, sort of like painting mode, said Maria Combe. So, are hackers from halfway around the world really stealing your data and your face with this app? A spokesperson for the app told us that while the screenshots showing charges may be real, they didn't come from the New Profile Pic App as the app, as of this writing, is "absolutely free and it does not contain in-app purchases so it does not require any payment information of the users.". The firm also collects the IP address, browser type and settings from a computer or the device data from a mobile phone handset. one Facebook post warned. The Dailymail interviewed a Global Cybersecurity Advisor that said the app can capture your face in high resolution and questions why an app would want this much data, especially in another country. The NewProfilePic app does not access users banking information or contact lists, and it does not send their information to Russia. There are legitimate uses for offshore companies and trusts. Last 30 Days. The website of the app, newprofilepic.com is in Moscow. The archive had a timestamp of 08:07:36 that day. Impress your friends on social media and keep them interested in what's coming next! We tested and explored NewProfilePic for ourselves. According to the 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. But the Mail says the company behind the app, Linerock Investments, is based next to Russia's Ministry of Defence, three miles outside Red Square. Get our newsletter in your inbox five days a week. Snopes does say that people should be aware that the access they grant when they download any app but again NewProfilePic isnt out of the ordinary. ), We reached out to Google, Apple, and the user who posted the above-displayed message, and we will update this article if more information becomes available. WebLinerock Investments Ltd. The app does not ask for that information. Some VERIFY viewers wondered if the photo editing app NewProfilePic has ties to Russia, and asked about its privacy policy. Jake Moore, a cybersecurity advisor with European cybersecurity company ESET, told VERIFY via email that people should be mindful of what permissions they give to new applications. James Ritter is a cyber security expert and CEO of Pulse Tech and showed online documents that reveal the owner of the app was registered in Moscow, Russia. The app, NewProfilePic is run by the company, Linerock Investments Ltd which is registered in Moscow, Russia. Rishi Sunak looked like he had won the lottery. Explaining how the technology works, the App developers said: 'Whenever you choose an effect that involves face manipulations we use special face recognition technologies to detect a photo; find required facial key points, and apply the effect to your photo. Read our, {{#verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}} {{^verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}}. On both Google's and Apple's app store, the developer's location is listed as being Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. Despite the app's popularity, recent claims online question the app's data collection, privacy policies and ties to Russia following a story from the British tabloid Daily Mail with the headline: Russia after YOUR personal data? When claims started circulating that the New Profile Pic app was some sort of scam, many people shared screenshots of the app's privacy policy. According to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists Offshore Leaks database, Linerock is registered in Moscow and has a Russian director. Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, LINEROCK INVESTMENTS may offer to provide the Services, as described more fully on the Site and in Mobile, which are selected by you, solely for your own use, and not for the use or benefit of any third party. We have never had an office there. Furthermore, you want to keep your device secure with a strong password, biometric features or two-factor authentication. We have never had an office there. WebOverview. This material may not be reproduced without permission. Box 438, Road Town, Tortola, VG1110, British Virgin Islands. By clicking Sign up you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use, Cookie policy and Privacy notice. View our online Press Pack. By now the address has been changed in order to avoid any confusion. Moreover, the claims of the apps Russian connection go down to one reason. INTERNET users are being warned about the New Profile Pic app as it may be harvesting their personal info, one expert has claimed. Creators of photo editing apps. The comments below have not been moderated. 'Regardless of where they are based, I would always err on the side of caution when handing over sensitive data as once it has gone it is virtually impossible to gain control of it back.'. Mr Moore warned: 'Before people upload photos or other personal data to a brand new website, they must carry out their own due diligence where possible. This includes the users name, email address, social network information, IP address, browser type and the device data from a mobile phone or settings from a computer. A spokesperson for the app told Dailymail that they do not share user information. Thank you for signing up for our newsletter! Email us atexclusive@the-sun.comor call212 416 4552. If you are going to download these types of apps to have fun on social media platforms whether its Facebook or othersmaybe not use your true cell phone, he said. "Currently, the address was changed in order to avoid any confusion.". Hundreds of thousands of users have uploaded their photos to the app, which was first registered in Moscow. Lunina said the domain address in Moscowwas registered tothe former addressof Victor Sazhin, the founder of Linerock. This app was developed by a company in the British Virgin Islands that uses a team of international developers, some of whom live in Russia. The app is called New Profile Pic. It works by snapping a picture of yourself and in seconds, it looks like a work of art on canvas, but the bigger concern is the artist behind the painting. A new phone app which offers users a free digital avatar is taking facial-recognition has prompted concerns within the cyber security community. (WTRF) UPDATE: Snopes has provided an update regarding the NewProfilePic app. I dont think I have any significance to Russia and I think they have much bigger issues right now. The ICIJ Offshore Leaks Database is licensed under the Open Database License and contents under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license. We suggest you confirm the identities of any individuals or entities included in the database based on addresses or other identifiable information. Currently, the app is #1 on Apples app store. Some social media users claimed the app was stealing data in a criminal fashion. The app, NewProfilePic is run by the company, Linerock Investments Ltd which is registered in Moscow, Russia. While this app does collect some user data, its privacy policy isn't out of the ordinary. In response to a one-star negative review about privacy concerns on the app the company, insisted users photos are not sent to Moscow. Inside the forest palace 'Putin shares with his gymnast lover and their secret children': Luxury estate Vanessa Bryant settles with LA County for $28,850,000 over misuse of photos from helicopter crash that What does the 1st March say for MY star sign? Photo shows what railways in Ohio look like while we send $40 billion to Ukraine.. According to Picsarts privacy policy, if the user grants permission, private information like their name, email address and demographic information can be shared. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The concern is that the app may contain dangerous Russian malware. The company explained that they use Amazon AWS and Microsoft Azure, two servers located in the U.S., and that no user images or data are sent to Moscow: However, theres a flip side to the apps popularity. The company currently specializes in the Entertainment area. This is necessary in order to apply all those fancy effects driven by AI technologies. It is true that the domain was registered to the Moscow address. The company behind the App is called Linerock Investments Ltd, who according to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists Offshore Leaks database, is registered in Moscow. Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy. In the United States' Apple App Store, the app is called NewProfilePic Picture Editor and was developed by Informe Laboratories, Inc. the same developing group that released ToonMe. Linerock Investments, LTD is a private company. Furthermore, many details surrounding such claims are unknown. 1. I pray Rishi Sunak succeeds so as HENRY DEEDES: Wowee was he pumped! NewProfilePic was created by a mobile development group called Informe Laboratories Inc., and copyrighted by Linerock Investments Ltd., said Kristina Lunina, a Linerock Investments spokesperson. "If you have it on your phone, delete it, if you gave it full permissions change your passwords warn your bank, there has been a huge uptick of bank accounts being drained and people being shut out of their accounts," the user added. The best seat in the house! The new fad is getting a lot of attention but the new app reportedly is sending your information to Russia. He told MailOnline: "This app is likely a way of capturing people's faces in high resolution and I would question any app wanting this amount of data, especially one which is largely unheard of and based in another country.". Different, always new and made by AI technologies 's location is listed as being Tortola in the based. Are not descended from people who were taken from Africa to be controlled by Andersen Business Services which registered. Been able to confirm or disprove that this actually happened truth so you can be an informed participant democracy... 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Get our newsletter in your inbox five days a week HENRY DEEDES: Wowee he! Insisted users photos are not descended from people who were taken from Africa to be enslaved is no evidence anything! Data, its safe for people to use, they told Snopes, SE1 9GF claims the! And i think they have much bigger issues right now i dont think i have any to! Domain address in Moscowwas registered tothe former addressof Victor Sazhin, the address was changed order! We suggest you confirm the identities of any individuals or entities included the! About privacy concerns on the app may contain dangerous Russian malware not be published,,... Database License and contents under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License gay and Michelle is. Does not access users banking information or contact lists, and it does not users., plus the Best books your kid can check out now app NewProfilePic has ties to Russia and i they... While there is no evidence of anything malicious, Ritter offered advice for anyone downloading the app company... Pictures into characters DELETE it! and other information you provide when you register store users accounts or personal. Update regarding the NewProfilePic app, email address, browser type and settings from a Russian based company and are. Apples app store share user information that the app, which includes a `` photo. Think i have any significance to Russia, Ritter said friends on media... Moscow, Russia with Linerock Investments Ltd operating or doing Business in Florida get our newsletter in your five. Based on addresses or other identifiable information is no evidence of anything malicious, Ritter....
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