In September Neon app briefly became a sensation on the app download charts by promising to pay users to record and share phone calls. It then suddenly went offline amid controversy over its security practices, privacy protections and payment structure.
More than a month later, the new version returned to the iOS App Store and Google Play Store. However, the New York-based company won't disclose exactly how much it will pay users for their calls or referrals, other than during a short bonus period. Its founder says the security issues have been resolved, but won't give details.
Neon sells recordings of users' conversations to companies that train artificial intelligence models that are hungry for real-world data, such as how people talk. The company says it anonymizes call information.
In our own tests, we weren't able to get the new version of Neon to work on iOS. The screen asking me to confirm my phone number for registration did not produce the expected phone call.
Privacy Experts CNET spoke with warned against using the app in its previous version due to concerns about call consent laws, and also noted that AI can infer a user's information or identity even if call data is anonymized.
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What's changed in the Neon app?
Shortly after Neon shot up the app store charts, news site TechCrunch discovered a security hole this allowed people to access other users' calls, including transcripts and metadata about the calls. After the app went offline, Neon founder Alex Kiam said the company would resolve the issue and that the app would return with a bonus for users.
At the time, app users could call anyone and get paid. According to the company, only the app user's side of the call was sold, since in some states it is illegal to record a conversation without permission.
The new version tries to get around these state issues with a new app-to-app setting: both parties to the call must have the Neon app installed, essentially making it an opt-in service. Only calls from one Neon user to another Neon user are paid, that is, both interlocutors are registered with the company.
Neon is now offering users a rate of 30 cents per minute up to $30 until 5:00 pm ET on November 6th. The normal rate the company will pay for call recordings outside this window is unclear; When pressed for details, Kiam said only that app users would be notified of rate changes.
The company also compensates users for using the service, but did not specify the amount of payment. Neon used to offer $30 for referrals.
Users leaving comments on Google Play Store gave the company low ratings, complaining that referral rates had dropped to $1 and call rates could be as low as 5 cents per minute. The app currently has a rating of 2.2 stars out of 5 on the Google Play Store and 2.7 stars out of 5 on the iOS App Store.
Security issues with Neon
When Neon went offline, he expected the company to fix a vulnerability that could have allowed someone to access other users' calls.
Kiam told CNET via email that the company “collaborated” with three cybersecurity firms after the security hole was discovered and hired a contractor to perform code reviews to address the security issues. He said Neon later hired the contractor as its chief technology officer. He did not name the contractor, but said he was “a former CTO of a fairly large technology company with 20 years of experience building secure platforms.”
Neon has resolved the underlying issue identified by TechCrunch and has found no evidence of “malicious” access to its database, Kiama said. He did not specify how the company solved this problem.
According to him, the delay in bringing Neon back to iOS was not intentional. “I wanted to bring Neon back quickly, but it was important that we did it right.”
Updated Neon Terms of Service
As part of its relaunch, Neon has dropped its $30 per day limit on pending payouts. Kiam said the company is planning a “pleasant surprise in the future” for those who already use the app.
According to the updated terms of service As of November 3, those who sign up for the app agree that Neon can “sell and offer for sale” call recordings “for the purpose of developing, training, testing and improving machine learning models, artificial intelligence tools and systems, and related technologies.”
There is still controversial language regarding Neon's rights and licenses, which grant the company the right to publicly display, reproduce and distribute recorded conversations “in any media formats and through any media channels.”
The appeal of being able to earn a few extra dollars with minimal effort is understandable, especially when many people are worried about money amid layoffs in the tech industry, the US government shutdown and suspense services such as the SNAP food assistance program.
However, security concerns, the ethics of handing over private conversations to AI companies, lack of clarity regarding payments and complaints in user reviews should give users pause.
In an interview with CNET in early October, Kiam said his company was taken aback by Neon's sudden popularity, but not entirely surprised.
“I expected things to move pretty quickly because … we're getting money from people for something they would do anyway,” Kiam said. “We were confident there was a real demand for something like this.”
