Can I trust Wikipedia?
This scan is more than 90 days old.
This app cleared every trust check that applied to it, with no red flags.
- Best for
- Research and reference without advertising or tracking
- What it means for you
- App usage is tracked only by Wikipedia's own first-party analytics, with consent collected at onboarding. Donation payments are processed through Adyen and Apple Pay. The build includes no code to send user data to advertising networks, behavioral tracking companies, or third-party analytics services.
- Main concern
- Debug settings panel in production binary allows donation bypass
- The developer's description
- Wikipedia: The free online encyclopedia. Access millions of articles in over 300 languages. Browse, learn, and discover with offline reading, search, and personalized recommendations. Built by volunteers worldwide.
- Third-party services
- 13
- Findings rated low or higher
- 1
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Full findings
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Trust checks
Secure by Design
StrongStrong security foundation
Why this result
This check looks for security issues at high severity or above in the code of this build, and none were recorded. Its scope covers stored credentials, how the app protects data on the device, and how it protects data in transit.
No critical or high security issues were found. All connections use HTTPS with no exceptions — the app enforces the strictest possible security for network traffic. Two minor low-severity issues exist: some internal developer configuration tools were compiled into the release app (which could let a determined user bypass donation prompts, but exposes no user data), and the bot-protection screen during account creation loads external code over the internet, which is standard practice for CAPTCHA services and relies on server-side verification. Neither issue creates a realistic path to compromising user data.
Data Minimization
StrongTracking done right
Why this result
The check looks at analytics and attribution code for companies other than the developer: the data it reads, the companies named in code as recipients, and whether a consent step runs before that code. In this build, either no such code was recorded, or a consent step runs before it and the app's own disclosures describe the collection.
The app includes only first-party usage analytics code operated by the Wikimedia Foundation itself, and no code was found to send data to commercial tracking or advertising companies. A consent screen during first-time setup explicitly asks whether the user agrees to analytics. No advertising ID, no cross-app tracking framework, and no opt-in tracking mechanism for ad networks were found anywhere in the app.
Manifest Mismatch
StrongEverything visible
Why this result
The check compares the app's privacy disclosures against what the code does: the data categories collected, the companies named in code as their recipients, and the identifiers attached to each. The comparison covers the store listing, the in-app privacy text and any privacy manifest shipped in the build. Every claim compared matched the code here.
The app discloses its open-source components with full license text in an in-app libraries screen. First-party analytics to Wikimedia Foundation are covered by the analytics consent screen shown during setup. Payment processing via Adyen is presented transparently during donation. The CAPTCHA service used for account creation is operated on Wikimedia's own servers. No contradictions were found between what the app's disclosures state and what the code actually does.
User Control
StrongNo lock-in
Why this result
The check looks for a way to export the data an account has accumulated and a way to delete the account itself. In this build, either both were found, or the app has no account of its own and keeps its data on the device. For an app without an account, the developer has no server-side copy to export or delete, and deleting the app removes the data in its own storage.
Wikipedia is an open platform by design. Any Wikipedia account works across the website, mobile apps, and third-party clients — there is no proprietary account system. Article edits are published to the public Wikipedia and are never trapped in the app. Reading history and saved articles are stored locally on the device. Deleting the app removes local data. No barriers to leaving or switching to another Wikipedia client exist.
Truly Local
StrongStays on the device
Why this result
This app presents itself as working offline or on the device alone. The check looks for any code written to send personal data to a server, including analytics, crash reporting and advertising code. None was recorded in this build.
Strengths
- Strict App Transport Security enforced globally with no HTTP exceptions
- No third-party advertising, tracking, attribution, or analytics SDKs present
- First-party-only analytics with onboarding consent screen
- WKContentWorld isolation for article WebView JavaScript bridge prevents trivial content-injection exploits
- No IDFA, ATT framework, or advertising network integration
What the app contains
13 services
Third-party services the scan names in the build:
- CocoaLumberjack
- FLAnimatedImage
- Mantle
- libextobjc
- SDWebImage
- NYTPhotoViewer
- RMessage
- SWStepSlider
- TUSafariActivity
- HCaptcha (hcaptcha-ios-sdk)
- Apple MapKit
- PassKit / Apple Pay
- Adyen
Libraries
| Library | Version | Advisory |
|---|---|---|
| WMF | 8.2.0 | none confirmed |
| Wikipedia | not recorded | none confirmed |
Method and limits
Static analysis: the decompiled code, manifest and resources of this build, read file by file. Network traffic at run time is established by a capture of the running app.
- Scan date
- 21 June 2026
Corrections
No correction is published for this app.
Developer response
No response is published for this app.
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