AppsFlyer

Last updated

AppsFlyer Ltd.
Type Private
Industry Data broker
Founded2011
FoundersOren Kaniel (CEO) and Reshef Mann
Headquarters
San Francisco
,
United States
Key peopleGal Ekstein (CBO)
Nachum Falek (CFO)
Barak Witkowski (CPO)
Products Data analysis and personal data
Number of employees
approximately 1,500 (2026) [1]
Website www.appsflyer.com

AppsFlyer is a privately owned data broker headquartered in San Francisco, California. The company collects and sells personal data through data and web scraping and other means of dataveillance, [2] [3] which other businesses could then use for targeted marketing. [4] In a 2025 lawsuit from NOYB, AppsFlyer was found operating as a de facto unregistered data broker in the European Union, in violation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The company was found to be one of the two data brokers servicing TikTok, where private information were collected illegally [5] to perform user analytics. [6] [7] [8]

Contents

History

AppsFlyer was founded in Israel in 2011 by Oren Kaniel and Reshef Mann. [9] In February 2018, AppsFlyer opened its United States headquarters in San Francisco. [10] In May, AppsFlyer acquired the development team Yodas. [11] [12] In November 2023, AppsFlyer acquired Devtodev, a gaming and app analytics firm. [13] In December 2023, it acquired oolo, an AI-based user acquisition and monetisation platform. [14]

The company received a private valuation of $2.7 billion in 2026; [15] a potential IPO was called off early that year, after one of its early investors, Apollo Global Management, sought to introduce new conditions associated with the sale. [16]

Products

AppsFlyer's platform allows enables app developers and marketers to track advertising campaigns across multiple networks and sources. The platform was part of Microsoft's accelerator program. [17] It provides both public and private personal data for sale as a subscription-based service, a business model asserted by the company as "software as a service (SaaS)". These data can be used for targeted marketing. [18]

As of 2026, the company had approximately 1,500 employees, and more than 20 offices worldwide, located in cities such as San Francisco, New York, London, Berlin, Kyiv, Bengaluru, and Tokyo. [19] [20] The company laid off 100 of its staff in 2025. [21]

In the 2025 lawsuit from NOYB, AppsFlyer was found violating European Union users' data privacy rights. [6] TikTok was accused of unlawfully tracking its users' private shopping preferences was claimed to have facilitated unauthorized data transfers, and did not have legal grounds to share user data with TikTok. [22]

In March 2026, malware was found in AppsFlyer's software development kit that replaced Bitcoin wallet addresses. [23]

Recognition

In 2019, AppsFlyer was named Best Analytics and Data Tool at the Pocket Gamer Mobile Games Awards. [24]

In 2023, AppsFlyer received recognition from Frost & Sullivan for competitive strategy in the Asia-Pacific region, the Ventana Research Digital Innovation Award for its Data Clean Room, and the AWS Partner of the Year award for its collaboration on a digital preservation project related to Auschwitz-Birkenau. [25] [26]

AppsFlyer was included in the Forbes Cloud 100 list of private cloud companies between 2019 and 2025. [27]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "AppsFlyer – Company Profile". Tracxn. Retrieved 21 April 2026.
  2. ↑ Balboa, Elizabeth (4 June 2020). "ZoomInfo IPO: What You Need To Know". Yahoo! Finance. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  3. ↑ "Zoom Information Inc". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  4. ↑ "Information Security - Phish Bowl". Hamilton College. Retrieved 2 October 2025. ZoomInfo collects data, including personal data, to sell to other businesses to use in their marketing. [Be] cautious with installing any plugins or software from ZoomInfo as it will seek to download information on you as part of their business model to sell for marketing.
  5. ↑ "TikTok tracked user's Grindr activity in violation of European law, rights group alleges". therecord.media. Retrieved 9 November 2026.
  6. 1 2 "noyb files complaints over TikTok's off-app tracking and refusal to disclose users' full personal data". CADE – Civil Society Alliances for Digital Empowerment. Retrieved 15 July 2026.
  7. ↑ "TikTok unlawfully tracks your shopping habits – and your use of dating apps". noyb.eu. Retrieved 15 July 2026.
  8. ↑ Marchandon, Leo; Marchandon, Leo (17 December 2025). "TikTok monitored Grindr activity through third-party tracker, privacy group alleges". Reuters. Retrieved 9 November 2026. [NOYB] alleged the companies violated European Union privacy laws by tracking user activities across apps without consent[, and that] neither AppsFlyer nor Grindr had legal grounds to share the user's data with TikTok.
  9. ↑ "AppsFlyer". Salesforce Ventures. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  10. ↑ "AppsFlyer opens new U.S. headquarters in San Francisco's South of Market District". AppsFlyer. 15 February 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2026.
  11. ↑ "חברת AppsFlyer רוכשת את צוות הפיתוח של Yodas". כלכליסט – www.calcalist.co.il. 31 May 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
  12. ↑ "AppsFlyer raises funding from Salesforce Ventures". InvestGame. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  13. ↑ "AppsFlyer acquires DevtoDev data analytics for games and app devs". VentureBeat . 8 November 2023.
  14. ↑ Schiff, Allison (5 December 2023). "AppsFlyer Ends The Year With Another Acquisition". AdExchanger. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  15. ↑ "Backed by Google and Meta, Israeli ad performance company raises over $1 billion". The Times of Israel. 23 June 2026.
  16. ↑ "AppsFlyer sale collapses after Apollo seeks new deal terms". ctech. 5 March 2026.
  17. ↑ Heles, Thierry (22 January 2015). "AppsFlyer takes off with $20m series B". Global Venturing.
  18. ↑ "AppsFlyer SWOT Analysis". Business Model Canvas Template. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  19. ↑ "A unicorn is born: AppsFlyer aces its Series D funding with $210M". Adsider. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  20. ↑ "AppsFlyer Company Profile". PitchBook. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  21. ↑ Long, Neil (4 February 2025). "AppsFlyer to cut 100 staff". Mobilegamer.biz.
  22. ↑ "Privacy group alleges,TikTok monitor activities through third-party trackers". The News International . 17 December 2025. Retrieved 15 July 2026.
  23. ↑ "AppsFlyer Web SDK Hijack: 7 Key Risks of Crypto-Stealing Code | Darknetsearch.com". DarknetSearch. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  24. ↑ "AppsFlyer named Best Analytics and Data Tool at the Pocket Gamer Mobile Games Awards 2019". Magma Venture Partners. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  25. ↑ "AppsFlyer applauded by Frost & Sullivan for helping customers optimize campaigns and predict long-term results". Frost & Sullivan. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  26. ↑ "AppsFlyer earns Marketing Digital Innovation Award for 2023". ISG Research. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
  27. ↑ "AppsFlyer profile". Forbes. Retrieved 29 May 2026.
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