Getting apps installed on your device can mean giving out personal data willingly to each of the apps. Now, Google has revealed its plans to curb this practice. The tech giant, in its bid to make Android the most secure mobile operating system, has started cracking down on app permissions. According to reports, this new policy would suggest that 98 per cent of Android apps will not ask for access to a user’s SMS and call data. They are screening such apps by either blocking potential malicious apps from appearing on Play Store or removing and updating others.
In order to ensure users can keep data private, Google came out with a policy in 2018 that aimed at limiting apps that “unnecessarily” sought permission to get personal information. Then in 2019, it came out with a policy update that segregated kids and family-friendly apps. Despite these measures, Google has not been able to filter out all of the harmful applications. CamScanner came with an update last year that allowed hackers to install a trojan on phones and tablets.
The bigger issue found across Android devices was the ability of apps to accumulate data of a user, even when it has been denied permission. Over 1,300 apps were found to be able to do so. Although Google has not been able to erect brick walls yet, it mentioned in a Security Blog that it will continue to work on “protecting user privacy”, “blocking repeat offenders” and “removing apps with harmful content and behaviours”.
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