It looks like Google is about to cull a whole heap of apps that don’t meet the terms of its User Data Policy, with notices being sent out to app developers around the globe.
In particular, the message has been sent to developers whose apps request “sensitive permissions (e.g. camera, microphone, account, contacts, or phone)” but don’t have a valid privacy policy. The notice asks that a link to such a policy be provided in the Store Listing page as well as in the app itself, or alternatively, that the app-maker remove these sensitive permissions from the app altogether.
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Developers have been given until March 15 to comply with this request, at which point Google will either limit visibility of offending apps, or remove them altogether.
Presumably, this would mean a mammoth mop-up of millions of dead apps – many of which haven’t seen any sign of development in years – that will hopefully lead to a cleaner and less-cluttered marketplace, maybe even rivalling the tidiness of Apple’s App Store.
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