Beginning 2022, the apps on Google Play will show details about what data they collect, as well as other information about their privacy and security practices, in a new privacy and safety section in their listing.
Google Play Store New Security Listing
The announcement came a few months after Apple started displaying the same privacy information in the App Store.
In the same way Apple's policy covers both its own apps and those that third-party developers create, Google stated that its first-party apps will also need to give this information, according to TechCrunch.
According to Google, the initiative is meant to help users to understand the data that an app collects or shares if the data is secured and the additional details that impact privacy and security.
The section will also detail what user data an app has access to, such as contacts, location, or personal information like an email address, but Google stated it also wants to let the developers give context to explain how the data is used and what it means for the apps' functionality.
In particular, Google said that apps will give information about whether the data is encrypted, whether they comply with Google's policies regarding apps for children, and whether users can opt-out of data sharing if they want to.
Google added that the information will also highlight whether a third party has verified the app's safety section and whether users can request that their data be deleted if they wish to.
The new privacy policy will not come into effect for months, and Google stated that this period should give developers enough time to implement the changes.
Google said that developers will be able to start declaring the new privacy information in the 4th quarter of this year and that this will start being shown to users in the 1st quarter of 2022.
The new apps and app updates will be required to include these new privacy details from the second quarter of 2022, and apps that don't could eventually see their updates being blocked, according to Tech Radar.
The new initiative to give more information about data privacy and security follows Google's recent announcement that it is overhauling how apps are allowed to present themselves on the Google Play Store.
Even though an exact enforcement date is yet to be announced, eventually, app listings won't be allowed to use tricks to make themselves eye-catching and enticing for users, like writing words in all-caps using emoji in app names. Google said more information on the new policies will be revealed in the second half of this year.
Apple's App Tracking Transparency
Apple's App Tracking Transparency forces app developers to give users a choice regarding data usage. Apps will now have to ask users for permission using a standardized prompt created by Apple, according to The Verge.
If the users agree, they can click on the "Allow" button, and everything will work just like it did before. If they click "Ask app not to track", the developer can't track customers using their data in that app or sell it to other companies, not with Apple's IDFA system, and not with their own systems.
Related Article: iOS App Tracking Transparency: Nearly All Users Are Opting Out of Ad Tracking, Ongoing Study Claims
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Written by Sophie Webster
