Google Play to show you which data apps to use from April 27th

Google introduces a data security section in its Google Play Store, where developers will be required to disclose how their applications collect user data, and what they do with this data. This feature is similar to Apple’s Android App Store privacy feature – a company launched in late 2020.

In the data security section, Google will authorize developers to disclose the purpose for user data collection, whether the data is shared with third parties, what encryption principles and security standards are associated with the following applications, or whether they comply with the Google Play Families Policy for younger users, and if the application has been tested against international security standards such as the Open Web Application Security Project’s Mobile Application Security Standard.

Google said on the blog that this feature will be live in the Google Play Store on Wednesday, April 27, and developers will be required to complete this section in all applications in the Google Play Store by July 20 this year.

This feature was first announced by Google back in May 2021, and comes out about a year ago for the first time. Google said this section will provide a more detailed set of data compared to telling users what permissions the app has on phones. Earlier this month, Google announced that it would begin limiting the visibility of apps in the Google Play Store that remain unresolved for two Android cycles.

This authorizes that app developers already in the Google Play Store will need to upgrade their apps to at least Android 11, when Android 13 is released. Although applications that fail to comply with this policy will not be completely removed, they will no longer be available in the new account. At the time of the announcement, Google said this feature was part of a company campaign for developers to use the new privacy and security features of the latest Android versions of Google.