Google Is Restricting Apps From Seeing All Installed Apps For Privacy
India Today
Google will now restrict Android apps from being able to see which all apps are installed on a smartphone.
Google today announced a series of policy updates for apps distributed through the Play Store. Most importantly, the company will restrict most developers from seeing what Android apps are installed on a device. As part of its current security and privacy policy, Google will narrow down the list of apps that can use the QUERY_ALL_PACKAGES permission to see what apps are installed on the device. This applies to those programs targeting API 30+ on devices running Android 11 and above. The requirement was originally supposed to take effect earlier, but it has been postponed due to COVID-19. Once the change goes live, apps can only make use of the permission if "core user-facing functionality or purpose, requires broad visibility into installed apps on the user's device." Google's list of permitted apps mentions file managers, antivirus apps, and banking apps, including other apps that involve financial transactions.More Related News