Google Play Store Now Labels Government Apps In Select Countries

Google Play Store Now Labels Government Apps In Select Countries

Android Authority reports that Google is rolling out a new feature for its Google Play Store to denote government apps with a special identifier, in an effort to prevent impersonations from malicious actors that may steal data from citizens.

Currently, the new verification system will cover over 3,000 apps in 12 countries, including Australia, Canada, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, the United States, Brazil, Indonesia, India, and Mexico. For the end user, they will see a new “Government” badge to verify the app’s authenticity – which will be visible on the app’s page, as well as within the search results.

While Google Play already has policies that make app impersonations illegal, combatting such activities is, more often than not, a Whack-A-Mole game on a much larger scale. Users may struggle to tell the impersonated app from the real thing, so having an official seal of approval will be a lot more effective in disincentivizing malicious actors from creating lookalikes. Of course, it’s also important to ensure that users download the app from official sources like Play Store to close off other avenues of attacks further.

At this writing, Google hasn’t announced if more countries will adopt the new verification policy, although it states that developers of government apps can provide proof and relevant information to apply for the official designations.

Pokdepinion: Hopefully our government will take notice of this new policy – scams are all the rage these days.