Digital loan apps in Play Store cannot access your location or call logs anymore

Digital loan apps have become a headache in the last few years, taking advantage of people looking for easy money. But the torture and harassment that followed was a story to tell, and now Google is working with the Indian government to clamp down on these suddenly proliferating platforms.

As of May 31st, these apps will have to meet the standards set by Google for the Play Store, as the companies behind these apps will not have access to its contacts, photos, videos, location data, and even call logs. your phone.

That’s not all, Google wants all legitimate app companies to submit documents that support their position in providing these financial services. For example, if a digital lending app is licensed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), they must submit documents to prove their credentials. In India, Google has created a form for these apps to be filled with the required information and any special information.

Google is assigned to secure these channels and prevent these digital lending apps from creating more chaos in the country. These changes were extremely important because the applications were able to operate independently and pay loan amounts based on customer identification and eligibility.

People fell into the trap of these apps because unlike banks, they offered small loans without any paperwork or formalities. You can also get paid instantly, and all this convenience has understandably attracted many people who have had a hard time working between jobs, especially during the pandemic of recent years.

Google claimed to continue to remove all such apps from the Play Store, but even then I have seen cases where they have been blackmailed into paying outstanding amounts. Experts usually advise you not to talk to these companies or even take money from them because we don’t know their terms and how they will work if you default.