Google warns vs self-updating Android apps in wake of Facebook app incident

Google has updated its Google Play developer program to ban so-called "self-updating" apps, after Facebook's new Android app reportedly bypassed its updating mechanism, a tech site reported.

 

Droid Life cited a note from Google Play where an app downloaded from Google Play "may not modify, replace or update its own APK binary code" using methods other than Google Play's update mechanism.

 

"Google Play is a trusted source for Android application downloads, and we are committed to providing a secure and consistent experience," it quoted the note as saying.

 

But while Google did not particularly name any developer, Droid Life said Facebook's new app quickly comes to mind.

 

It said the new Facebook app was updating itself without going through Google Play, directly asking users to “Install a new build.”

 

Such a direct approach "scared a number of Android users, prompting the creation of threads all over the internet to try and figure out if it was safe or not," Droid Life said.

 

A separate article on Ars Technica said Google appeared to announce the policy change for app developers in the "Dangerous Products" section of Google Play's policies.

 

"Under the 'Dangerous Products' section of the Google Play developer policies, Google now states that '[a]n app downloaded from Google Play may not modify, replace or update its own APK binary code using any method other than Google Play's update mechanism,'" it said.

 

Ars Technica noted Android is "far more permissive" than Apple's iOS on the installation of third-party applications.

 

"There are certainly legitimate reasons to ban such a practice—it's easy to imagine the creator of a malicious application enticing users with a seemingly legit app and then updating it with malware. No one expects Facebook to do that, but the change in Google's legalese could force the company to stop updating its app outside the Google Play store," it said. — TJD, GMA News