Posted by Jacqueline Hart, Director, Trusted Experiences, Developer Enablement

Hello there,

With thousands and thousands of Android apps to select from, customers are more and more centered on the privateness and safety of the titles they obtain. That’s why it’s so essential to construct person belief with pleasant, high-quality app experiences constructed on a safe basis.

I’m Jacqueline Hart and I lead the workforce that helps builders navigate our insurance policies. We’re additionally accountable for reviewing apps on Google Play to verify they’re protected for customers.

On this version of Notes from Google Play, I’d wish to share how we’re working to enhance your coverage expertise and the way we’re serving to strengthen person belief by highlighting your app’s method to privateness and safety.

Over the previous few months, we’ve shared updates on our key privateness and safety initiatives that can assist you put together for modifications and use new instruments and sources, together with enhanced account information transparency and controls in your app’s Information security part and new Android 14 performance. Now, I’m happy to share the following section of options, instruments, and updates that we’ve been engaged on to assist preserve our platform protected and reliable.

A number of months in the past, we introduced that we’re redesigning the App content material web page in Google Play Console to make your excellent duties clearer, and now we’re including extra info that can assist you:

• Spot deadlines with a brand new timeline view for brand spanking new and up to date declarations
• Perceive why your app is in-scope for a specific declaration
• Discover related coverage points alongside every declaration, serving to you determine and repair points extra shortly

Later this yr, we plan to indicate not simply present declarations, but additionally upcoming declaration necessities and deadlines to provide you extra time to plan.

We’re additionally getting you crucial details about third-party SDKs, together with a brand new discover on Google Play SDK Index that can assist you make extra knowledgeable selections about which model of an SDK might trigger your app to violate Google Play insurance policies.

And now we’re bringing extra crucial info proper into Play Console. Beforehand, you possibly can solely find out about SDK-related coverage points affecting your apps by way of an Inbox message or e mail. Later this yr, we’ll carry this info to you proper on the Coverage standing web page so you possibly can see any points in a single place and keep on prime of your app’s coverage standing.

We’re additionally making it simpler to discover out in case your app is impacted by our Goal API necessities, which requires you to construct for the newest variations of Android so you may make use of our newest safety updates and platform enhancements. Since early August, you might have seen info outlining any potential impression in your app on the Coverage standing web page, together with sources that can assist you be taught what to do to remain compliant.

To provide you additional assist, we’re launching extra methods to enhance the expertise. These embrace the brand new Developer Assist Group, the place you possibly can ask your friends about all the things from Play Console to the newest coverage modifications, and the Google Play Strike Removing program, which helps eligible builders get sure enforcement strikes eliminated after passing a associated Play Academy coaching course. We launched this system as a pilot final yr and have seen a profitable discount in repeat violations, so now we’re making it out there to all builders.

To assist customers really feel assured about their downloads in delicate app classes, we’re quickly including a brand new Play Retailer banner for the VPN app class to emphasise the significance of reviewing an app’s Information security part earlier than putting in.

In case you are a VPN developer and taken with studying extra about this function, please submit this way.

Our workforce at Google is prioritizing new methods to provide customers much more confidence within the high quality and safety of the apps and video games they obtain, establishing Google Play as probably the most trusted app market. This consists of efforts like our new developer verification course of for brand spanking new Play Console accounts.

We’ve acquired much more to return, however I’m excited to share these updates with you now, and I hope they provide help to proceed to thrive on our platform. As at all times, thanks for partnering with us to make Google Play a protected, reliable platform.

Jacqueline Hart