Google issues clarification on action taken on personal loan apps in India

Google only allows personal loan apps with full repayment required in greater than or equal to 60 days from the date the loan is issued and all developers in the Store agree to the terms of the Google Play Developer Distribution Agreement.

Google on Thursday issued a clarification regarding the action it has taken on personal loan apps on the Google Play Store, revealing the details about why some lending apps were removed from the store.

The search giant said that it has reviewed hundreds of personal loan apps in India, based on flags submitted by users and government agencies. The lending apps that were found to violate Google's user safety policies were immediately removed from the Play Store.

Additionally, developers of the remaining identified apps have been asked to demonstrate that they comply with applicable local laws and regulations. Apps failing to do so will also be removed without further notice, Google said.

Google only allows personal loan apps with full repayment required in greater than or equal to 60 days from the date the loan is issued and all developers in the Store agree to the terms of the Google Play Developer Distribution Agreement.

Further, financial services apps offering personal apps are required to disclose information around the features, fees, risks, and benefits of personal loans, which will help people make informed decisions about their financial needs.

"All developers in the Play Store agree to the terms of the Google Play Developer Distribution Agreement, which stipulates that apps must adhere to applicable rules and laws, including generally accepted practices and guidelines. In addition, the Google Play Developer Policy requires financial services apps that offer personal loans to disclose key information such as the minimum and maximum periods of repayment, the maximum Annual Percentage Rate, and a representative example of the total loan cost," Suzanne Frey, Vice President, Product, Android Security and Privacy, wrote in a blog post.

Google noted that developers must only request permissions that are necessary to implement current features or services and should not use permissions that give access to user or device data for undisclosed, unimplemented, or disallowed features or purposes, adding that the data should be used for purposes that the user has consented to.