Archives - Google Play


Don’t “sideload” an app onto your device unless you’re absolutely sure it’s safe

Most phones allow you to add apps to them manually, without using traditional stores such as Google Play and the Apple App Store. While these apps may seem useful, there’s no reliable way to tell if they’re completely safe. It’s best to avoid sideloading apps altogether unless you’re completely sure the app is legitimate.

10 Steps to Smartphone Security for Android

Android is the most popular consumer computer operating system (OS) in the world. Although it has a reputation for being less safe than its main competitor, Apple’s iOS, there are steps most people can take to sharply reduce the risk to their devices and data. Let’s look at ten things you can do as an […]

Set up a digital wallet and forget your credit card number

Typing in your credit card number on a new website is always a risk. The data could be exposed in a breach or intercepted through a man-in-the-middle attack. Many online shops, as well as brick-and-mortar stores, now accept payments from digital wallets like Google Pay and Apple Pay.

Enable parental controls in the Play Store

Protecting your children online means ensuring that they can’t access potentially harmful apps. From the child’s Android phone or Chrome OS device, navigate to “Parental controls” under “User controls.” Set up a personal identification number (PIN) that your child won’t guess.

Pay attention to Google cross-app account alerts

Beginning in 2020, Google began to provide alerts about potential Google Account security issues to users regardless of which Google app (Gmail, YouTube, Drive, etc.) they were using. Look for a small icon, with an exclamation mark next to your profile image, in the upper right corner of most apps. Tapping/clicking through will display the […]

How can you avoid malicious apps

Be savvy with your apps. Before downloading an app, make sure you understand what information the app will access. Read the permissions the app is requesting and determine whether the data it is asking to access is related to the purpose of the app. Read the app’s privacy policy to see if, or how, your […]