Google Play update adds enhanced security options for app purchases
A new version of the Google Play Store is arriving for Android users, giving folks more control over security measures surrounding app purchases. Users can now decide how often the Play Store will ask for password confirmation, adding a layer of protection against the happy fingers of a child (or, perhaps, Shaq).
In actuality, the updated Play Store doesn’t add any security measures that weren’t already in place, it only gives users more options. By default, Google Play would only ask for a password once every 30 minutes when downloading paid apps. The newest iteration of Google’s app store gives the option to ask for passwords always, only after a half-hour elapses between purchases, or never.
Google has also made their warning about in-app purchases harder to miss, making it clear when an app will include the ability to buy additional content. In-app purchases have come under a lot of fire recently from parents and the government alike. Apple saw a recent FTC ruling that will force them to pay back millions in in-app charges, while a women recently hit Google with a lawsuit over $66 worth of purchases made by her child without her consent. European officials have also been working with Apple and Google to develop regulations that could govern so-called freemium applications.
As with all Play Store updates, you shouldn’t have to do anything to get it. As a rollout will likely be somewhat staggered, if these features aren’t available immediately, rest assured they will be soon.
[via Engadget]