24
May
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£50k Fine Slapped On Firm Responsible For Fake Angry Birds And Other Play Store Games That Sent Premium SMS Messages

Posted by in News

Fake apps in the Play Store are nothing new. We've seen countless fakes hit the Store, many of which contained some form of malware used to steal user data, or worse, charge premium features to their bill. A Latvian firm is now being fined for the latter due to fake apps designed to look like Angry Birds Space, Cut the Rope, and Assassin's Creed.

After downloading one of the aforementioned apps, though, the user wasn't greeted by flying birds or a hungry frog, but instead... nothing. The apps did absolutely nothing in the foreground. Little did the users who installed these apps know that they were being scammed behind the scenes.

27
Jun
20110224233315!Android_Market

Google's 15-Minute App Return Window Unlawful In Taiwan, Google Pulls Paid Apps In Response

Posted by in Android OS, Apps/Games, News

Well, this is an interesting turn of events for the Android Market's universally-despised 15-minute app return window. According to the Taipei Times, the Taipei City Government was recently alerted to Google's Android Market return policies - policies that violate Taiwanese consumer protection laws requiring any product bought over the internet to have at least a 7-day "trial period."

Earlier this month, the Taiwanese government gave Google a 15-day ultimatum to revise its app return policies to include the mandatory 7-day trial period, but Google refused to comply. Faced with a $1 million fine for non-compliance, Google, after negotiations with the government broke down, decided yesterday to remove all access to paid apps for Android devices in Taiwan.