Google introduces ‘Play Protect’ label for certified Android-powered smartphones

Google has introduced a new ‘Google Play Protect’ logo for Android-powered smartphones. The company announced this new logo in a blog post to help make it easier for users to check that the device they are buying is certified and secure. Google has emphasised on the need for clarity and user-friendliness, pointing out that there are over 2 billion active Android-powered devices across the globe. [caption id=“attachment_3989161” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Image Credit: Google[/caption] For the uninitiated, Google certifies Android devices to ensure that the users buying the devices will get a stable and secure experience. The company is working with device manufacturers ‘to run hundreds of compatibility tests’ to make sure that the devices are following Android permissions and security model defined by Google. One thing to note here is that the certification also acts as a verification measure to indicate that all the Google apps pre-installed on the devices are authentic and untampered. Google also clarified that certified devices will also come with ‘Google Play Protect’ out of the box. This means that these devices will pack ‘automatic device scanning’ to detect malware providing ‘baseline’ security against privacy hacks, malware infections and others. The company has also posted a list of the partners that it is working with to certify devices.