Google introduced the ‘Data Safety’ section on the Google Play Store in April 2022, to educate users about how applications consume their data. However, the company is removing critical information from app listings. A month ago, Google removed the ‘Updated On’ section from the Play Store. For the unversed app listing on the Google Play Store include a ‘Permission section’ that lists all the permissions required by an app without installing it on their device.
In a recent tweet, Mishaal Rahman shared screenshots of the Play Store listing for the Facebook app before and after the change went into effect. As you can see, the updated listing no longer shows the ‘Permissions’ list, so you can no longer check the app permissions before installing the app.
After:
Before:
We’re not confident why Google has gone ahead with this alteration, and the company is yet to disclose an official statement on the matter. But we speculate it has something to do with the new Play Store Data Safety section, which is presently rolling out to users. The new Data Safety section delivers users with information about how applications absorb their data in the Play Store listing. The information furnished in the Data Safety section is a bit easier for usage by common users, making it a bit more reasonable or easier than the Permissions list, which doesn’t elucidate the required permissions.
