Google rejected 2.28 million risky Android apps from Play store in 2023

Google reports that in 2023 it blocked 2.28 million Android apps and 333,000 developer accounts from Google Play for policy and security violations, rejected/remediated 200,000 submissions requesting risky permissions, and partnered with 31 SDK providers to minimize sensitive data collection across roughly 790,000 apps. While malware still appears—such as 17 “free” VPN apps with a malicious monetization SDK that hijacked devices as residential proxies—Google’s App Defense Alliance and SAFE principles are raising the barrier to sneak and retain malicious apps; users are advised to rely on Google Play, keep Play Protect enabled, monitor resource usage, and restrict unnecessary app permissions.