Android Question Warning of Google Play Developer policy violation: Action Required

[imbault]

Hi,

I've receive a mail concerning all my apps published in the google play :
Does anyone knows how to handle that?

Thanks

Hello Google Play Developer,

Our records show that your app, --------, with package name ---.----.---, currently violates our User Data policy regarding Personal and Sensitive Information.

Policy issue: Google Play requires developers to provide a valid privacy policy when the app requests or handles sensitive user or device information. Your app requests sensitive permissions (e.g. camera, microphone, accounts, contacts, or phone) or user data, but does not include a valid privacy policy.

Action required: Include a link to a valid privacy policy on your app's Store Listing page and within your app. You can find more information in our help center.

Alternatively, you may opt-out of this requirement by removing any requests for sensitive permissions or user data.

If you have additional apps in your catalog, please make sure they are compliant with our Prominent Disclosure requirements.

Please resolve this issue by March 15, 2017, or administrative action will be taken to limit the visibility of your app, up to and including removal from the Play Store. Thanks for helping us provide a clear and transparent experience for Google Play users.

Regards,

The Google Play Team

 

[DonManfred]

you need to add a url to a privacy document.

Go to your Playstore Dev console and edit the Entry for the Playstore.

I got the same... Need to fill in one too :-/

Note that the document must be included in your app (as of the mail from google).

 

[imbault]

Ok Mandred, but more concretly, what are we supposed to do, what did you fill, an URL on a policy page on your site?

What do you mean by :

Note that the document must be included in your app (as of the mail from google).

 

[DonManfred]

what are we supposed to do, what did you fill

i did not do anything so far. I just read the mail from google a few minutes before you created this thread...

I just looked at my console where i need to fill something.

I need to find out what text i need to fill into the privacy. The app is only used for company intern use.

I´ll create a textfile on our server and put the url into this box after i created the policy.

What do you mean by

I just saw this in the email so i guess we need to include it somehow.

Action required: Include a link to a valid privacy policy on your app's Store Listing page and within your app. You can find more information in our help center.

Honestly: at this time written i do not know what to do. Will googling the next days or maybe we get some more answers here

 

[tigrot]

Terroristic mails from Google. I have not put any sensible data and they keep on telling me to put a privacy policy...
After Apple I think I'm going to leave Google as well! I'll publish App on my site only.
They are only for my customers' internal use.

 

[imbault]

Same for me, I've put a link to a kind of "privacy policy" page on my site...

Any more advises for the community?

Thks

Patrick

 

[freedom2000]

Hi Patrick,

I got the same critical warning and updated my Apps description page with a .html file with this content :

__________________________________
JG iTag Alarm Privacy Policy

Read Phone State
Get the state of the phone, so that it can send a SMS when you select this option.

Read Contacts
Reading and displaying the names of contacts to select to who you want to send SMS.

Camera
To capture a picture when you select this option

Location
To Get your GPS position to localise your iTag

Non Disclosure
Apart from the above mentionned permissions, the JG iTag Alarm Application does not handle personnal or sensitive user data, and no personnal data is captured or exchanged outside the application.
_______________________________________________

I didn't modify my Apps to include the same content...
For the moment, the critical warning vanished

so far so good

Cheers
JP

 

[An Schi]

Terroristic mails from Google. I have not put any sensible data and they keep on telling me to put a privacy policy...
After Apple I think I'm going to leave Google as well! I'll publish App on my site only.
They are only for my customers' internal use.

Usually i am not the guy to defend google mails - but i think in this case they are reacting to national/overnational laws.
Aren't they?

 

[imbault]

Hi JP,

"C'est le grand ménage de printemps chez Google", it's the big apps cleanup for Google, I've read they want to remove at lot (around 1 million) of apps

But still don't know exactly what to write on the policy web page, as well as how to have this policies into the app...

anyone knows ? (before march 15...)

Thanks

 

[KMatle]

Hi JP,

"C'est le grand ménage de printemps chez Google", it's the big apps cleanup for Google, I've read they want to remove at lot (around 1 million) of apps

But still don't know exactly what to write on the policy web page, as well as how to have this policies into the app...

anyone knows ? (before march 15...)

Thanks

I don't think Google will read it Just fill the URL and create a nice html with the a comment on any permission and why it is needed. After that have a glas of wine and relax.

 

[freedom2000]

After that have a glas of wine and relax.

Or take a cup of coffee as Patrick does on his profile pix

And if you look at closely you will see that glass(es) of wine is not far away !

 

[tigrot]

Usually i am not the guy to defend google mails - but i think in this case they are reacting to national/overnational laws.
Aren't they?

Yes of course: don't you think that following international rules "ad-litteram" you're better to lie down and wait for dead(the combined allowed actions are almost zero)? I know that they are problably right. But I got money from my published app(all for my costomers' internal use) once many years ago and now I have to ask them to spend again. One big problem and what could help Google to clean up is the possibility to delete old apps. I have a big number of never sold APPs,

 

[sorex]

If they clean up every app that has a price tag or in-app purchases without a listed valid address I guess a lot will be gone aswell.