Due to noncompliance with policies and regulations, Google India has removed over 3,500 personal loan apps from the Play Store. Contacts and photos, among other user data, were being illegally accessed by the apps. Even in other areas, they didn’t follow the rules.

Google’s New Initiatives

Google recently updated its personal loans policy to prohibit personal loan apps from accessing sensitive data like photos and contacts in response to the violations. The move comes just a few months after Mumbai’s cyber police made 14 arrests for their part in an online loan app scam that used half a dozen registered Indian shell companies to open bank accounts and extort money. The fraudsters changed over around Rs 350 crore into cryptographic money prior to moving it abroad.

To combat fraud in India, Google has now established new licensing requirements for personal loan apps. Between 2021 and March 31, 2023, Mumbai police investigated 176 cases of loan fraud, resulting in 70 arrests and 12 charge sheets.

Following the breakthrough made by the Mumbai police in snaring the loan fraud racket in various parts of Mumbai, Bengaluru, and other parts of India, Google’s action is part of a broader initiative. The operation of the racket was spread out, and it even had connections in Nepal. Following a tip from Mumbai police, two call centers in Nepal were busted in 2022.

According to Dr. Balsing Rajput, DCP (Mumbai-Cyber), at least 27 arrests were made during the investigation, which resulted in a decrease in the number of such cases. Nepal police collaborated in the examination and gave subtleties of obscure call habitats, which had been rethought work of compromising casualties with questionable recordings.

Police examinations uncovered that a money free credit application aggregator door was utilized to get around Rs 130 crore by one of the ladies engaged with the credit misrepresentation racket. According to reports, Liyang Sheng, a 39-year-old con artist, operated from China. Sheng was detained recently.