![\"Play](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1756608913_220_960x0.jpg\")
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Do not keep these apps.<\/p>\n
AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n
Republished on August 30 with new deletion update for Play Store apps.<\/p>\n
Google has now confirmed<\/a> the deletion of 77 malicious apps<\/a> from Play Store. But this is just the tip of an alarming iceberg. In the last year, Google removed \u201cnearly four million apps, equating to approximately 11,000 app removals per day.\u201d<\/p>\n The data comes courtesy of Surfshark<\/a> and has been confirmed by Google through its Play Store \u201ctransparency reports and supplemental data files.\u201d Surfshark says more than half of the removals were due to \u201cdata protection and privacy policy violations.\u201d<\/p>\n Last year, Google promised to clean up Play Store, a move which has led to the purge of millions of apps. In just the first few months of 2024, Play Store lost almost half its apps<\/a> due to policy enforcement<\/a>. And it turns out that in 2024 Google was just getting started.<\/p>\n ForbesMicrosoft Tells All Windows Users\u2014Save These Files On Your PCBy Zak Doffman<\/a><\/p>\n In addition to deleting apps, \u201cGoogle reported terminating approximately 155,000 developer accounts in 2024.\u201d And that was just on Play Store. The new mandate for developers to be verified is being extended to sideloading<\/a>. That means only developers meeting Google\u2019s criteria<\/a> can release apps for certified Android phones.<\/p>\n Google advises that \u201cif you are looking for an app that is no longer available on Google Play,\u201d it may be because the developer has withdrawn it, but it\u2019s more likely that it has violated Google\u2019s policies and was “removed or suspended from Google Play.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s where it gets interesting. Google warns<\/a> that even \u201cif an app is removed\u2019 from Google Play \u201cit will not be removed from your device.\u201d This means \u201cyou can continue to use the app. However, you will not be able to update your app.\u201d<\/p>\n Google’s Play Store deletion<\/p>\n Surfshark<\/p>\n If the app is deemed dangerous, it may trigger a Play Protect warning and a prompt to delete it. But most apps removed from Play Store will still be on your phone. If you see that an app cannot update because it\u2019s no longer on Play Store, remove it. Even if it\u2019s not dangerous, it cannot be updated and so any security fixes cannot be applied.<\/p>\n Similarly, you should purge your phone of apps you no longer use or need (or both). As Surfshark says, \u201cthe responsibility falls on users to practice safe downloading habits. This includes checking app permissions, reading reviews, and sticking to well-known developers.\u201d If an app has been removed from the store, remove it from your phone.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a staggering digital purge that goes unnoticed by the public,\u201d Surfshark told me. \u201cWhile it may create the illusion that every app we download is safe, the reality is a bit more complex.\u201d Don\u2019t leave these apps on your phone.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, removing apps is about to get easier, Per Android Authority<\/a>, \u201cGoogle is testing an \u2018Uninstall\u2019 button directly within individual app listings in Play Store. This button,\u201d it says, \u201cwill make it easier to remotely uninstall apps from other devices.\u201d<\/p>\n