A US senator is pressuring Apple and Google over their safeguards against rogue crypto apps.
Scams around cryptocurrencies are a very serious problem today and a senator wants to make sure app stores are doing the right thing to combat it. Sherrod Brown, Senator from Ohio in the United States Congress, sent letters to the CEOs of Apple and Google asking them to explain the protections in place against crypto app fraud.
A US senator puts pressure on Apple and Google
Sherrod Brown’s intentions include obtaining details on the app validation and reporting processes, alerts sent to users in the event of fraudulent activity, as well as coordination with competing stores and tracking of apps that become phishing scams.
The giants that are Apple and Google have been contacted on the subject, but have not yet spoken. Sherrod Brown is giving leaders until August 10 to answer these various questions.
regarding their protection measures against rogue crypto apps
The two tech companies provide a number of elements against its malicious crypto apps. Apple App Store guidelines prohibit scams outright, including the bait and switch tactic. Google is well targeted with the policy in place on its Play Store, but also, of course, prohibits apps that allow any illegal activity or “dishonest behavior”. The two tech giants allow their users to report any suspicious app. They do not, however, send direct alerts when a scam is revealed and have not been known to actively scan apps in case they trigger phishing scams.
Regardless of perspective, Sherrod Brow believes that effective safeguards are important. The FBI recently warned that crypto app fraud has already resulted in some $42.7 million in losses. It is “imperative”, according to the US senator, that app stores protect investors from such harm.
However, there is no guarantee that these requests will translate into action and even less into law to force the implementation of any stricter anti-fraud systems. This request could however come to clarify the positions of Apple and Google on the subject and that comes to increase the pressure to imagine real actions. In any case, this serves as a reminder that the presence of an app on the App Store or Google Play is not a guarantee of trust.