Google Play-promoted Android apps are using scammy ad practices, report says

Eight Android apps with more than 2 billion downloads in the Google Play store have been engaging in fraudulent ad practices, BuzzFeed News reported today. Seven of the apps are owned by Cheetah Mobile, a publicly-traded Chinese company, and one app is owned by Kika Tech, a Chinese company headquartered in Silicon Valley. The two companies have been found to abuse app permissions in order to monitor new downloads and hijack app-install bounties that could range in the millions of dollars, according to app analytics firm Kochava. While the scheme involved monitoring users’ behavior, it was ultimately used to rip off app developers, who pay a fee to partners when they drive users to install new apps. In a normal installation process,... Continue reading… #News
source: https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/26/18113415/android-apps-google-play-cheetah-mobile-kika-tech