Google Remotely Wipes Android App

By Jake • June 24th, 2010 • 6 Comments

Interesting. Reminds me of Amazon remotely wiping 1984 from Kindles last year.

Google remotely wipes app from a few phones, explains why | Android Central

Apple has a similar power over iPhone apps, i.e. disabling them. I suppose this is a concession we make for carrying these Intertubes ready devices.

Another argument against device convergence and for an open OS, depending on your viewpoints.


Possibly Related Posts

  • http://empoprise-bi.blogspot.com/ John E. Bredehoft (Empoprises)

    When I read the headline, my first thought was “So EVERYONE, even the 'do no evil' folks, want to exercise control over your data.”

    I felt a little better after I clicked through to the post, but it ended up raising a question.

    For each entity (Amazon, Apple, Google, etc.) who can potentially exercise this control over a user's device, have they published easy-to-understand procedures that explain when they will exercise this control, and when they will not?

    Or is it even possible to share such easy-to-understand procedures, or do the entities need to reserve the right to remove apps under any circumstances? (Perhaps something will happen in the future that they can't anticipate yet.)

  • http://theappslab.com Jake

    I doubt any of them publish anything useful on the subject, and I'm sure the T&C cover this stuff without any problems. Google definitely benefitted from the experiences of Apple and Amazon before them, handling it much more openly.

  • http://twitter.com/syd_oracle Gary Myers

    T&C state “Google may discover a Product on the Market that violates the Android Market Developer Distribution Agreement…. You agree that in such an instance Google retains the right to remotely remove those applications from your Device at its sole discretion and without notice to you.”. The Developer Distribution agreement has more details about what can get removed, but all this only applies to marketplace apps. Anything sourced elsewhere doesn't really come in their remit

  • http://theappslab.com Jake

    No surprise there. I'm sure Apple and Amazon have similar verbiage in their T&C. Thanks for finding it. People aren't used to this model, but it's integral to the sanitized experience Steve Jobs wants to provide.

  • http://twitter.com/Arleneuc Arlene Murchinson