Google won't allow loan apps to access your phone data

The world of digital lending that sometimes eluded strict regulation is hopefully going to face further tightening with Google imposing government guidelines for personal loans effective today. The objective is to shield consumers from apps and services that could expose them to unnecessary risk and breach of data privacy.

According to a report in Mint, Google is having a fresh look at its policy of personal loans that will limit access of information of a user that could save him from eventual misuse of such financially sensitive information.

Last year Google was nudged by the government a few times to restrict apps that are not sensitive to the cause of data safety and had risky business policies. The tech giant said that it has weeded out more than 2,000 apps that promised easy personal loans. Those checks and balances are getting tougher with Google’s new measures.

Google will not allow apps facilitating loans have no business accessing and managing data such as contacts, phone numbers, photos, images etc.

All apps covered
The policy would apply to a range of apps. These include those who act as mediators by acting as a bridge between loans seekers and lenders as well as those apps that provide loans themselves to the applicants.

To add further controls Google also asks for any licence that might be issued by the RBI to any app allowing it to offer personal loans.

The demand for personal loans is zooming in India. In fact, personal loans have often helped banks even while demand for loans from the industry has proved to be lukewarm.

“If you are not directly engaged in money lending activities and are only providing a platform to facilitate money lending by registered Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) or banks to users, you will need to accurately reflect this in the declaration. In addition, the names of all registered NBFCs and banks must be prominently disclosed in your app’s description,” read the policy of Google.

“If your app contains or promotes financial products and services, you must comply with state and local regulations for any region or country that your app targets – for example, include specific disclosures required by local law,” it added.