Why is Google removing all apps made by this Chinese developer

In a statement to Buzzfeed News, a Google spokesperson had said: “We actively investigate malicious behaviour, and when we find violations, we take action, including the removal of a developer’s ability to monetize their app with AdMob or publish on Play.”

As many as 46 apps by DO Global have been removed from the Google Play Store as of Friday. The developer firm is partly owned by Chinese internet company Baidu, which has a 34 per cent stake.

According to the report, DO Global apps do not offer ad inventory for purchases through Google’s AdMob network, suggesting that the ban has been extended to the ad products as well.

Even though DO Global is not the first developer to be banned from Google’s app market, it happens to be one of the biggest. The developer claims to have more than 250 million monthly active users for its apps, and the ability to reach 800 million users through its ad platform.

The ad fraud was detected by Check Point Research, which found that at least six of the Do Global’s apps included a code which misled the users into clicking on ads even when they were not using them. These apps had names such as Selfie Camera, Omni Cleaner, RAM Master, Smart Cooler, Total Cleaner, and AIO Flashlight.

Additionally, the users were also not made aware that these apps were owned by DO Global, which violates Google’s Play Store policy.

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Last year, developers Cheetah Mobile and Kika Tech were found committing ad fraud, but Google responded by only removing the concerned apps and did not take action against either of the developers. Earlier this year, Kika Tech was allowed to resubmit its previously removed app to the Play Store.