Many people have been harassed by the companies running these lending apps but all that changes now.
Digital loan apps have become a nuisance in the past few years, taking advantage of people who seek easy money. But the torture and harassament that ensues has been a story worth telling, and now Google along with the Indian government is tightening the nook around these platforms that have mushroomed out of the blue.
Starting May 31, these apps will need to comply with a slew of norms set in place by Google for its Play Store where the companies behind these apps will not be able to access the contacts, photos, videos, location and even the call logs of your phone.
That’s not all, Google wants all the legitimate app companies to submit documents that support their case for offering these financial services. For instance, if one of the digital lending apps is licensed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), then they need to submit the documents to prove their credentials. Google has created a form for these apps in India that has to be filled with the required details and provide specific disclosures wherever applicable.
Google has been ordered to secure these channels and prevent these digital lending apps from creating further havoc in the country. These changes were paramount as the apps were able to operate independently and disburse loan amounts based on the credentials and eligibility of the customer.
People fell into the trap of these apps because unlike banks, they were giving loans in small amounts without needing any paperwork or formalities. You can get the money in quick time as well, and understandably all this convenience appealed to many out there who were finding it hard to operate between jobs especially during the pandemic in the past few years.
Google has claimed that it continues to remove all such apps from the Play Store but even then you have seen cases where people are blackmailed into paying back. Experts generally advise you against talking to these companies or even taking money from them since we don’t know their conditions and how they operate in case you default with the payment.