Google Play Policy Update in July 2025: A Must-Read Guide and Checklist of Key Actions for Developers

Important Policy Review: Comprehensive Tightening of Financial App Regulation

1. Personal Loan Application: Pakistan becomes the only exception market

• Only allowed in Pakistan region Offering ultra-short-term loan services of no more than 60 days
• The application must fully comply with local Pakistani loan regulations and disclosure requirements
• Effective date: August 27, 2025 Non-compliant apps will be removed if they fail to comply with the rules

2. Cryptocurrency Wallets and Exchanges: Country Compliance Transparency Upgrade

• Google Play adds a link to the official help center in its policy terms, which lists compliance details for different countries and regions
• Developers must complete as per the target market regulations Legal procedures such as license filing, user risk disclosure, etc.
• The execution window period is until October 29, 2025. After that, applications that fail to meet the standards will be restricted to operate in the corresponding areas

Platform risk prevention and control upgraded again: four high-risk areas need self-inspection

1. New Standard of Health Permissions: Android 16 Reconstructs Permission System

• Heart rate, blood oxygen (SpO₂) and other sensitive data Independent authorization process will be enabled
• Existing apps need to refactor the permission request logic to avoid relying on a broad health data permission group
• Users can turn on/off the permissions of various health data items one by one, and developers need to adapt to the "some permissions disabled" scenario

2. AI Generated Content: Mandatory security protection mechanism

• Prohibition of generation Deepfakes, self-harm encouragement, election misinformation and other content;
• Built-in real-time reporting function allows users to directly mark the content that violates the rules;
• Trace the source of AI model training data to ensure that it does not contain infringing or sensitive information.

3. Advertising content ratings: Prohibition of cross-level dumping

• Apps with a "Everyone" rating may not show ads that contain violence or adult content;
• If a game app contains in-app purchases, it must be clearly marked as "contains paid content" on the store page.
• Violating ads will be restricted from being displayed, and serious violators may trigger the removal of their apps.

4. Fake App Detection: New Anti-Spoofing Guidelines

• The Policy Center has added an Anti-Impersonation FAQ document, which clearly defines the criteria for determining impersonation packages
• Developers can initiate a delisting request through the fast reporting channel if they encounter infringement
• Brand trademark holders can apply Official Brand Protection Badge

• Fake apps : including applications that imitate the interfaces of well-known brands and steal others' codes;
• Developer Identity Misuse : Registering with false company information or other people's qualifications;
• Appeal Path : Developers who are misjudged can Fake complaint page Submit evidence, and the review period will be shortened to 5 working days.

Key Deadline: Missing the Time is Equal to Giving Up the Market

1. News and magazine apps: Statement submission deadline

• Before August 27, 2025 You need to submit a content authenticity statement in Play Console
• Need to promise No spreading of fake news, no manipulation of click-inducing behavior

2. Android 15 target API mandatory upgrade

• New Apps and App Updates : Must Target Android 15 (API 35)
• Current Applications : Need at least target Android 14 (API 34), otherwise it cannot be installed on new devices
• Extension Options : Apply for extension through Play Console to November 1st

Account security reinforcement: Two-factor authentication is now mandatory

• High-risk operation mandatory verification : Application submission, financial withdrawal, member permission change
• Recommend enterprise-level solutions : Security Key first, disable SMS verification code
• Automated Process Adaptation : Configure "Application-specific Password" for CI/CD Pipeline

Policy Trend Interpretation: Compliance Transparency and Risk Refinement

1. Fintech High Risk Control : Limit sensitive business through geo-fencing to avoid regulatory arbitrage
2. Data Sovereignty Awareness Strengthened : Health, biometric data and other data enabled Item-by-item authorization mechanism
3. Safety Prepositioning : From post-listing supervision to access control in the development stage
    

Summary: Coping Strategies under Tightening Policies

1. Financial App: Focus on Compliance Market and Transparent Operation

• Short-term loan apps can consider transforming to the Pakistani market, and optimize the repayment reminder function at the same time to avoid overdue payments by users;
• Cryptocurrency apps need to work with local compliance service providers to ensure that the help center content complies with the legal requirements of each country.

2. Technical risk prevention and control: Establish an automated detection mechanism

• For Android 16 permission changes, use Android SDK Upgrade Assistant Test the logic of permission calls in advance;
• Deploy AI content filtering tools (such as Google Cloud Content Safety API) to block generated content in real time.

3. Long-term compliance construction: metadata and user experience are equally important

• Regularly use the AppFast free metadata diagnostic tool to check if there are any keywords that violate regulations in the app title, description, and screenshots;
• Optimize advertising strategies to ensure that the content of advertisements is highly matched with the core functions of the application, and improve user retention.