Google Activates Android "Kill Switch," Zaps Useless Apps

This week the engineers at Google remotely activated the so-called Android "kill switch," a technology that allows the company to remotely remove applications installed on users' phones. The applications in question, designed by a security expert for research purposes, were described as "practically useless." They were not used maliciously nor did they access private data, or so says Android Security Lead Rich Cannings in a company blog post. Instead, the apps simply misrepresented their purpose to encourage downloads.

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