Hyderabad: After naming the Google India head as a co-accused in three cybercrime cases recently, Hyderabad police have asked senior executives of the software giant to attend a meeting and explain the checks and safeguards it has in place to ensure that fraudulent apps are not hosted on the Play Store.On July 21, TOI reported that the Hyderabad Cybercrime police had registered three separate cases between June 30 and July 15 after three victims alleged they had lost more than ₹48 lakh by investing through stock market investment apps allegedly available on the Google Play Store.Based on the complaints, police named the Google India head as a co-accused in all three cases, along with the fraudsters who allegedly lured the victims into investing through the apps.Following the registration of the cases, the cybercrime police issued notices to Google informing the company about the criminal proceedings. Cybercrime officials said that after TOI’s report was published, Google’s India nodal officer approached them, stating that the company follows due procedures while allowing apps to be uploaded to the Play Store.It is learnt from senior police officials that senior executives, including members of Google’s technical team, have been asked to attend a meeting with Hyderabad police this week to explain the checks and safeguards in place before apps are permitted on the Play Store and how the company responds to complaints of fraud.Police said that under the Information Technology (IT) Act, an intermediary such as Google is exempt from liability for the actions of a third party, provided it acts promptly to remove fraudulent apps. “However, if an app causing monetary loss to people through fraudulent means is not removed without a valid reason, the company also becomes an accused under Section 79(3) of the IT Act,” a Hyderabad cybercrime officer said.Police sources also said that following a removal request from the cybercrime police, Google blocked the only active app available on the Play Store. Of the remaining two apps cited by the victims, one had already become inactive after being suspended from the Play Store, while the third was a webpage link masquerading as an app.
