The internet is one of those places which does open the door to the world. While the positive benefits of such a door opening are vast, it also means the door can be opened to aspects which are not so positive and in some cases, downright harmful. This is why the security of browsing the internet is always a concern for those who base this business primarily online. None more so than Google. As part of a string of developments Google has been working on to make its products and services, safer, Google has been slowly improving its Safe Browsing feature.
While Safe Browsing from Google has been available for some time now, it has seen quite a boost over the last few months with a number of new features being added, including its ability to identify fake buttons when using Chrome. However, back at this year’s Google I/O event, Google did make it clear that they would be widening the support for Safe Browsing by introducing a new official Safe Browsing API which could be utilized by third-party Android apps. Following on from that initial announcement, this is exactly what Google has announced today.
Google has confirmed that they have now launched the ability for third-party app developers to include the Safe Browsing technology into their apps. This means that third-party apps will be able to offer a similar level of protection to its users and help them to avoid visiting unwanted or harmful websites and URLs, by drawing on Safe Browsing’s vast database. What’s more is that Google notes the implementation of the API is very straightforward and simple and will be compatible starting with the latest version of Google Play Services (version 9.4). For developers who are worried about the impact of the new API, Google does note that it is as power-efficient as it is privacy-preserving, while also being lightweight in terms of data used. So in all respects, this does seem to have been designed to satisfy all elements of the Android app chain, starting with the implementation at the developer level to the speed, security and lightweight use at the user level.