Google announced on Thursday that it has removed certain personal loan applications from the Play Store in India and is enacting more robust safeguards to prevent misuse. This action follows reports indicating that numerous companies were targeting vulnerable individuals within the country and subsequently employing aggressive methods to recover funds.

The company, which develops the Android operating system, stated that both users and governmental bodies in India recently brought several personal loan apps to their attention. A comprehensive review of hundreds of these applications revealed that a specific number were in violation of the Play Store’s established safety guidelines, leading to their immediate removal.

Google, whose Android platform powers 98% of smartphones in India, has requested that the developers of the remaining identified apps provide evidence of their adherence to all relevant local laws and regulations. (According to an email examined by TechCrunch, Google requested a developer submit documentation within a five-day timeframe.)

“Applications that do not comply will be removed without further notification. Furthermore, we will continue to cooperate with law enforcement agencies as they investigate this matter,” the company declared.

In recent months, users have pointed out several lending apps operating in India, including 10MinuteLoan and Ex-Money, which offered small loans (typically ranging from $50 to $200) for brief periods with minimal verification of borrower eligibility, and then imposed substantial processing charges.

To mitigate such exploitation, Google stated that the Play Store will now only permit personal loan apps that mandate a repayment period of 60 days or longer.

When borrowers encountered difficulties in repaying their debts within the limited timeframe, collection agents representing some lending apps, among other unacceptable practices, resorted to threatening to publicly shame them among their acquaintances, coworkers, and family members. In November, the Indian Express newspaper reported that a 23-year-old individual took their own life after experiencing harassment from a money lending application. This is not the sole reported instance of suicide connected to such intimidation in recent months.

Local news sources also reported that police in Hyderabad recently froze bank accounts containing $58 million, alleging fraudulent activities conducted through 30 lending apps, none of which had received authorization from the nation’s central bank. A preliminary investigation indicated that these apps had processed approximately $2.9 billion across nearly 14 million transactions.

Srikanth L of CashlessConsumer, a consumer group focused on digital payments, informed TechCrunch that Google was slow to address this issue. Srikanth, who has been monitoring online lending apps in India for several quarters, noted that over 100 apps had disappeared from the Google Play Store in the last ten days, and around 450 in recent months, based on his own analysis.

He also expressed criticism towards Google for not doing enough to prevent apps from collecting extensive data from a customer’s Android phone. “They still do not require these apps to reveal their website and physical address,” he added.

“To safeguard user privacy, developers must only request permissions that are essential for the implementation of current features or services. They should refrain from using permissions that grant access to user or device data for undisclosed, unimplemented, or prohibited features or purposes,” wrote Suzanne Frey, Vice President of Product, Android Security and Privacy, in a blog post.

“Developers must also utilize data solely for purposes to which the user has given consent, and if they intend to use the data for additional purposes, they must obtain user permission for those new uses,” she further stated.

Thursday’s action follows Google’s earlier efforts to regulate fantasy sports applications in India.