Do we have the right to record the calls we make? Google considers that not freely and, consequently, will ban all call recording apps on android play store starting next May 11, although the truth is that the date has already been advanced and is warning developers of the upcoming change.
The company’s reason for taking this measure is privacy protection and it couldn’t be more contradictory, given that Google is one of the biggest black holes when it comes to Internet privacy. It is also curious because it will be easier to keep text and voice conversations through certain applications, than to do it with mobile calls.
But if Google’s new policy is inconsistent, it is because its dial and call application, Google Phone, will allow this function… with nuances, since initially it is only focused on the optional recording of those calls received from from unknown numbers and in any case, all participants in them will always be alerted.
The how will be limiting third party use of the Accessibility API, created to develop functions for people with disabilities, but “abused” according to Google to facilitate stealth recording of calls. “The Accessibility API is not designed to record the audio of remote calls and cannot be requested for this purpose,” the company explains on the corresponding help page.
All this, however, will definitely change from next month, although Google’s efforts to curtail call recording capacity come from afar. With the release of Android 6, various features related to this functionality were blocked, and with Android 10, the use of the microphone for call recording was eliminated. It only remained to cover the gap provided by the Accessibility API.
However, the API will not disappear because it will continue to be used by the applications that need it and, luckily android is not ios and the installation of applications from third-party stores – always with a little caution, just in case – is available to everyone, so unless they apply some additional measure, you can continue to skip the aforementioned restriction.
The question, however, is why Google is so hypocritical on the subject of privacy. It’s okay to care about your users and that no one violates someone else’s privacy, but for a change, you could lead by example a bit.
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