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Google has added new badges to some VPN apps on the Google Play Store to show you which apps have undergone an extra safety review.
The badge is displayed toward the bottom of a VPN app's description and looks like a shield icon with a star inside it. The description beside it explains: "This app has been independently validated against a global security standard." It links to the App Defense Alliance, a group Google launched in 2019 that's now under the Linux Foundation and aims to prevent the spread of malware on Android devices.
Once an app passes the review, it will be issued a certificate valid for one year. After that period, the developer will have to re-verify their app. The review includes a look at "client-side security, authentication to the backend/cloud service, and connectivity to the backend/cloud service looking at general security and some privacy best practices," an FAQ page explains. This review can also be applied to other apps beyond just VPNs, too.
While these badges were first announced in 2023, Android Authority flagged that Google finally launched them this week.
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The App Defense Alliance sees this vetting process as a way for Android users to feel better about downloading verified apps. But this higher level of assessment isn't a 100% guarantee for "complete safety," the group says.
A number of PCMag's top-rated Android VPN apps display this security review badge, like Proton VPN, NordVPN, and Windscribe VPN. While these apps have undergone an extra security step, this doesn't mean that apps without this certification are necessarily unsafe—it just means they may not have been vetted by a third party.
To see which other VPN apps have received this extra safety certification, you can check App Alliance's list on its website. Android users can also keep Google Play Protect enabled to scan for malicious code—even on sideloaded apps.