The App Defense Alliance was launched last year, in collaboration between Google, ESET, Lookout, and Zimperium in order to tackle Play Store’s malware issues. The Alliance further launched the Mobile Application Security Assessment (MASA) audit. In order to inform customers that the applications they are installing on their phones have been created in accordance with industry mobile security and privacy minimal best practices, software developers can use this method to get their apps independently verified against a global security standard. 

The objective behind the review badge is that if app developers follow this method in order to mitigate any security flaw, it will make it more challenging for hackers to compromise users' devices and, as a result, the quality of apps across the ecosystem will improve.

Applications that have received this badge have successfully undergone a MASA audit. Moreover, in order to maintain the badge every year, app developers will have to go through an additional independent assessment.

Nataliya Stanetsky of the Android Security and Privacy Team states in a Google Security Blog post this week that, “While certification to baseline security standards does not imply that a product is free of vulnerabilities, the badge associated with these validated apps helps users see at-a-glance that a developer has prioritized security and privacy practices and committed to user safety.”

Now, when a user turns to Play Store in search for the best VPN, they will certainly see a banner at the top, leading then to the DATA Safety Section, for them to have a better understanding of the new badges. On clicking on the option ‘learn more,’ the user will further be directed to the App Validation Directory, "a centralized place to view all VPN apps that have been independently security reviewed."

"We've launched this banner beginning with VPN apps due to the sensitive and significant amount of user data these apps handle," Stanetsky explained.

"VPN providers such as NordVPN, Google One, ExpressVPN, and others have already undergone independent security testing and publicly declared the badge showing their good standing with the MASA program," she added. 

These Security Review badges is an effort by Google to make the Data Safety Section a one-stop shop for information on Play Store cybersecurity procedures. Additionally, you may get information on the kind of data that apps are gathering about you, why they are collecting it, and whether or not they are sharing it with outside parties.