UC Browser for Android was taken down from the Google Play Store last week because of security concerns. There were reports claiming that the Alibaba-owned UC Web was stealing sensitive user data which was being sent back to remote servers in China without the user’s consent. The mobile browser had also come under the scrutiny of Indian government back in August. The Government had initiated an investigation expressing concerns about Indian users’ privacy and also hinted it may ban the browser if found guilty. However, UC Web had always denied the allegations. The company back then quoted that it was a standard industry practice to collect user’s data in necessary conditions to provide them with local services. Now, they claim to offer private and secure browsing with the updated version.
Young Li, Head-International Business Department at Alibaba Mobile Business Group, said, “Over the last 5 years we have been committed to providing flawless & secure browsing experience to our consumers in India and with 100 million monthly active users, we are taking rapid strides forward. During the brief absence of UC Browser on Play Store, we continued to meticulously check our technical settings while also witnessing an uninterrupted passion of our users for the product, who looked upon the alternative version, UC Browser Mini, and made it to the top of ‘Free Apps’ category on the Play Store.” It is to be noted that UC Browser is very popular in India and has been the sixth most downloaded Android app in India. Its lighter version UC Mini is still on the top of free apps category on Play Store in India. The company claims of having 100 million monthly active users in India. UC Browser has crossed 500 million downloads on Google Play Store of October 2017.
