14 DAY TRIAL // The number of apps in the Windows Store is growing at a moderate pace, but while this could be a good thing for users who have already installed Windows 8, there’s one major issue that Microsoft needs to address as soon as possible.
Scam apps are pretty much everywhere you look in the Windows Store, and a simple search should return fake software such as Google Chrome, Opera, iTunes, VLC, and others trying to capitalize on the popularity of the original programs.
Most of these scam apps are available with a small fee and obviously do absolutely nothing, which makes one wonder why Microsoft actually allows such entries in the Windows Store.
Our readers might recall that we first reported about fake VLC apps in the Windows Store in January 2013, which is a bit surprising given the fact that the official VLC program actually landed on Windows 8 only earlier this year.
Some of these apps have already been removed, but new ones are published in the Windows Store on a daily basis, which confirms that Microsoft actually needs to tackle this problem more seriously now.
The same issue has been reported by HowToGeek after finding lots of spam apps that do basically the same thing: asking people to pay a few bucks in return for a useless feature lineup. In an official response, Microsoft confirmed that it was aware of the issue and was working to remove scam apps from the Windows Store.
Here’s what a company spokesperson was quoted as saying by Slate:
“We strive to make the Windows Store a high-quality experience for customers and also accessible to the broadest audience of developers.
Based on customer and developer feedback, we recently took actions to help users discover the specific app titles they’re searching for and improve the overall Store experience. Those updates provide clear guidance to developers and also improve our ability to identify, audit and remove problematic apps. We recognize that there is more work to do and will continue to re-evaluate our policies to strike a balance between the opportunity for developers and the app quality that our customers expect.”
Interestingly, this statement is very similar to the one we received from another Microsoft spokesperson on February 26. Below is the company’s answer mailed to Softpedia earlier this year:
“We strive to make the Windows Store an excellent experience for Windows 8 users. We routinely review apps based on performance, ratings and user reviews and take steps to remove apps if they do not meet our certification guidelines.
We are aware of the issue and are actively removing apps that offer little value or confuse customers, and will continue evaluating our submission process to make sure Windows offers the highest quality app catalog available. With regards to trademark infringement, with every app there is an option to report the app for violating the Windows Store’s Terms of Use. If a company feels a Windows Store app is infringing on their copyrights or trademarks, they should report the app and we will take immediate action to determine if the app should be removed from the Windows Store.”
No matter what Microsoft says however, scam apps are still in the store, and there’s no doubt that many actually fall victim to them. Paying a few bucks for an app that does virtually nothing is frustrating, and in most cases users don’t necessarily blame the scammer behind the app, but Microsoft for not caring enough to block those programs for reaching the store.
This is probably the right time for Microsoft to show us that it’s listening.