“Sad but true, @GooglePlay is forcing us to remove Stealth Mode, SMS Commands, and SIM Switch Defense features,” they tweeted.
The team explains the removal of the wallet features in the blog post that also announces that Google Play Store released a new version of the wallet on 8 January. It is noted that Stealth Mode, SIM Switch Defense and Remote SMS Commands, which were included in the wallet from the first release in 2015, are the features that are removed from the previous version.
Behind many “old lazy copy paste” wallets in the market today, these characteristics claim to have “proven travel records that help users to transact safely.”
For example, the Stealth Mode can make BTC users on their smartphones transact “less obvious” and give those living in hostile environments advantages.
The SIM Switch Defense claims that many users have prevented countless attempts at SIM Swap attack by providing alerts whenever they happen.
While it allows users who have lost their devices to erase their Bitcoin wallet remotely to avoid further losing their Bitcoin Fund, the remote SMS commands feature is worth noting.
“If you use or rely on any of these features perhaps ask @GooglePlay to rethink their rejection of our exemption request,” the team tweeted.
The team behind Samourai Wallet also mentioned their plan to expand their distribution model, which includes self-hosted APK downloads and inclusion in an open source F-Droid app store, in addition to releasing a new one that meets Google’s limitations.
But the company requests the users to contact the support team immediately if the new version causes problems. The announcement has drawn wide range of responses with almost all expressing “unhappiness” with Google’s policy.
A user named Christopher Allen announced his willingness to connect the Samourai Wallet team with the HTC team, which launched their first blockchain phone, HTC Exodus, at the end of last year.
Sad but true, @GooglePlay is forcing us to remove Stealth Mode, SMS Commands, and SIM Switch Defense features as they transition to becoming more of a “Walled Garden” – despite the fact these features have proven record of helping users transact safely. https://t.co/kLRQT9PWvh
— Samourai Wallet (@SamouraiWallet) January 8, 2019
Another user requested Google to review how many Venezuelans have been put at risk. Google is well known for the strict rules that govern the applications listed in the Play Store. In the past, they “mysteriously” had removed several Bitcoin wallets, including the Bitcoin Wallet offered by Roger Ver.
“I have no idea how they came under the impression that our wallet is a mining app,” stated Ver when Google gave him the reason behind the deletion.
On the other hand, it has shown that many Android users have been protected from fake crypto wallets, phishing apps and mining apps.