Alejandro, Bummer to hear you're being ripped off. But hey, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right?
Have you considered checking a hash of your app's package string at runtime and bombing out if it doesn't match? Or even better, linking the user to the authentic app? Just a thought. On Thursday, January 17, 2013 3:22:07 PM UTC-6, Alejandro Woywood wrote: > > Hi Jeffrey, I'm glad you had a good time reading the story ... on the > bright side, at least we got the description of the game translated to > chinese for free! :-D > But honestly, I don't understand why Google doesn't check at least for > duplicate files.... i'ts so easy that's it's negligent. > > > On Tuesday, January 15, 2013 6:47:07 PM UTC-3, Jeffrey Walton wrote: >> >> I kind of found this amusing in a morbid sort of way (but I do feel >> bad for the folks who built the real application). From the blog >> posting: >> >> It is really irritating to see how easily the pirate could upload our >> game using his own account. It would be trivial for Google to >> include some simple checks in their system: >> >> * The name is almost the same: Ninja Joe VS >> Ninja Joe Super (the pirate version). >> >> * The domain is almost the same: >> com.amnesiagames.ninjajoe.velociraptors VS >> com.amnesiagames.ninjajoe.velociraptors.apps >> (the pirate version). >> >> * The screenshots ARE THE SAME. Is it so difficult to check >> if the same image is already uploaded for another game???!!!! >> >> * The apk files are the same. This is REALLY annoying. This is an >> obvious check. (we uploaded a new version since, the pirate still >> hasn’t “updated” his version). >> >> * The website of the developer is not working. ARE you checking >> anything at all??? >> >> * The same pirate uploaded other 72 pirated versions of other >> games. >> Ok, some behavior checking wouldn’t be bad either, don’t you >> think? >> >> Jeff >> >> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- >> From: Alejandro Woywood <[email protected]> >> Date: Tue, Jan 15, 2013 at 3:53 PM >> Subject: [android-security-discuss] Copycats and pirate alternative >> android stores >> To: [email protected] >> >> Hi, I'm new to this group. We recently published a game "Ninja Joe" >> and it was pirated in several sites. Ok, we expected that. Actually >> that's why we released the ad-version first. >> But now we are detecting pirates that are uploading a pirate version >> of our game to Android Stores (for instance: >> http://www.anzhi.com/soft_582840.html) and .... even to Google Play! >> How we protect ourselves from that???!!!! >> >> You can read about the whole issue here: >> http://www.amnesiagames.cl/blog/2013/01/android-piracy-is-insane/ >> >> I think Google is doing a really bad job when accepting ANY >> submission, they could EASILY check if the apk or screenshots are >> already published in the store. They are hurting themselves. >> > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Android Security Discussions" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/android-security-discuss?hl=en. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
