Security News > 2020 > September > DuckDuckGo cries fowl after being expunged from Google's Android search preferences menu for most of Europe
Privacy-focused search engine DuckDuckGo will no longer appear on Google's European search preference menu for Android in most countries, despite being the most popular choice after Google.
In 2019 Google agreed to provide Android users a prompt for selecting the default search provider, in response to a July 2018 decision by the European Commission that Google has been abusing its dominant position by tying the Google search app with the Play Store.
The winners get the privilege of paying Google each time a user selects them from the menu.
Despite DuckDuckGo's protests, rival privacy search provider PrivacyWall does feature in the search options for most territories, including the UK. PrivacyWall is a for-profit company but says it uses its profits "To fund privacy projects" and that its top search result is always organic.
DuckDuckGo has a strong argument, particularly as its research suggests that DuckDuckGo is the most popular option after Google when a menu like this is used, ahead of Microsoft's Bing.
News URL
Related news
- Google's March 2025 Android Security Update Fixes Two Actively Exploited Vulnerabilities (source)
- How Google tracks Android device users before they've even opened an app (source)
- Google fixes Android zero-day exploited by Serbian authorities (source)
- Google expands Android AI scam detection to more Pixel devices (source)
- Google Rolls Out AI Scam Detection for Android to Combat Conversational Fraud (source)
- New North Korean Android spyware slips onto Google Play (source)
- Malicious Android 'Vapor' apps on Google Play installed 60 million times (source)
- Google Gemini's Astra (screen sharing) rolls out on Android for some users (source)
- Google fixes Android zero-days exploited in attacks, 60 other flaws (source)
- Google Releases Android Update to Patch Two Actively Exploited Vulnerabilities (source)