WhatsApp clone with over 500,000 downloads spotted on Play Store — The Verge

An app imitating WhatsApp Messenger and amassing more than 500,000 downloads has been spotted on Google Play. As The Verge reports, its page was still available in the Play Store at the time of publication.

Clone appeared in sponsored results

A Reddit user said they saw an imitation of WhatsApp in a sponsored search result above the official app. Android Authority had previously written about this clone. Google did not respond to The Verge's request for comment.

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How the app imitated WhatsApp

The app was published by a developer called Agment Assets sallu, which, according to The Verge, has no other apps on Google Play. Its page uses the same icon, screenshots, and description as the real WhatsApp.

The official WhatsApp has more than 10 billion downloads, an Editors' Choice badge, and more than 246 million reviews. Android Authority suggested that the clone may have used the Google Play early access program to disable public reviews. This could have made it harder for users to warn others about the app.