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December 15, 2025
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Play Protect is blocking our DPC app — appeal already submitted, looking for guidance

  • December 15, 2025
  • 11 replies
  • 606 views

Hello everyone,

We are currently facing an issue where Google Play Protect is blocking our Android application during device provisioning.

Context:

 

- It is not distributed via Google Play (but is already published); it is hosted externally and installed during provisioning via QR code.

- The app is properly signed, and provisioning works at the system level, but Play Protect blocks the app with the message “App blocked to protect your device.”

- This started happening recently on new devices / factory reset devices.

 

We have already submitted the official Play Protect appeal form as recommended in the documentation:

The form was completed with all required information (APK, package name, signing certificate, use case, etc.).

At this point, we are looking for guidance from the community:

 

- How long does it usually take for the Play Protect appeal form to receive a response or decision?

- Is there any additional step or channel recommended for Android Enterprise DPC apps in this situation?

 

Any insights or shared experiences would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance for your time and support.

Best regards

Best answer by Emilie_B

Hello @rPoyo, @gekatz-mce, @Craig, @ankitsupare, @Vitalii, @savya and @guaregua 

 

I've heard back from the team! Apologies for the delayed answer.

 

The team explains that the correct procedure for this situation can be seen under the article (https://support.google.com/work/android/answer/16694822).

 

For DPC apps that are blocked, developers should indeed use the Play Protect Appeals Form to request allowlisting. (more info)


Please note that for the appeal to be successful, the review team must verify that:
- The application is being used strictly for enterprise purposes.
- The app does not violate Mobile Unwanted Software principles. (https://developers.google.com/android/play-protect/mobile-unwanted-software) and
(https://www.google.com/about/unwanted-software-policy.html)
- The app is not classified as a Potentially Harmful Application (PHA) under Google Play Protect definitions


Once the appeal is reviewed and the app is confirmed to meet these safety standards, the block on the DPC will be lifted.

 

I hope this info will be helpful to all of you! 

 

Please let us know how you get on; in the meantime, I will mark this as the solution so other members can easily find this procedure. 

 

Thanks and chat soon, 

Emilie

11 replies

bruceg
New Member
May 14, 2026

Hi ​@Craig Thanks for taking the trouble to update.

We actually didn’t hit this blocker, but I was just curious to understand how bad it would be if we did / do hit it (quite bad indeed, 3m is a long time!)