Google is Modernizing OAuth in Native Apps

We can all agree that improving the security around our data and how we access it is a good thing. As consumers, we expect the apps we use to implement the latest in security protocols, keeping our personal information safe. As app developers, we expect no different from the software we use to create those apps.

That said, when these improvements are rolled out they present the possibility of some hiccups for consumers and app developers alike: enter Google…

Effective April 20th, 2017, Google will no longer allow native OAuth requests in embedded browsers known as “web-views”.

Many Informant users utilize our Google Sync to sync your Informant data with your Google account. Informant products currently use the above mentioned “web-view” method, as was convention until only recently. We have a plan in place to handle this update from Google so that there is as little interruption to your Informant services as possible.

Informant 5 for iOS /  Informant Mac
We will be releasing the updated OAuth protocol in an Informant 5 update before April 20th so there should be no interruption in any Informant 5 user’s Google sync.
Expect to hear from us quite a bit as April 20th draws near and this update is made available, as we want to ensure your account isn’t interrupted.

Informant 4, Informant Android
For these products, this change will only affect users who currently sync with Google and who: a) log out of their Informant product after the 20th, and then log back in, or b) get a new device after the 20th and install any of these products on that device, and then setup Google sync.

We are in the process of documenting a couple of options for these products to make them function correctly with Google’s “new way”. Expect to see these options in the near future on the site, and in email.

William Denniss, Product Manager at Google for Identity and Authentication, issued an article explaining all of us. It can be found here

We appreciate all the Googler’s efforts to keep us secure, and will likewise keep in stride on our end to ensure your Informant experience is safe and seamless through this and future updates.