1. What AppKade will never ask for
AppKade will never ask you, by email, phone, WhatsApp, Telegram or anywhere else:
- for your password, or the sign-in link or code we email you;
- to pay a fee to keep, verify or unlock your account or a listing;
- to approve a Google sign-in, install an app, or give access to your Google, store or hosting accounts;
- to move a conversation about your account to WhatsApp or Telegram.
Our emails come only from addresses ending in @appkade.lk, and links in them go to appkade.lk. If an email says your listing breaks a policy, don’t click its links: sign in at appkade.lk yourself and check your dashboard. Forward anything suspicious to support@appkade.lk.
2. Buying or downloading an app
- Install apps from Google Play, the App Store or the developer’s own website. Be careful with APK files from other sites, and with “modded” or “Plus” versions of well-known apps.
- Check that the developer’s website matches the listing, and pay through the developer’s official checkout or a payment service you know.
- AppKade checks every listing’s links with Google before it goes live and again while it’s live, but a check can’t catch everything. If a link looks wrong, report the listing.
3. Buying source code or a business
AppKade reviews listings for sale, but isn’t part of the sale and never holds payments. Before you pay:
- See the numbers yourself. Ask for read-only access to the payment provider (Stripe, PayHere, the bank), Google Analytics, Search Console and the app store consoles, rather than screenshots, which are easy to edit.
- Check the code. Look at it, or have someone you trust look at it, before you pay. Check the licences of the libraries and themes it uses, and walk away from “nulled” (cracked) paid scripts.
- Check who you’re dealing with. Ask for a video call and a live demo. For a business, check its registration.
- Agree in writing what’s included and how each account, domain and file is handed over, including the recovery email and two-step verification on every account.
- Pay safely. For larger amounts use a recognised escrow service, or pay in stages as things are handed over. Type the escrow service’s address yourself; never use a payment or escrow link the seller sends.
4. Warning signs of a scam
- Pressure to decide or pay quickly, or a price that seems too good to be true.
- A request to pay outside the agreed method: gift cards, cryptocurrency, or a personal account in someone else’s name.
- An escrow site you’ve never heard of, or a message that says “funds received” before your bank shows them.
- A buyer who pays too much and asks you to send the difference back.
- A buyer or seller who will only talk on WhatsApp or Telegram, refuses a call, or has a brand-new account.
- A message asking for a sign-in code, a remote-access app, or approval of a sign-in you didn’t start.
5. For developers
- Fake buyers sometimes send enquiries that ask you to pay a “verification” or “escrow” fee, or to open a “contract” file. Don’t. A real buyer pays you, not the other way round.
- Protect the email account you use for AppKade with a strong, unique password and two-step verification. Whoever controls that inbox can sign in as you.
- If you sell an app or business, change the passwords and recovery details of everything you hand over, and remove your own access when the sale completes.
6. Report a scam
- On AppKade: use Report this listing on the listing, or email support@appkade.lk with what happened. We act on reports of fraud and malware straight away; see Complaints and takedowns.
- If you’ve lost money: call your bank or card provider at once; they may be able to stop or reverse the payment.
- Sri Lanka CERT: report online at cert.gov.lk/report_incident, call the 101 hotline, or email cert@cert.gov.lk.
- Police: for fraud, make a complaint at your nearest police station or to the Computer Crimes Investigation Division of the CID.
Questions about this policy? Email support@appkade.lk.