Since it was available in the PlayStore and AppStore, there have been multiple questions on the safety of the CamScanner application. Multiple cybersecurity firms have established the presence of Trojan-Dropper in the Android version of the application. This Trojan dropper is known to download certain files into the user’s device that lets hackers have access to the system’s operation.
When these claims were proven, it prompted Google to take down the application from PlayStore. This was in August 2019. CamScanner is a Chinese application, and the makers were prompt in acting on the complaint. Within the next month, an updated version of the app was introduced in PlayStore.
However, from that point onwards, multiple government and private bodies were sceptical about the CamScanner. Over the next couple of years, data breach incidents were observed, and this is why it led the Indian government to ban the usage of this app in June 2020. The act was followed by the United States, encouraging a similar ban since January 2021.
What is the Indian alternative to CamScanner?
Recent make in India initiatives has encouraged the development of mobile applications. Today, there are alternate mobile applications available for all the 59 apps that were banned by the Indian government. For Cam Scanner, the best alternative application is that of Kaagaz, which was indigenously developed by a team of alumni from IIT Kanpur.
The app has won multiple accolades from various government bodies, including the Ministry of Education. The Kaagaz app has provided a one-stop solution to all of the security and convenience needs of the average Indian.
Features of Kaagaz App
The Kaagaz app is a major boost in the field of mobile image scanning. It brings together the simplicity of the CamScanner with the added security features. While using an image scanner application on a handheld device, most people struggle with trimming the edges in a picture-perfect way.
Improperly trimmed edges give the scanned document an unprofessional look and are often unaccepted in professional places. With Kaagaz, this is no longer a cause of worry as the app automatically trims the edges and gives a superior scanning experience.
Depending on the type of image or document that you wish to scan, you can decide on the mode of scanning. While the traditional original mode is helpful for most type of scanning, for older pictures or those in vintage style, you can always go for grey or black and white mode. Magic colour mode 1 and 2 are helpful for situations when you want advanced colour correction and editing while scanning an image.
Irrespective of whether you are scanning an image or a document, you will have the provision of saving it as PDF or JPEG. The files can then be safely shared over any social media portal or email. You also have the luxury of saving the file on your device and the same can then be revoked as and when necessary.
The Kaagaz scanner is an Indian image scanning app, and its speciality is the fact that it is available in multiple Indian languages. With Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada and Malayalam interfaces, language is no longer a barrier to the usage of the document scanning app.
Is the Kaagaz App Safe?
The primary reason for the widespread popularity of the Kaagaz app is the fact that it offers much safer data encryption and protects user data. The general setup is such that any image that you scan is stored in the device memory. If the user deliberately wants to save it in the cloud, then the tool encrypts the scanned image and uploads it to the secure servers.
When a user starts using the Kaagaz app, the app asks for permission to access the files stored on the device. Understand that a user can refuse to share the information if they want. If a user uploads a document in Kaagaz cloud services, they need to explicitly allow access to the said file.
When a user signs on to the Kaagaz app with their Gmail account, the app only gets access to basic profile information such as the name and email id. The Kaagaz user profile is created with the basic details collected from Gmail. In such a situation, whatever details that you store in the Kaagaz cloud storage will be accessible to the signed-in user account.
In the third situation, wherein the user logs in with their phone number, the account is created solely with this information. The basic concept of access to the Kaagaz cloud remains unaltered. Understand that this app requires you to authenticate yourself with the phone password, followed by a unique app password.
Thus, you see that the multi-layer security system gives users complete control over the type of data that is being shared. This makes the Kaagaz app one of the safest apps in PlayStore today. An iOS version of the Kaagaz app is also available at the moment and that is just as secure as the Android version.
Kaagaz app reviews on PlayStore
The Kaagaz app is one of the highest-rated apps in PlayStore and has an average rating of 4.5. With 45,555 people rating the app, the 4.5 rating is highly commendable. Some users have commented on how they use the app to convert their texts to PDFs.
With COVID-19 bringing classrooms to a digital platform, such an app is of special advantage to the student community. Multiple reviews on PlayStore commented on the easy user interface of the Kaagaz app and how they did not take much time to settle in and use the app regularly.
Also, reviews state that, unlike most other scanning apps, there is no degradation in quality when the images are imported. Multiple mentions of the good quality UI/ UX establish the credibility of the app.
The provision of adjusting the borders after the actual scanning helps simplify the life of users and this is mentioned in multiple reviews. While some of the reviews do mention a certain scope of improvement, the fact is most users of the Kaagaz app are satisfied with the service.