Google fixes app crash on Android, caused by system component

Google said Tuesday it had fixed a technical issue that was causing some Android apps to crash for some users worldwide. 

Among the apps affected were Gmail and Google Pay, which was crashing for some Android users. "We have resolved the issue with WebView that caused some apps on Android to crash for some users. Updating Android System WebView and Google Chrome via Google Play should now resolve the issue,” said a Google spokesperson.

The issue was caused by a system component called Android System WebView powered by Chrome that allows Android apps to display web content. 

According to a report by The Verge, the app crashes began on Monday and were acknowledged by Google early Tuesday afternoon and lasted about seven hours, according to the Google Workspace dashboard for Gmail. The issue was classified as a "service disruption". 

Samsung US, on its official support profile on Twitter, also recommended the same fix. "Thanks for bringing this to our attention. Please remove the Webview Update and then restart the phone. Here are the steps: Go settings > apps > tap the three dots in the top right corner > show system apps > search for Android System WebView > select Uninstall updates," it tweeted in response to users complaining about the app crashes. 

Samsung phones work on the Android platform, powered by Google. 

In the time between when the issue was first notified and fixed, Google recommended that users shift to the desktop version of Gmail.