What is Android System Webview? – Definition, Obligations, and More

Kamran Sharief

3 years ago

Table of Contents

Android System Webview Definition

Android System Webview is the smallest version of Chrome that allows you to open links inside the application.

It shows that when you click on a link in a app, it will go to Android System Webview as the browser built-in an app itself.

The thing to remember is that not every app may support it; this is why links from some apps open on Chrome and not from within the app.

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Android System WebView is the core when it comes to displaying the websites correctly on the smartphone:

HTML-based Android apps, in particular, require WebView to display appropriately.
After the engine with Android 5.0 was revised and moved to the Play Store, users of devices with older Android versions (Android 4.3 Jelly Bean) looked into the tube.
The problem was that their WebView version was no longer updated, which is particularly dangerous if security gaps occur.

After the release of Android 5.0, Google pointed out that the vulnerability might not close. Manufacturers were much more likely to oblige.
If you still have an Android device that could affect and even runs on Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, you don’t have to despair.

This is how you can protect yourself if you use Android 4.3 Jelly Bean or older:

Uses a modern browser that provides its secure engine for displaying web content, such as Firefox or Chrome.
For example, Firefox does not use WebView, but its rendering engine called Gecko.
No apps display web content within the app, i.e., to have an integrated browser – they are very likely to use the incomplete WebView engine of the Android operating system.

If you are using older versions of Android, you don’t have to worry too much as long as you use the latest browser with its rendering engine.

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