[phh]

For this API precisely, I have to admit I have a pretty hard time to tell.

However, there are other APIs that leak the list of installed applications that have pretty legitimate usages.

For instance the intent resolving API:

- This can be used for an app to know which applications the user can share messages to. I believe that nowadays developers are supposed to use a generic API for that, that don't expose the list of applications to the user, but that's a pretty new API.

- This can be used by application Launchers, or apps that provide shortcuts or automated launch of other apps