Not affecting Play Store apps so it's really irrelevant.
If you try to download an app without paying or knowing the source of it you probably deserve a virus. ;)
It's like if you get some knock off drug off the internet and gives you more trouble than gain... would you blame the pharma company?
Not entirely irrelevant. From what I've read, downloading directly from the Play Store has been taken care of. That probably also means the Play Store / Play Services verifier for sideloaded apps is checking for this exploit.
That being said people who use other app stores and don't have Play Services (e.g. Kindle Fires, Chinese devices, etc.) probably have some legitimate room for concern (at least until those stores are in the loop and are taking countermeasures). Of course that's nowhere near 99% of Android devices, but why let the facts get in the way of a good headline?
This could be a problem for all the custom rom guys installing Gapps/play store apk's. Many Chinese manufacturers dont get access to official google apk either
Well, yeah, in the end it all comes down to who you're willing to trust. So it's everyone's personal choice.
Personally, the only "web company" I'm willing to trust, is Mozilla. And that's probably the result of the fact that they're not-for-profit. And that fact eliminates a great deal of potential for corruption.
