That's not accurate. Side-loading applications is certainly a risk but not Play Store.
"In 2016, the annual probability that a user downloaded a PHA (potentially harmful applications) from Google Play was .04% and we reduced that by 50% in 2017 for an annual average of .02%.
In 2017, downloading a PHA from Google Play was less likely than the odds of an asteroid hitting the earth."
"In 2016, the annual probability that a user downloaded a PHA (potentially harmful applications) from Google Play was .04% and we reduced that by 50% in 2017 for an annual average of .02%.
In 2017, downloading a PHA from Google Play was less likely than the odds of an asteroid hitting the earth."
Source: https://source.android.com/security/reports/Google_Android_S...