Your phone is about to stop being yours.

95 days until lockdown

Starting September 2026, a silent update, nonconsensually pushed by Google, will block every Android app whose developer hasn't registered with Google, signed their contract, paid up, and handed over government ID.

Every app and every device, worldwide, with no opt-out.

What Google is doing

In August 2025, Google announced a new requirement: starting September 2026, every Android app developer must register centrally with Google before their software can be installed on any device. Not just Play Store apps: all apps. This includes apps shared between friends, distributed through F-Droid, built by hobbyists for personal use. Independent developers, church and community groups, and hobbyists alike will all be frozen out of being able to develop and distribute their software.

Registration requires:

If a developer does not comply, their apps get silently blocked on every Android device worldwide.

Who this hurts

You

You bought an Android phone because Google told you it was open. You could install what you wanted, and that was the deal.

Google is now rewriting that deal, retroactively, on hardware you already own. After the update lands, you can only run software that Google has pre-approved. On your phone: your property, that you paid for.

Independent developers

A teenager's first app, a volunteer's privacy tool, or a company's confidential internal beta. It doesn't matter. After September 2026, none of these can be installed without Google's blessing.

F-Droid, home to thousands of free and open-source Android apps, has called this an "existential" threat. Cory Doctorow calls it "Darth Android".

Governments & civil society

Google has a documented track record of complying when authoritarian regimes demand app removals. With this program, the software that runs your country's institutions will exist at the pleasure of a single unaccountable foreign corporation.

The EFF calls app gatekeeping "an ever-expanding pathway to internet censorship."

Google's "escape hatch" is a trap door

Google says "power users" can "still install" unverified apps. Here's what that actually looks like:

  1. Delve into System Settings, find Developer Options
  2. Tap the build number seven times to enable Developer Mode
  3. Dismiss scare screens about coercion
  4. Enter your PIN
  5. Restart the device
  6. Wait 24 hours
  7. Come back, dismiss more scare screens
  8. Pick "allow temporarily" (7 days) or "allow indefinitely"
  9. Confirm, again, that you understand "the risks"

Nine steps. A mandatory 24-hour cooling-off period. For installing software on a device you own.

Worse: this flow runs entirely through Google Play Services, not the Android OS. Google can change it, tighten it, or kill it at any time, with no OS update required and no consent needed. And as of today, it hasn't shipped in any beta, preview, or canary build. It exists only as a blog post and some mockups.

This is bigger than Android

If Google can retroactively lock down billions of devices that were sold as open platforms, every hardware manufacturer on the planet is watching.

The principle being established: the company that made your device gets to decide, after you've bought it, what software you're allowed to run. In software, this is called a "rug pull"; but at least you could always install competing software. In hardware, it is a fait accompli that strips you of your agency and renders you powerless to the whims of a single unaccountable gatekeeper and convicted monopolist.

Android's openness was never just a feature. It was the promise that distinguished it from iPhone. Millions chose Android for exactly that reason. Google is now revoking that promise unilaterally, on devices already in people's pockets, because they've decided they have enough market dominance and regulatory capture to get away with it.

Ars Technica: "Google's Apple envy threatens to dismantle Android's open legacy."

But wait, isn't this...

"...just about security?"

The security rationale is a smokescreen. Google Play Protect already scans for malware independent of developer identity. Requiring a government ID doesn't make code safer. It makes developers identifiable and controllable. Malware authors can register. Indie developers and dissidents often can't. The EFF is blunt: identity-based gatekeeping is a censorship tool, not a security one.

"...still sideloading if you use the advanced flow?"

Nine steps, 24-hour wait, buried in Developer Options, delivered through a proprietary service that Google can revoke whenever they want. That's not sideloading. That's a deterrence mechanism built to ensure almost nobody completes it. And since it runs through Play Services rather than the OS, Google can tighten or kill it silently.

"...only a problem if you have something to hide?"

Whistleblowers, journalists, and activists under authoritarian governments will be the first victims. People in domestic abuse situations are next. All these groups have legitimate reasons to distribute or use software without putting their legal identity in a Google database. Anonymous open-source contribution is a tradition older than Google itself. This policy ends it on Android.

"...the same thing Apple does?"

Apple has been a walled garden from day one. People chose Android because it was different. "Apple does it too" is a race to the bottom and a weak tu quoque argument. And under regulatory pressure (the EU's Digital Markets Act), even Apple is being forced to open up. Google is moving in the opposite direction: attempting to further entrench its gatekeeping status.

"...just $25 and some paperwork?"

Maybe, if you're a developer in the US with a credit card and a driver's license. Try being a student in sub-Saharan Africa, or a dissident in Myanmar, or a volunteer maintaining a community health app. The cost isn't only financial: you're surrendering government ID and evidence of your signing keys to a company that routinely complies with government demands to remove apps and expose developers.

Fight back

Everyone

  • Install F-Droid on every Android device you own. Alternative stores only survive if people actually use them.
  • Contact your regulators. Regulators worldwide are genuinely concerned about monopolies and the centralization of power in the tech sector, and want to hear directly from individuals who are affected and concerned.
  • Share this page. Link to keepandroidopen.org everywhere.
  • Push back on astroturfers. The "well, actually..." crowd is out in force. Don't let them set the narrative.
  • Sign the change.org petition and join the over 100,000 signatories who have made their voices heard.
  • Read and share our open letter
  • Tell Google what you think of this through their own developer verification survey (for all the good that will do).

Developers

Do not sign up. Don't join the program by signing up for the Android Developer Console and agreeing to their irrevocable Terms and Conditions. Don't verify your identity. Don't play ball.

Google's plan only works if developers comply. Don't.

Google employees

If you know something about the program's technical implementation or internal rationale, contact tips@keepandroidopen.org from a non-work machine and a non-Gmail account. Strict confidence guaranteed.

All those opposed…

71 organizations from 23 countries have signed the open letter

KDE e.V. kde.org epicenter.works – for digital rights epicenter.works The Chaos Computer Club (CCC) ccc.de Fedimedia fedimedia.it The Tor Project torproject.org Nextcloud nextcloud.com CryptPad cryptpad.org Associação Nacional para o Software Livre (ANSOL) ansol.org Italian Linux Society ils.org Open Web Advocacy open-web-advocacy.org Fundación Karisma karisma.org.co MetaBrainz Foundation metabrainz.org Data Rights datarights.ngo The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) eff.org April april.org JMP.chat jmp.chat Fastmail fastmail.com iodé iode.tech VideoLAN videolan.org The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) beuc.eu Proton AG proton.me The Guardian Project guardianproject.info IzzyOnDroid izzyondroid.org OW2 ow2.org FULU Foundation fulu.org The Digital Rights Foundation digitalrightsfoundation.pk FUTO futo.org LineageOS lineageos.org The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) fsfe.org Tuta Mail tuta.com FACiL facil.qc.ca FOSDEM fosdem.org Brave brave.com AdGuard adguard.com The OpenStreetMap Foundation (OSMF) osmfoundation.org OpenMedia openmedia.org /e/ Foundation e.foundation Vivaldi Technologies AS vivaldi.com ARTICLE 19 article19.org Codeberg e.V. codeberg.org microG microg.org GNU/Linux València gnulinuxvalencia.org Techlore techlore.tech Ghostery ghostery.com Aurora Store auroraoss.com XMPP Standards Foundation xmpp.org The Free Software Foundation (FSF) fsf.org Software Freedom Conservancy sfconservancy.org The App Fair Project appfair.org Software Liberty Association of Taiwan slat.org.tw F-Droid f-droid.org Forbrukerrådet forbrukerradet.no GrapheneOS Foundation grapheneos.org Rocky Linux rockylinux.org Obtainium obtainium.imranr.dev Technopolice Bruxelles technopolice.be Digital Rights Watch digitalrightswatch.org.au Open Rights Group (ORG) openrightsgroup.org GitHub Store github-store.org Molly molly.im La Quadrature du Net laquadrature.net GNOME Foundation gnome.org The Center for Digital Progress (D64) d-64.org Unified Push unifiedpush.org Privacy Guides privacyguides.org The Calyx Institute calyx.org Osservatorio Nessuno OdV osservatorionessuno.org Rossmann Group rossmanngroup.com Cryptee crypt.ee European Digital Rights (EDRi) edri.org Digitale Gesellschaft digitale-gesellschaft.ch

Read the full open letter and thank the signatories →

What they're saying

Tech press

"Keep Android Open – Abwehr gegen Verbot anonymer Apps von Google"

heise online

"Google will verify Android developers distributing apps outside the Play store"

The Verge

"Google will make you wait 24 hours to sideload Android apps"

How-To Geek

"Google's new developer rules could threaten sideloading and F-Droid's future"

Gizmochina

"Open-Source Android Apps at Risk Under Google's New Decree"

TechRepublic

"An 'existential' threat to alternative app stores"

The New Stack

"Keep Android Open"

Linux Magazine

"F-Droid project threatened by Google's new dev registration rules"

Bleeping Computer

"Google's Requirement For All Android Developers To Register And Be Verified Threatens To Close Down Open Source App Store F-Droid"

Techdirt

"Android, Epic, and What's Really Behind Google's 'Existential' Threat to F-Droid"

Slashdot

"Android Security or Vendor Lock-In? Google's New Sideloading Rules Smell Fishy"

It's FOSS News

"Google's New Developer ID Rule Could Harm F-Droid"

Reclaim The Net

"Resistance to Google's Android verification grows among developers"

Techzine EU

"Android's sideloading limits are its most anti-consumer move yet"

MakeUseOf

"Google Clamps down On Android's Openness"

Internet Freedom Foundation (India)

"F-Droid Says Google Is Lying About the Future of Sideloading on Android"

How-To Geek

"Google's Apple envy threatens to dismantle Android's open legacy"

Ars Technica

"Sideloading on Android? Soon It'll Be Like a TSA Check for Apps"

Android Headlines

"This will wipe out Android as an actual alternative to Apple's mobile OS offerings."

Hackaday

"I've been an Android user for almost 15 years -- and Google's sideloading changes are pushing me back to iPhone"

Tom's Guide

"F-Droid says Google's new sideloading restrictions will kill the project"

Ars Technica

"F-Droid Slams Google for Misleading Users About Android's App Verification"

Android Headlines

"'Keep Android Open' Movement Challenges Google's Developer Verification Rule"

Open Source For U

"Google kneecaps indie Android devs, forces them to register"

The Register

"Open letter warns mandatory registration 'threatens innovation, competition, privacy and user freedom'"

Infosecurity Magazine

"Google says it's making Android sideloading 'high-friction' to better warn users about potential risks"

XDA Developers

"Google's Attack on Sideloading Will Rob Android of One of Its Best Features"

How-To Geek

"Google will require developer verification for Android apps outside the Play Store"

TechCrunch

"Android app store provider Aptoide hits Google with fresh lawsuit alleging monopoly and anticompetitive chokehold"

Benzinga

"Google's Android developer verification program draws pushback"

InfoWorld

"Google's new ID requirements could destroy independent app stores"

TechSpot

"F-Droid Says Google Is Lying About the Future of Sideloading on Android"

How-To Geek

"Google is restricting one of Android's most important features, and users are outraged"

SlashGear

"Google's New Developer Rules Threaten to End the F-Droid Open-Source App Store"

How-To Geek

"Google will require developer verification to install Android apps, including sideloading"

9to5Google

"It effectively makes the Play Store a monopoly without actually mandating that it is a monopoly."

I-Programmer

"Open-Source Android Apps Threatened by Google's New Policy"

Datamation

"Sideloading on Android? Soon It'll Be Like a TSA Check for Apps"

Android Headlines

"Google plans to block side-loading like Apple, declaring war on Android freedom"

Tuta Blog

"Over 67 groups urge the company to drop ID checks for apps distributed outside Play"

The Register

"Google's developer registration 'decree' means the end for alternative app stores"

Cybernews

"We all know that's a load of bullshit. Adding a goddamn 24-hour waiting period is batshit insanity."

Thom Holwerda, OSnews

"Google's dev registration plan 'will end the F-Droid project'"

The Register

"Sideloading is dead for all intents and purposes. The Android you know and love is slowly disappearing."

Android Police

"I've been an Android user for almost 15 years -- and Google's sideloading changes are pushing me back to iPhone"

Tom's Guide

"Google's Attack on Sideloading Will Rob Android of One of Its Best Features"

How-To Geek

Editorials & analysis

Organizations & open letters

"For developers building tools specifically designed to protect user privacy, being forced to surrender their own personal data as a precondition for distribution is deeply contradictory."

AdGuard

"The European Pirate Party called for proportionate and transparent measures that ensure security without restricting innovation, limiting anonymity, or distorting competition."

European Pirate Party

"There are governments who might very much like to know the names of the developers of those applications so that they can go after them."

Electronic Frontier Foundation

"We unequivocally advise against signing up for this program, now or ever."

F-Droid Open Letter

"Unilaterally consolidating power to approve software into the hands of a single unaccountable corporation is a threat to digital sovereignty everywhere."

Nextcloud

"This invasion of privacy of developers is not just an overreach of Google's authority over Android, but also jeopardizes developer safety."

Software Freedom Conservancy

"Forcing software creators into a centralized registration scheme is as egregious as forcing writers and artists to register with a central authority."

F-Droid

"Android's biggest strength has always been its openness. That's what attracted developers and users in the first place."

AdGuard

"Google Play itself has repeatedly hosted malware, proving that corporate gatekeeping doesn't guarantee user protection."

F-Droid

"Ultimately, Google's plan will stop you from owning your Android phone."

Tuta

"Developers who choose not to use Google's services should not be forced to register with, and submit to the judgement of, Google."

Open letter, over 67 signatory organizations

"When you set up a gate, you invite authorities to use it to block things they don't like. And when you build a database, you invite governments to try to get access."

Electronic Frontier Foundation

"Centralised, intransparent security architectures certainly help secure monetization and the market by locking out competitors."

Nextcloud

"Google is turning Android into a walled garden monopoly. We must prevent it."

Osservatorio Nessuno

"MEP Christel Schaldemose formally questioned whether Google's mandatory central registration is compatible with the Digital Markets Act."

European Parliament

"This extends Google's gatekeeping authority beyond its own marketplace into distribution channels where it has no legitimate operational role."

Open letter, over 67 signatory organizations

"Google's developer verification policy creates a centralized database, controlled by a single corporation, containing the real-world identity of every person who writes software for Android."

Brave

"If it were to be put into effect, the developer registration decree will end the F-Droid project and other free/open source app distribution sources as we know them today."

F-Droid

"While Android used to be praised for its freedom and independence, it will become a closed shop just like Apple."

Tuta

"Verification just confirms who's behind the app, it doesn't guarantee clean code or rule out malicious behavior."

AdGuard

"A centralized global registration system for Android will inevitably chill this work. Those communities are likely to drop out of developing for Android altogether."

Electronic Frontier Foundation

"Independent software distribution on Android will now require Google's explicit permission."

AdGuard

"Google will cut off independent developers to Android if they do not register with Google first. This will kill independent platforms like F-Droid and severely impede FLOSS devs from creating apps for Android."

KDE

"Remember: It's your phone, your data, your freedom. Don't let Google take it away."

Tuta

"Changes would impose barriers to entry for individual developers, small teams and volunteer projects by imposing fees, identity checks and terms that may not align with the principles of an open ecosystem."

Infosecurity Magazine

"Google's abusive approach to the Android operating system has only gotten worse in recent years. Software freedom is sorely lacking in the 'computers in our pockets' we call cell phones."

Free Software Foundation

"Developers who build privacy-first browsers, encrypted messaging apps, VPNs, Tor-based software or tools for journalists and activists would be required to upload government ID to Google. These developers are unlikely to trust Google and might stop developing for Android."

Brave

"We are running out of time until Google becomes the gate-keeper of all users devices."

F-Droid

"A policy that forces every Android developer to hand their identity to Google, regardless of whether they use Google's services, makes Android a less-open and less-private platform."

Brave

"This is a profound change, one that shatters the entire premise of the Android ecosystem, long regarded as the antithesis of the closed Apple ecosystem."

AdGuard

"Nearly 50 organizations published an open letter opposing what they characterize as a 'kill switch for the open ecosystem.'"

Tech-ish Kenya

"Your Smartphone, Their Rules: How App Stores Enable Corporate-Government Censorship."

ACLU

YouTubers & creators

"If I'm going to be trapped in a walled garden anyway, I'll take the one that's built properly."

fireborn – Blog

"Google decides what's safe for you, and you don't get a say."

fireborn – Blog

"The widely-circulated narrative that Google already backed down from this is false. They didn't, and that misunderstanding may be the most dangerous part of the story right now."

Techlore – YouTube

"I have really no more strong reason to not recommend you all get iPhones, because this just is pretty much an iPhone with a Google logo on it at this point."

Techlore – YouTube

"Android has become what they set out to destroy."

Linus Sebastian, LMG Clips – YouTube

"Imagine Dell told you that you could no longer install any operating system other than Windows on your laptop. That's what Google is doing to your phone."

SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) – YouTube

"That's not openness. That is control."

ChiefGyk3D – YouTube

"Developers of privacy-focused tools and emulators will have to dox themselves, making them vulnerable to government agencies or legal action."

SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) – YouTube

"This means you can't sideload an app from an unofficial source. But it could also be used to lock the ecosystem so we're forced to install only Google apps on approved Google OS versions."

Rob Braxman Tech – Locals

"I'm not using the word 'phone.' I'm using the word 'computer.' This has over 8 GB of RAM, a terabyte of storage. It's a computer. And I'm also not going to be using words like 'sideload.' When you download an exe file onto your Windows computer, you've installed an application. You haven't 'sideloaded' something."

Louis Rossmann – YouTube

"Google keeps getting in as much trouble as Apple when Google is half evil and Apple is full evil. So there are probably people inside Google saying, 'Why not just go full evil?'"

Louis Rossmann – YouTube

"The fact of the matter is, this is my device. I paid a lot of money for it. I should be able to do with it what I want."

Switched to Linux – YouTube

"F-Droid is basically saying that the new Google developer registration process will likely kill the open-source app store entirely."

The Linux Experiment – YouTube

"A world where two tech companies from the same city that dominate all of our mobile devices both require centralized developer registration is a world with one more lever for surveillance, one more checkpoint for censorship."

Techlore – YouTube

"Google already can disable malware that they find on your device. It's already a built-in feature. So what is developer registration actually adding here? Is it security or control? You decide."

Techlore – YouTube

"Follow the money. Google makes money when apps are downloaded from its store. Google has completely forgotten about its earlier company motto: Don't be evil."

Tuta Blog – Blog

"This is an iPhone now. I didn't want to buy an iPhone. I use Android because it gives me freedom. If you are not going to give me freedom with my computer, then why would I buy your stuff anymore?"

Louis Rossmann – YouTube

"Every single time a company takes away your ability to do what you want with what you bought and paid for, every single time they twist a knife, we have to point it out."

Louis Rossmann – YouTube

"This represents the last real safe place for free and open-source software in the entire mobile ecosystem. Once it's gone, it's gone. And we're going to spend the next decade trying to claw it back."

Techlore – YouTube

"When you download applications, you've simply installed an application. I don't want to use words like 'sideload.'"

SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) – YouTube

"Google isn't testing this in the US or Europe first. They're starting in countries like Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand. Why? Because these are massive growth markets where regulation is weaker. By the time regulators catch up, the damage will already be done."

ChiefGyk3D – YouTube

"Google is setting a requirement that only they can fulfill, forcing developers to go through Google and killing off thousands of apps. Countless users stranded."

Techlore – YouTube

"Your device, their rules. The phone you bought and paid for is no longer really yours."

Tuta Blog – Blog

"Google is removing the one key advantage Android has over iOS."

SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) – YouTube

"Google is doing to Android what Microsoft once tried to do to the web. Embrace, extend, extinguish. Just wrapped in a shinier open-source package."

ChiefGyk3D – YouTube

"Google has been carefully watching from the sidelines to see what exactly it is that Apple can get away with."

Linus Sebastian, LMG Clips – YouTube

"This has obvious problems for non-Google operating systems like iodeOS, LineageOS, or BraxOS. Google Android will 'check in' with Google to verify the identity of the app and to validate the operating system."

Rob Braxman Tech – Locals

Developers & community

"For 'security' -- always security with these assholes. They're just building the walls of the walled garden higher."

lynxy, Tildes

"Once deployed, there's a near 100% chance of such a mechanism being used for evil."

Zak, Lemmy

"Can't come at a worse time. People are just learning to make things through vibe coding, and they're gonna want to put their own apps on their phones. And now Google says no."

Serinus, Lemmy

"Google wants the authority of a gatekeeper without the overhead of human accountability."

afferi300rina, Hacker News

"Brazil government app refuses to operate with developer mode on."

flykespice (developer in Brazil), Hacker News

"Give me liberty or give me Symbian."

masterofn001, Lemmy

"Google has no right to be my parent. As long as I can't reject paternalism, I don't believe for a second this is done with the well-being of scam victims as the main priority."

gspr, Lobsters

"I teach digital literacy and 99% of unsavory software I encounter on people's phones come from the Play Store or App Store. I will believe they're serious about protecting users when I see them do something about the crap ton of borderline scam apps infesting their stores."

1995ToyotaCorolla, Lemmy

"'Sideload' is like 'jaywalking'; seeks to stigmatize humans being human."

tejtm, Hacker News

"I want to deploy apps on my device. They are my apps, it's my device, and I should not be required to ask for permission to do so."

fsniper, Hacker News

"It's not cyclic. It's a ratchet and it gets tighter and tighter."

BenjaminRi, Lobsters

"Signal, VPNs -- they'll have a list of everyone opting out of government-mandated backdoors."

Max-P, Lemmy

"Anyone else thinking this looks like a precursor to banning Signal and similar? 1) Put Google in control of what you can install. 2) Get Google to block it."

harry8, Hacker News

"Making it harder makes it harder to treat ourselves. Software like AndroidAPS is unique. It's hard to find or very expensive and inferior in the proprietary market."

pimeys (diabetic user on life-critical medical software), Lobsters

"Software gatekeeping is a threat to human rights. Just recently an app to track ICE was banned from the iOS app store even though this should clearly be protected first amendment speech."

gthing, Reddit

"Google selling Android as both open source and open to running any software you like in order to quickly gain market share, only to break those promises after driving competing platforms out of the market is nothing more than fraud."

GeekyBear, Hacker News

"The war on General Purpose Computing is the death of innovation and a direct attack on digital freedom."

layfellow, Hacker News

"Whatever Google is doing kind of scares me. We have a big DIY community of diabetics in Germany running tools like AndroidAPS that cannot ever be distributed through official channels."

pimeys (Type 1 diabetic, DIY medical software), Lobsters

"Years ago, I wondered how Google would try to get away with locking down Android and shutting the cage door after capturing such a large dependent user base. Now I see how they are trying to get away with it."

chaznabin, Reddit

"I buy a device with my own money, which I supposedly then own, but then I need to ask some corporation permission to use it."

askonomm, Hacker News

"All the banking and payment apps in India refuse to open if you have developer mode on."

nibbleyou (developer in India), Hacker News

"Computing is infrastructure. Personal computers are a means of expressing agency. This is like banning people from moving furniture around their house without approval from mortgage lenders."

wervenyt, Tildes

"Play store is full of scam apps, F-Droid isn't, but Play Store is considered secure. It's all theatre."

gcupc, Lobsters

"I still remember how in the early days of Android vs iOS discussions, the main point was 'but it's OPEN!' The word 'open' was used as a comma by Google people. It was The Thing. The Difference. Good vs Evil and all that."

jwr, Hacker News

"Google's own Play Store had over 600 million malware downloads. They keep talking about 'security' but their own store is crawling with fake apps and straight up malware while actual useful stuff gets buried or rejected."

Historical-Employ129 (324 upvotes), Reddit

"Twice I have had to deal with Google silently disabling my drone app to the point I had to buy an older phone to perform work. When I purchase a device that works with another device, under no circumstances should I be at the mercy of any updates they make."

cbrophoto (drone professional), Reddit

"This isn't just a competition between app stores; it's a struggle for choice and dignity. Your phone shouldn't be a cage carefully constructed by others, but an extension of your own will."

renshijian, Hacker News

"If I go down this path, I will stop all development on Android. I implore all other developers to resist this. This will completely lock down the platform forever, there will be no going back."

BatteryMountain, Hacker News

"Google seems to actively hate people who develop for their platforms."

hbn, Hacker News

"Requiring a government ID to distribute software. Holy shit. If you are a kid and want to create a game for your friends, you better get that birth certificate ready!"

llitz, Reddit

"I hate this so much. More and more I get the feeling I have no control over the devices I own. My fear is that Windows will eventually follow. For security reasons of course. It's the path we're on now."

cheesyvoetjes, Reddit

"It took them 17 years to finally pull the cage all the way shut."

Apocryphon, Hacker News

"We need to start treating phones differently. We're entering a world where we can't choose what we run on them. Their primary purpose is to gather data on us and serve us advertising, they're engineered for addiction, yet engaging in the world is immensely difficult without one."

specproc, Hacker News

"My Pixel 6 just broke, and after 15 years of using Android, I've finally been convinced to move to iOS. If I must live in a walled garden, I suppose I'll choose the one with nicer flowers."

yonato, Hacker News

"There's an entire genre of scamming where the scammers spend months building rapport with their victims before cashing out. One day is nothing."

free_bip (on the 24-hour wait defeating scammers), Hacker News

"Social engineering is destroyed with education, not with restriction and control. Trading freedom for safety eliminates both."

survirtual, Hacker News

"Don't beg. Don't get in a position that freedoms depend on the whims of a corporation or willingness of a government to regulate them. Build."

jzb, Lobsters

"If your country is ever in the crosshairs of 'American interests' and bears the brunt of its sanctions, it is possible that you cannot install apps from your fellow citizens. Your own local government, bank, and store apps."

devsda, Hacker News

"Google now has a flag on my phone they can control remotely to keep me from accessing the apps I want."

vala, Lemmy

"The fundamental problem is that we are relying on the good graces of Google to keep Android open, despite the fact that it often runs contrary to their goals as a $4T for-profit behemoth. The 'don't be evil' days are very far behind us."

paxys, Hacker News

"Any time someone puts a lock on something that belongs to you, and won't give you a key, they're not doing it for your benefit."

vord (quoting Cory Doctorow), Tildes

"Antitrust action is badly needed. It is ridiculous that I need permission from my device manufacturer to install software on hardware I own."

jim201, Hacker News

"Modern life practically forces you to put all your eggs into a phone controlled by one of two profit-seeking companies."

koala, Lobsters

"Android was never actually open and now they are abandoning even the thin pretense."

Tiraon, Tildes

"It is a disgrace how Google has managed this situation. The promised 'advanced flow' hasn't appeared in any Android 16 or 17 betas. Google is quietly proceeding with the original lockdown."

fermigier, Hacker News

"Some time in the future, we will look back to this era and ask ourselves what went wrong."

BenjaminRi, Lobsters

"We are talking about something categorically worse than vendor lock-in: Collective vendor lock-in."

anordal, Lobsters

"They're boiling the frog -- slowly removing features until all choice is gone."

hn92726819, Hacker News

"After 15 years of professional development on Android I too am now thinking about switching my focus to something different. And it sucks."

MrDresden, Hacker News

"If Android's sandbox and permission systems actually worked, then the mere act of installing an app from an arbitrary source would be as harmless as visiting an arbitrary website."

mwcampbell, Lobsters

"The open Android I knew and loved is long gone."

girvo, Hacker News

"They have stolen a free product and are now actively locking out the people who built it."

TheTearMiser, Lemmy

"The phrase 'sideload' is psychological propaganda we are all best off rejecting."

WaffleMonster, Slashdot

"You are essentially a child to them. The difference is society has decided not to step in to protect you from your abusive parents."

globular-toast, Hacker News

"Android is for everyone, provided they submit to Google exclusively."

gumby271, Hacker News

"You have no right telling me what I can and cannot run on my own devices."

MrZander, Hacker News

"Google's plan to require developer verification would give Google and governments the ability to ban any app."

Zak, Hacker News

"This is a war on users that want to keep control of their phones and when it's done, you will not be able to escape the enshittification."

ikidd, Lemmy

"If the likes of Google, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, and others have their way, you will not own your computer; those companies will effectively own your computers."

RUs1729, Slashdot

Voices from the petition

"Google is long overdue to be broken up like AT&T was and this blatantly anti consumer decision to lock down Android proves this. "

Kris, change.org

"we pay for these devices and maintain them. we should be able to do anything we want with them. Locking us out is just greed. Like buying a car. then having to pay ever month to use the heated seats that are already in the car. if anything, let us put a different system on the phone. "

David, change.org

"It isn't safe to bottleneck every human user to obey a s>ngle companies whims. This will be fought in court, I'm sure. But in the meantime I will fight this disagreeable motion. This is a freedom of privacy and speech, in the enar future if you have an unsavory opinion, towards Google or other, you will be targeted. "

Kosta, change.org

"As an ex user of legacy iOS devices, I felt so frustrated by the base system that I always had to try overcome limitations through jailbreak. What a fresh breeze it was when I finally switched to android more than a decade ago! The openness and flexibility of the system was, even from a simple user POV, a liberation. Fast forward, we're at an era where being an indie dev is accessible. And when this era is flourishing, you tell me Google wants to lock up all machines relying on its system? This is terrible. We don't want a locked ecosystem. There are plenty already. We want flexibility and keep power in our decisions. Simple. So I'm signing this petition. "

Christopher-Harold, change.org

"The main reason I use Android products at all is for their modability. To require ID verification just invades the privacy of app developers and does absolutely nothing to protect Android users. At this point, what would make Android products any different from Apple? This is completely unacceptable; this will end up hurting more people than it does help. "

Elise, change.org

"Removing a huge part of why people choose android is certainly a choice. "

Drae, change.org

"Interesting how F-droid has been successfully been managing their own repo for years while simultaneously maintaining user and developer privacy, yet Google suddenly decides user safety is such an important thing that they have to sacrifice developer privacy on Android and conveniently have what apps users are allowed to install regulated by them and only them. If this was something they were doing on their store it would be disruptive, but developers who don't want to fork over pictures of their government ID, and 25 dollars apparently, could distribute their apps elsewhere. The privacy implications of forcing every developer, regardless of the distribution platform they use, to validate their government ID through a centralized source is far beyond the pale of Google's responsibilities and a major violation of privacy. The fact that they're even able to make a move like this should be treated as a travesty. It's not pro consumer either. As it stands today, users may choose to install apps from other appstores, including ones focused on open source software and privacy. Should Google's policy go into effect, they get to determine what apps we're allowed to install on the phones we bought and paid for. This alongside the sweeping age verification we've been seeing everywhere feels less focused on actual safety as opposed to surveillance. If I wanted a walled garden, I'd have gotten an apple phone. If this crap keeps up, I'm gonna have to search for a Linux phone whether they're ready for mass adoption or not. "

Pyre, change.org

"It is a based no to monopolization of Android from Google. Stop giving them all the power. Together we can ask for change. "

Claudia, change.org

"While, I'm not an average user of an Android device, I completely understand the need for programs to be open source and to have the freedom to do whatever you would like with the device that's been bought by you. So to see Google attempt to censor a beloved part of Android for many users? I find myself quite outraged! It's not exactly protection if everyone's data is at risk of being leaked next week, and it would be all thanks to these planned restrictions! "

Marielle, change.org

"Motivations drive actions. Any sincere reason to change other than power or greed? The app system works extremely well 'as is' so why should any group want this to change? Can only see harder times ahead for all - your kids for certain - if Google is allowed to do 'ruin, injury, pain, or harm': the definition of evil. Right now, the environment is lush for all - particularly Google - if all remains open. There is no good reason change. Motivations drive actions. "

D., change.org

"This will be the death of android and Google is holding the gun. My entire attraction to android was the freedom. Now that this will potentially cease to exist, I have no problem finding another source of freedom. Google thinks they're being smart, but they are only killing themselves slowly. Android users everywhere must make sure google pays dearly for the abomination they are creating. "

Kevin, change.org

"Yeah i like the big man having control over the phone i bought. Thats the only reason i went to Android. Never again. Hope Android is dying for it "

Tobias, change.org

"Sick and tired of Google's garbage. "

Gabriel, change.org

"More sensorship, more control, just another step into taking away the little bits of freedom we have left in this country in the things we love doing the most. I say no thank you, go away. "

Brandon, change.org

"Android giving users choice has been the staple point of android OS. Removing choices like sideloading apps is not the move. I develop apps for myself, I do not want to be "an approved developer" I don't have time nor care for that. This action also is the beginning of censorship, and monopolization of android OS. Android started as an open operating system, you have simply turned it into a reskinned Apple OS. Your choice to go anti-consumer is going to hurt. You are not "protecting" anyone "

Seth, change.org

"We should not be forced into using Google products. Our society doesn't function without choice and competition "

erik, change.org

"You, the consumer, purchased your Android device believing in Google’s promise that it was an open computing platform and that you could run whatever software you choose on it. Instead, as of September 2026, they will be non-consensually pushing an update to your operating system that irrevocably blocks this right and leaves you at the mercy of their judgement over what software you are permitted to trust. "

shark, change.org

"Android began as the open-source, mod-friendly underdog in the cell phone market years ago. I watched it as it grew into a thriving scene where we could brag to our Apple-loyal friends about the freedom we had in our platform, the platform we bolstered up and supported and went against the culture at the time to get behind. Over time, it's become less and less free and open; locking bootloaders, denying permission to access all of the storage we pay for on our devices, penalizing power users who root their phones by disabling basic functionality, and now that their Play Store monopoly has been called out for what it is Google, so desperately in need of more money than they earn from collecting and selling all of our private data to finance their AI ambitions, which are trained on all of our data in the first place, is locking down the user's ability to control how they can utilize the device they own even further, just so they can have a say (and a fee collected) in every application that others produce for what used to be a truly open-source platform. It's disgusting how for ensh*tification has gone. These are Our devices. We pay for them. They are ours to have to replace, to finance, to insure, to charge, and to use. You should have a say in literally every single aspect of how they're used, and exploiting small developers under the guise of "security" is just pathetic. "

Sheldon, change.org

"There are games, apps, that are FREE, because the authors want it that way, no charge. WHY SHOULD GOOGLE WIN MONEY WITH THEM??? "

Ana, change.org

"If I wanted a phone that decided what I can and can't do I would have bought an iPhone. "

Tom, change.org

"Computers and modern technology was built and advanced by hobbyists who could freely develop for and modify their devices. By limiting APKs and off store software installs we are killing the innovation that built this industry. I stand with FOSS, I stand with hobbyists. "

Paul, change.org

"Everyone is sharing how much they side with Android for the ability to have fuller control over what they can do with their devices .. and I'm so on board with that... I can't stand to have limitations which is why I've always used Android devices.. There's a lot of freedom to allow ourselves to develope what we'd like and share them with others .. that is something I myself enjoy be able to take advantage of as I am in no way knowledgeable in programming and most pf the time, everything I want is done by volunteers or people who just do these things as a hobby... what a community 👏 so annoyed Google is trying to enforce this stupidity "

Santiana, change.org

"I find this measure deeply concerning. When I choose to buy an phone, it is with the expectation of having control over how I use it. A company should not decide how I use my devices. "

Abdoul, change.org

"It's my phone that I bought with my money. Why is Google allowed to determine what apps I install on it? "

Eugene, change.org

"Open source apps is what makes Android the best over ios "

Billy, change.org

"Google should stop killing Android "

Rafael, change.org

"keeping it brief. There are MANY apps that people depend on for day to day life and this is going to impact that on a drastic scale. "

Bryan, change.org

"Someone alert the attorney's on the ongoing case with Epic Games that Google found a way to try and skirt court orders. I'm sure the judge will be extremely pleased to have been ignored, as they make this change and claim it's somehow not the opposite of what they were told to do. "

Nicholas, change.org

"This is some dirty anti competitive google practice. One of the main reason why people choose android is it's freedom. I'd use a custom rom if my phone supported it(it's a galaxy a04e). Man, i like AOSP, and i really think way mkre people should be using android custom roms for privacy and freedom, because of companies like this, who want to create a monopoly. Android is a good OS, but the company who owns is garbage tbh. So, what i meant is, dont let them continue with those anti competitive practices, havent we had enough of google and big techs dirty practices? "

QByte, change.org

"I was thinking about buying an android before hearing about this. Now, I think I’ll stick to apple until the fix this. "

Keaton, change.org

"This does not protect anybody. All it does is restrict an OS that was supposed to be open. This was one of the main benefits of Android over iOS, and now it's being removed. This also kills the open source ecosystem, since alternative app stores cannot function if all developers are required to pay Google and pay a fee. Ordinary users are already protected from malware with Google Play Protect, and app sideloading disabled by default. This does not help anyone. Even calling it sideloading is misleading, since we own the device NOT Google. On a computer, this is called installing software. It shouldn't be different on a phone. This will also allow government censorship of apps that protect privacy. Overall a terrible idea. "

Daniel, change.org

"Nobody asked for this. It's the users choice to install apks on their OWN device that they paid for. Stop doing this google! "

Alexander, change.org

"One of the main reasons for using android is the freedom, this gets rid of that. So I may as well use ubuntu touch at this point. "

Yurii, change.org

"i liked playing gta sa on my droid dont ruin some kids childhood "

Husam, change.org

"I'm making this comment because I think what Android and Google are doing is absurd. Because removing APKs from Android, like banning APKs, is very bad. Because Android has had APKs for so many years, taking away something that made Android what it is today is very bad. Many people like Android because of APKs, and I'm one of those people. Like, we had our childhood on Android because of APKs, so that's why I'm making this comment. This is for the good of Google and Android, and that's all. - David "

Davi, change.org

"Let me preface this. Sideloading is *installing a program on a personal computer,* for all that it's phone shaped. You might be used to this behavior from iOS, but even Mac PCs will let you install applications that are unsigned and made by other people, and on the closed-source Windows environment it's still *the main way to get applications,* despite there now being two different official app stores on that platform. Nothing needs to be said about the various Linux/Unix environments. The centralized registration of both apps and developers is not the right approach. It creates a monopoly over who can be an Android developer and will greatly limit the desire to develop apps if it is no longer something that can be done as a hobby but a slow, complicated expense with the requirement to identify oneself. I've done some hobbyist development, but I would not have learned coding if these were the standards I had to meet, and I'd only be losing money. It encourages turning a problem-solving hobby project others might benefit from into a cash grab, or just discourages it entirely. It will in one blow destroy all apps which are no longer maintained, or those who are developed by people who can't or won't escrow their identities with Google, including myself. It also integrates Google's control over the phone even more deeply into how even the phone's software runs, locking these allegedly open devices even more under Google's remote control, and which is already a challenge for makers of de-Googled devices. I strongly suspect it will also become used to apply arbitrary limitations to developers (read the XScreenSaver privacy policy if you'd like to know more) and block many of the tools we currently take for granted, such as those used to root phones. After all, rooting a phone would likely permit installing arbitrary apps, and Google's security model already "distrusts" those devices to the point that they break e.g. banking apps or DRM, so why would they allow something if it conflicts with their security model and they can now control any code that runs on your device? In the end, this WILL be used by Google to permanently remove many people's ability to develop apps on Android at all, likely because those people made tools that provided capabilities Google is not willing to offer or let exist on the free market anymore. The ID requirement will prevent them from creating new accounts and the devices will retroactively block even their installed apps from working while preventing those developers, those _people,_ from making more even on other stores (if other stores even continue existing, given that they would effectively become arms of Google just to have the apps work). "

Russell, change.org

"This is absolute NUTS. I have some small apps I made that simply allow me to copy text to and from the clipboard to a central server I run, and I have programs on other OS's that can access it in a similar way. It's possibly THE most useful program I ever wrote in my life as I use it nearly every day. The idea that I have to pay to do the google dance just to run my own damn code is insane. Being able to run whatever software we like and access the file system is the whole point of android. Without that, we might as all just pay apple tax. "

Jonathan, change.org

"There's been a LOT of privacy conscious people out there, that don't want to be tracked everywhere they go, especially when doing personal stuff at the privacy in their own home. Open source apps are also good alternatives, when big tech can censor you or even flag you, for something that ISN'T illegal nor harmful in any way. So what Google is doing is making users more vulnerable and harmful that even violates the 4th Amendment! "

Dan, change.org

"I bought my Android devices so I could have the freedom to use it as I wish. Google's change goes against every reason I bought my Android devices to use. Keep Android open. Otherwise, what's the point? It feels like I have wasted my time and money now. "

Madison, change.org

"If this update is released, I will switch to iPhone. "

Miguel, change.org

"Implanting a feature like this would just kill the whole point of why i brought an android device. Might as well switch to apple, cause at least I would have a more cohesive experience. "

Edgar, change.org

"My name is Lawrence Wider Jr. I am a huge fan of Android. The ability flawlessly download the individuals files (APKs) of smartphone apps on my smartphone is the reason why I decided to choose Android as my first ever smartphone OS to use over iOS a couple of decades ago. In short, it was Freedom Of Choice that caused me to choose Android over IOS decades ago. If Google decides to go through with their plan to limit APK usage this September, then I will no longer have that awesome choice and I will no longer be able to choose the awesome smartphone OS known as Android as my smartphone os. The ability to flawlessly download the individuals files (APKs) of smartphone apps on my smartphone had also caused Android to be a fun smartphone OS for me to use. Another advantage of the ability for me to download individual files (APKs) of APKs on my Android smartphone has given me is the ability for it to be easier for me to use Android. If Google decides to limit APK file usage this September, then it would cause me to no longer choose Android as my smartphone is to use. Thank you. "

Lawrence, change.org

"It doesn't surprise me to hear that GOOGLE is going to do this. It's not about creating something that could possibly be of benefit anymore. The all mighty dollar has to raise it's ugly head now days or it's just not worth doing. "

Ralph, change.org

"Stop Google from limiting APK file usage! "

Daniel, change.org

"I like an open source because we're not stuck to when we might not. It about prefence. I have never used iOS but this might change my mind. I will look for an alternative to android if this takes place. "

Leoncio, change.org

"A significant amount of the apps I use are small hobbyist open-source apps who would not want to go through the verification process just to have their apps be able to be easily installed, and this would effectively kill almost all of them "

Trevor, change.org

"Freedom has not been free. I had to change my name to even talk here without feeling like I am spied on. Let the people be free and happiness shall come, that is all I want to add. "

Fawks, change.org

"Save privacy and security "

Pepe, change.org

"I do not support Google moving android in a totalitarian direction where freedom is removed and central authority is enforced. Keep Android Free! "

Phillip, change.org

"Everyday Google becomes more and more of a monopoly and governments are letting them get away with it so they can use them to enact censorship and surveillance. "

Ciara, change.org

"If a company wants to be THE company in everyone's life, they better offer something that everyone wants. ...otherwise, give use the freedom to choose something that is. "

Achi, change.org

"The reason why i use android is because of the freedom but if Google lockdown android then there no point on staying and not switching to other ecosystem "

Joel, change.org

"It's like Google looked at the Microsoft debacle (hello! Linux!) that's currently going on and said wait..hold my beer... Not as easy to change from Google Android like Windows to Linux but it can be done! Already have proton emails so the ball is rolling! If this goes thru I will definitely find alternatives. And instead of using a mix of Google Play store apps and gmail and FOSS as of now, I'll just stick to FOSS and stick with proton email as the primary and go the way of degoogled or possibly apple. Or even go with a cheap flip phone and just forget about using any apps at all! see your already helping me curb the addiction you created by these smart phones and with the physical media resurgence this could kind of go with the whole theme so to speak. Thanks for the ideas Google! I've gotten into the habit of changing and finding alternatives in the last ten plus years to everything. This would not be any different. Know your place and keep your promises Google. Or to quote a couple of your slogans. "Don't be evil" and "Do the right thing" "

Marvin, change.org

"After this decision I will just go with iPhone, this was the only reason I was using Android, just making it worse for the consumer, this is not about security but locking down people's choice of store, which in my opinion should be illegal give that we bought our phones and we should be able to do with them as we please "

Colin, change.org

"Android is supposed to be open, as a dirrect counter to Apples closed system. If you continue down this road, we will just make something else. Open source is a powerful community "

Serissa, change.org

"Third party apps make my phone so much more functional and versatile for my own personal needs. It's why I choose Android over Apple. Giving less options to all of us will only make the user experience worse for everyone. "

Jorri, change.org

"If I wanted to have my apps controlled by a mega corporation, I would have gotten an iPhone "

Eric, change.org

"google, queremos continuar livres! "

Vitor, change.org

"I want to have the option of what to download and how to download it because if I wanted something restricted I would use Apple "

Sergio, change.org

"I am not a developer, just a regular apk user, and the fact that google is trying to remove a vital part of android is crazy "

Gilberto David, change.org

"The spirit of open source is one of the basis of the Internet.Please do not reverse the course of history. "

Roberto, change.org

"I have been using Android since Eclair, after using Windows Mobile 6 and iOS. I have been seriously considering iOS again lately, and this would absolutely convince me to jump ship. "

Jon, change.org

"Android has always been my go-to, even with today’s high user preference being iOS. The reason why I have relied on it so much is because of the freedom we have to do what we want with our product and not be limited like iOS. This is not about "protecting us" this is to assert control and limit the users’ experience which is a breach of the freedom that Android has always promised. "

Alexandra, change.org

"As a user, I will always opt to sideload apps whenever possible. Whether I need a photo editor, keyboard app, audio equalizer app, or any other kinds of apps, I consistently seek open-sourced sideloading options before I even consider using the Google Play Store. Whenever I need any mobile app that isn't social, I prioritize finding an open-sourced app solution. With Google's dominance in the global mobile OS market, it's clear they will attempt to restrict any freedoms of their OS that they can get their hands on if they're not stopped. The importance of maintaining the freedom to sideload apps has never been more critical. Legislative initiatives like the App Store Accountability Act, which pushes users into surrendering personal private details to proprietary third-party solutions for identity verification, underscore why sideloading is a crucial defense line. If Google is allowed to proceed with implementing these restrictions, users will likely get funneled into using its proprietary app store, forced to share personal information like age and biometric data that links back to them for targeted ads and surveillance. Google's push for limiting sideloading is a textbook case of anti-competitiveness as well. The danger of this change can be summed up in an analogy: if some people occasionally get food poisoning from non-vetted sources, should we altogether limit food access to vendors that are deemed as, 'approved' or 'verified' by a multibillion-dollar, anti-consumer corporation? If this decision doesn't get shot down, there is a risk of being forced to give up personal privacy, autonomy, and choice. "

Matthew, change.org

"Why did I even buy an android phone?? They think I went iOS to android for no reason? WE WANT IT OPEN! "

David, change.org

"I am an android user, for personal usage and Emulation purposes. I would like to still install from who I want if I want or need the apps. Android was always about customization. doing this strips users of that because i'm pretty sure there are apps out there for this purpose. "

Andy, change.org

"Android has always been shown as an open platform, made for the users to freely develop and share software for it. This change however, goes completely against this picture shown to us and also goes against the freedom and privacy of any developer that still wishes to continue having their work running on the platform; This change isn't safe for anyone but for those that want control of what we do and what we think. "

Jazmin, change.org

"We already can't chose our OS and can't choosing the app is discussing. "

Alihan, change.org

"Android has always been my preferred due to the freedom and flexibility it allows developers and consumers like me. To take that away, you're becoming more like apple and deciding what I, the consumer of your devices and software do with my device. If this goes forward, I will utilize an alternative to apple or android. "

Genesis, change.org

"Android is about freedom and choice, if I wanted a knock off I-Phone, I would just buy a knock off I-Phone from Temu. These kinds of changes are how you end up with more people steering away from your device, and going towards devices that give people their individual freedoms back. "

Xavier, change.org

"This is just another tiny step in the journey to control your device. The more they control the more they extract. "

Michael, change.org

"Google is an evil entity. I'm not surprised they're doing something evil. "

Justin, change.org

"I've installed dozens to hundreds of APKs on my phone for years. Whether it's personal projects or open source tools. It's really the only defining difference between Android and iOS. Why is this even being considered by Google? "

Joseph, change.org

"We need Android still an open platform that we could run our own applications on that!We never allow Google change Android into an locked-down platform, it is murdering the Android Development! "

Zhou, change.org

"Android libre. "

Fernando, change.org

"I didn't think I could dislike Google any less than I do already for their anti freedom posture, but, yeah they've fallen even further. Google is the enemy of freedom no matter where you live. "

Daniel, change.org

"it's crazy that they're doing this . It was the only reason i chose "google" android in the 1st place, because of it's semi open nature "

jamie, change.org

"Some people live hard lifes, APKs gave us freedom and versatility with our smartphones, that one of the greatest things that made me buy and use android "

João Gabriel, change.org

"There are but few remaining bastions of independance left these days. Google, You have taken the cake, the pies, the rest of the desert tray and the full feast before it and left only crumbs in your wake. Are you really about to double back to hoover those up too? Competition is a net gain in any space and promotes growth and vitality! We need places for independents to opperate and users to choose freely what resonates with them and thier own values! Kindly, leave some space! "

m, change.org

"I use Android because of the freedom to customize and use my phone the way I want. I don't need Google telling me how to use my phone. "

Deja, change.org

"I use android to *avoid* closed environments and allow for more freedom in what I can do. Don't remove freedom of choice, you damn cowards! "

Douglas, change.org

"This is not only concerning or invasive. It's unjust, deceitful and abusive. Once you break this trust, they can AND WILL control every aspect of the software chain. Not even casual users will be safe then. "

Jesse, change.org

"This whole security benefit is BS "

Jordan, change.org

"If Google does this I will move to iOS. If given a choice for locked down mobile OS I feel safer with Apple. And the way the world is going with all the horrible AI etc.. and corporate control of our lives I will take the lesser of two evils. At least with Apple you can OPT out of Apple intelligence during setup with iPhone just like with Mac OS which I recently went to after MS's windows 11. I'm pretty pessimistic about this change and realize that I will likely be purchasing my first iPhone in the end of the year. "

Trent, change.org

"#NoMoreCorruption "

Russell, change.org

"Google isn't trying to protect us from malware with these policies; it's simply trying to control the platform it owns to profit from its platform and the data it collects. "

Tiburcio, change.org

"I switched for freedom - not this. "

Harrison, change.org

"You okay Google? Isolation is never the answer. Hope you feel better soon! "

Robert, change.org

"1 federal lawsuit wasn't enough? Why after all that's happened, being convicted for monopoly must Google feel the need to throw "

Zach, change.org

"Welp if APK files limited then there is no need for us to use android from now on. "

Emir, change.org

"I dislike all the changes that have undergone Android, but this one takes the cake for the worst one i could have ever imagined. "

Pye, change.org

"One of the biggest things, if not the biggest thing, Android has had over Apple for the longest time is the freedom of the user to make the phone theirs through downloading third party apps, through developers making their own applications without being required to release it through an app store that requires a fee to put it on. My own personal experience has been that I could play one of my favorite games that's no longer on the app store. With these new restrictions and requirements Google is proposing in September, we would lose that freedom, and would become no better than Apple "

Morgan, change.org

"This is very clearly about "Embrace, Extend, Extinguish" and Google/Alphabet cashing in on control, rather than any kind of measure for protection or security. The main appeal of Android to most users was the openness, transparency, and extensibility, and with this move, all of these are being harmed. "

Anubis, change.org

"You are now a 0. "

İbrahim, change.org

"Take away the freedom of Android, and you'll lose the majority of your userbase. Seems like a smart move! "

Evan, change.org

"I've said this before on a similar petition, but I sideload apps all the time, and it's a very important feature to me because I can download older versions of apps that I know function better with ease. Just like everybody else is saying, we use Android instead of iOS because we enjoy having this freedom. It won't benefit us: only Google is going to benefit. "

Daniel, change.org

"If Android no longer allows me to install what I want, how I want, there is no reason for me to not use Apple products. Your company is already going down the wrong path in so many ways with not properly supporting third-party open source Android variants; do not let this be the final nail in your OS's coffin. "

Peter, change.org

"By what standard? "

Alex, change.org

"There is no point to using android if apks are restricted. If I wanted a phone to tell me what i can and can't do, I would get an apple, because at least I get better security and UI there. The android operating system is being stripped of everything that gives you control over your own device. If apks were restricted, I would completely degoogle my life. Big brother is watching you. "

Ben, change.org

"Google has painted developer verification as 'security' but the Play Store already hosts malware and Play Protect scans for it already. This is simply another attempt at Google to try and monopolise (see Chrome or the RCS protocol) and no one should be wanting this to happen. This affects anyone who develops outside of the Play Store (including F-Droid or GitHub repos), privacy or anonymous apps, it suffocates our OSS devs, and introduces another way for Google to oversee everything or another vector for data to be leaked. Android has always been about freedom and user control and Google should not have a say in how users use their devices. I have been an Android user since Ice Cream Sandwhich and there are multiple reasons as to why I have never owned an iPhone. I would not be able to have the phone I do today or be able to use it to its full extent without the contributions of FOSS/OSS devs and their community. Shame on you, Google. If this goes through, I'll take my chances with Linux. "

A, change.org

All references, editorials, press coverage, and videos →

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You should decide what runs on it.

That shouldn't require a 9-step process, a 24-hour wait, and Google's ongoing permission.

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