"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 ↗

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

survirtual, 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 ↗

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

koala, Lobsters ↗

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

anordal, Lobsters ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

"Give me liberty or give me Symbian."

masterofn001, 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 ↗

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

BenjaminRi, Lobsters ↗

"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 ↗

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

tejtm, Hacker News ↗

"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 ↗

"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 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 ↗

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

afferi300rina, 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 ↗

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

gcupc, Lobsters ↗

"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 ↗

"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 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 ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

hbn, Hacker News ↗

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

Zak, 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 ↗

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

gumby271, 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 ↗

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

nibbleyou (developer in India), Hacker News ↗

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

Apocryphon, Hacker News ↗

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

flykespice (developer in Brazil), Hacker News ↗

"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 ↗

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

layfellow, Hacker News ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

Max-P, Lemmy ↗

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

Zak, 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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

girvo, Hacker News ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

hn92726819, 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 ↗

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

lynxy, Tildes ↗

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

MrZander, Hacker News ↗

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

TheTearMiser, Lemmy ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

BenjaminRi, Lobsters ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

Tiraon, Tildes ↗

"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 ↗

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

vala, Lemmy ↗

"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 ↗

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

WaffleMonster, Slashdot ↗

"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 ↗

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

survirtual, 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 ↗

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

koala, Lobsters ↗

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

anordal, Lobsters ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

"Give me liberty or give me Symbian."

masterofn001, 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 ↗

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

BenjaminRi, Lobsters ↗

"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 ↗

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

tejtm, Hacker News ↗

"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 ↗

"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 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 ↗

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

afferi300rina, 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 ↗

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

gcupc, Lobsters ↗

"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 ↗

"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 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 ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

hbn, Hacker News ↗

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

Zak, 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 ↗

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

gumby271, 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 ↗

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

nibbleyou (developer in India), Hacker News ↗

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

Apocryphon, Hacker News ↗

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

flykespice (developer in Brazil), Hacker News ↗

"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 ↗

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

layfellow, Hacker News ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

Max-P, Lemmy ↗

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

Zak, 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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

girvo, Hacker News ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

hn92726819, 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 ↗

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

lynxy, Tildes ↗

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

MrZander, Hacker News ↗

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

TheTearMiser, Lemmy ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

BenjaminRi, Lobsters ↗

"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 ↗

"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 ↗

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

Tiraon, Tildes ↗

"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 ↗

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

vala, Lemmy ↗

"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 ↗

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

WaffleMonster, Slashdot ↗