Your phone is about to stop being yours.
Starting in 2027*, 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 in 2027, 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:
- Paying a fee to Google
- Agreeing to Google's Terms and Conditions
- Surrendering your government-issued identification
- Providing evidence of your private signing key
- Listing all current and all future application identifiers
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. In 2027, 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:
- Delve into System Settings, find About Phone
- Tap the build number seven times to enable Developer Mode
- Dismiss scare screens about coercion
- Enter your PIN
- Restart the device
- Wait 24 hours
- Come back, dismiss more scare screens
- Pick "allow temporarily" (7 days) or "allow indefinitely"
- 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.
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.
- Talk other developers and organizations out of signing up.
- Add the FreeDroidWarn library to your apps to warn users.
- Run a website? Add the countdown banner.
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
Nextcloud nextcloud.com
MetaBrainz Foundation metabrainz.org
GitHub Store github-store.org
Fundación Karisma karisma.org.co
European Digital Rights (EDRi) edri.org
Open Rights Group (ORG) openrightsgroup.org
The Center for Digital Progress (D64) d-64.org
April april.org
FOSDEM fosdem.org
Vivaldi Technologies AS vivaldi.com
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) eff.org
Rocky Linux rockylinux.org
The Digital Rights Foundation digitalrightsfoundation.pk
Italian Linux Society ils.org
The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) fsfe.org
The Free Software Foundation (FSF) fsf.org
Techlore techlore.tech
F-Droid f-droid.org
CryptPad cryptpad.org
OpenMedia openmedia.org
Digital Rights Watch digitalrightswatch.org.au
Forbrukerrådet forbrukerradet.no
UnifiedPush unifiedpush.org
Brave brave.com
The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) beuc.eu
Cryptee crypt.ee
iodé iode.tech
Technopolice Bruxelles technopolice.be
GNU/Linux València gnulinuxvalencia.org
Rossmann Group rossmanngroup.com
Software Liberty Association of Taiwan slat.org.tw
ARTICLE 19 article19.org
Proton AG proton.me
The Chaos Computer Club (CCC) ccc.de
epicenter.works – for digital rights epicenter.works
Associação Nacional para o Software Livre (ANSOL) ansol.org
FACiL facil.qc.ca
/e/ Foundation e.foundation
The Calyx Institute calyx.org
FULU Foundation fulu.org
Fedimedia fedimedia.it
FUTO futo.org
La Quadrature du Net laquadrature.net
Data Rights datarights.ngo
GNOME Foundation gnome.org
Software Freedom Conservancy sfconservancy.org
Digitale Gesellschaft digitale-gesellschaft.ch What they're saying
Tech press
"Google is restricting one of Android's most important features, and users are outraged"
SlashGear
"Google's Attack on Sideloading Will Rob Android of One of Its Best Features"
How-To Geek
"F-Droid Says Google Is Lying About the Future of Sideloading on Android"
How-To Geek
"Google says it's making Android sideloading 'high-friction' to better warn users about potential risks"
XDA Developers
"Google kneecaps indie Android devs, forces them to register"
The Register
"Android's sideloading limits are its most anti-consumer move yet"
MakeUseOf
"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 dev registration plan 'will end the F-Droid project'"
The Register
"Google will verify Android developers distributing apps outside the Play store"
The Verge
"F-Droid says Google's new sideloading restrictions will kill the project"
Ars Technica
"Google's Android developer verification program draws pushback"
InfoWorld
"Google's New Developer Rules Threaten to End the F-Droid Open-Source App Store"
How-To Geek
"Keep Android Open"
Linux Magazine
"This will wipe out Android as an actual alternative to Apple's mobile OS offerings."
Hackaday
"Google's new developer rules could threaten sideloading and F-Droid's future"
Gizmochina
"Sideloading is dead for all intents and purposes. The Android you know and love is slowly disappearing."
Android Police
"Sideloading on Android? Soon It'll Be Like a TSA Check for Apps"
Android Headlines
"Google will make you wait 24 hours to sideload Android apps"
How-To Geek
"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 Is Lying About the Future of Sideloading on Android"
How-To Geek
"We all know that's a load of bullshit. Adding a goddamn 24-hour waiting period is batshit insanity."
Thom Holwerda, OSnews
"F-Droid project threatened by Google's new dev registration rules"
Bleeping Computer
"An 'existential' threat to alternative app stores"
The New Stack
"It effectively makes the Play Store a monopoly without actually mandating that it is a monopoly."
I-Programmer
"Google Clamps down On Android's Openness"
Internet Freedom Foundation (India)
"Resistance to Google's Android verification grows among developers"
Techzine EU
"F-Droid Slams Google for Misleading Users About Android's App Verification"
Android Headlines
"Google's Apple envy threatens to dismantle Android's open legacy"
Ars Technica
"Google's new ID requirements could destroy independent app stores"
TechSpot
"'Keep Android Open' Movement Challenges Google's Developer Verification Rule"
Open Source For U
"Google will require developer verification for Android apps outside the Play Store"
TechCrunch
"Google will require developer verification to install Android apps, including sideloading"
9to5Google
"Keep Android Open – Abwehr gegen Verbot anonymer Apps von Google"
heise online
"Android Security or Vendor Lock-In? Google's New Sideloading Rules Smell Fishy"
It's FOSS News
"Sideloading on Android? Soon It'll Be Like a TSA Check for Apps"
Android Headlines
"Google's Requirement For All Android Developers To Register And Be Verified Threatens To Close Down Open Source App Store F-Droid"
Techdirt
"Google's Attack on Sideloading Will Rob Android of One of Its Best Features"
How-To Geek
"Google's developer registration 'decree' means the end for alternative app stores"
Cybernews
"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
"Android app store provider Aptoide hits Google with fresh lawsuit alleging monopoly and anticompetitive chokehold"
Benzinga
"Android, Epic, and What's Really Behind Google's 'Existential' Threat to F-Droid"
Slashdot
"Open letter warns mandatory registration 'threatens innovation, competition, privacy and user freedom'"
Infosecurity Magazine
"Open-Source Android Apps at Risk Under Google's New Decree"
TechRepublic
"Open-Source Android Apps Threatened by Google's New Policy"
Datamation
"Google's New Developer ID Rule Could Harm F-Droid"
Reclaim The Net
Editorials & analysis
"Sideloading, a longstanding pillar of Android's openness, is now being marginalized, placing the Android platform closer to the walled-garden approach of Apple's iOS."
Purism
"This is a form of malicious compliance with the court orders stemming from its losses to Epic Games."
Cory Doctorow, Pluralistic
"This is not a developer account sign-up. This is comprehensive surveillance of the software development ecosystem."
PixelUnion
"This could turn Google into the effective gatekeeper for all apps on certified Android devices."
It's FOSS News
"Destroying F-Droid isn't some 'oops.' It's the mission. It's Google finally cutting the last remaining escape route and locking every single user inside their store."
fireborn, mataroa.blog
"Google's move is not credibly about 'security,' but actually about consolidating power and tightening control over a formerly open ecosystem."
Techdirt
"Google has announced what can only be described as a death blow to the open ecosystem that made Android. Under the guise of 'security,' Google is implementing draconian developer verification requirements."
AndroidSage
"One US corporation is placing itself between every Android developer and every Android user on earth."
PixelUnion
"The $25 isn't the real cost. The chilling effect is. Submitting government ID to Google is a non-starter for pseudonymous contributors and privacy researchers."
Arafat Alim, DEV Community
"Google isn't certifying apps, they're certifying developers. This implies that the company can somehow predict whether a developer will do something malicious in the future."
Cory Doctorow, Pluralistic
"Google has not removed Android's openness, but it is turning openness from a default right into a conditional, attributable, and tiered capability."
MerchMindAI
"Once there is no such thing as 'sideloading', there's virtually no difference between iOS and Android. I see no reason to buy Android over iOS at this point."
Thom Holwerda, OSnews
"Although Google's claim is that this is for 'security', it does not prevent the regular practice of scammers buying up existing verified developer accounts."
Maya Posch, Hackaday
"Android does not just warn anymore. It enforces."
Youssef Mabrouk, Ostorlab
"Android wasn't supposed to be 'safe.' It was supposed to be free."
fireborn, mataroa.blog
"Every additional bureaucratic hurdle reduces diversity in the software ecosystem and concentrates power in large established players."
Mikhail Korotaev, Nextcloud Blog
"Developers from sanctioned countries or those without Google Play access cannot verify themselves. This creates systemic discrimination against developers based on birthplace rather than conduct."
agnostic-apollo (Termux developer), GitHub
"Innovation may be the biggest casualty in all of this. This new rule erodes your right to make informed decisions about your own devices."
MakeUseOf
"The phone you bought and paid for is no longer really yours. Google decides which apps are allowed to be loaded on Android and which are not."
Tuta Blog
"The requirement extends Google's gatekeeping authority from its own Play Store to every alternative distribution channel on Android."
LLM Advocates
"The proposed Android Developer Verification program isn't a security update; it's a kill switch for the open ecosystem."
Hillary Keverenge, Tech-ish Kenya
"Freedom of choice is being reframed as a 'security risk.'"
Newsfangled
"Android is no longer the scrappy rebel. It's just another empire tightening the drawbridge."
Newsfangled
"Google's attempts to make Android 'more secure' are, in fact, increasing the risk for Android users. The more friction you introduce in the name of security, the more likely users will attempt to bypass security completely."
Ken Buckler, Enterprise Management Associates
"This is not about protecting users. This is about control. This is about Google cutting out the last remaining artery of independence in Android."
fireborn, mataroa.blog
"Android is not open anymore. It's not an alternative. It's not even trying. It's iOS with ads and spyware bolted on."
fireborn, mataroa.blog
"There is also the very real possibility that Google will leak your identity with the result that any apps with political implications could result in persecution and worse."
I-Programmer
"This policy represents a dramatic departure from Android's decades-old tradition of openness, in which developers could build and share apps freely without first submitting to a centralized authority."
Biometric Update
"Google has announced that they are altering the deal. And telling us that we should pray that they don't alter it further. Block this policy change now before they wrap their cold metal hands around our necks."
Jesse Wilson, PublicObject.com
"Centralizing the registration of all applications worldwide gives Google newfound powers to completely disable any app it wants."
Mikhail Korotaev, Nextcloud Blog
"Google is turning sideloading from a right into a permission slip, and the open-source community has until September to convince it otherwise."
Reclaim The Net
"Google's story that this move is motivated by security is obviously bullshit. The idea that Google can improve Android's safety by certifying developers, rather than code, is obvious bullshit."
Cory Doctorow, Pluralistic
"What student is going to upload their passport to a trillion-dollar surveillance corporation just to share their weekend project?"
fireborn, mataroa.blog
Organizations & open letters
"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
"Unilaterally consolidating power to approve software into the hands of a single unaccountable corporation is a threat to digital sovereignty everywhere."
Nextcloud
"We unequivocally advise against signing up for this program, now or ever."
F-Droid Open Letter
"We are running out of time until Google becomes the gate-keeper of all users devices."
F-Droid
"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
"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
"Nearly 50 organizations published an open letter opposing what they characterize as a 'kill switch for the open ecosystem.'"
Tech-ish Kenya
"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 is turning Android into a walled garden monopoly. We must prevent it."
Osservatorio Nessuno
"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
"Ultimately, Google's plan will stop you from owning your Android phone."
Tuta
"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
"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
"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
"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
"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
"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
"The European Pirate Party called for proportionate and transparent measures that ensure security without restricting innovation, limiting anonymity, or distorting competition."
European Pirate Party
"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
"Forcing software creators into a centralized registration scheme is as egregious as forcing writers and artists to register with a central authority."
F-Droid
"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
"Android's biggest strength has always been its openness. That's what attracted developers and users in the first place."
AdGuard
"Remember: It's your phone, your data, your freedom. Don't let Google take it away."
Tuta
"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
"Independent software distribution on Android will now require Google's explicit permission."
AdGuard
"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
"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
"Centralised, intransparent security architectures certainly help secure monetization and the market by locking out competitors."
Nextcloud
"Google Play itself has repeatedly hosted malware, proving that corporate gatekeeping doesn't guarantee user protection."
F-Droid
"Your Smartphone, Their Rules: How App Stores Enable Corporate-Government Censorship."
ACLU
YouTubers & creators
"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
"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
"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
"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
"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
"That's not openness. That is control."
ChiefGyk3D – 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
"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
"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
"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
"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 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
"Developers of privacy-focused tools and emulators will have to dox themselves, making them vulnerable to government agencies or legal action."
SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) – 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
"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
"Android has become what they set out to destroy."
Linus Sebastian, LMG Clips – YouTube
"When you download applications, you've simply installed an application. I don't want to use words like 'sideload.'"
SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) – YouTube
"Google is removing the one key advantage Android has over iOS."
SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) – YouTube
"Your device, their rules. The phone you bought and paid for is no longer really yours."
Tuta Blog – Blog
"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
"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
"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
"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
"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
"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
Developers & community
"Play store is full of scam apps, F-Droid isn't, but Play Store is considered secure. It's all theatre."
gcupc, Lobsters
"Android is for everyone, provided they submit to Google exclusively."
gumby271, Hacker News
"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
"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
"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
"You have no right telling me what I can and cannot run on my own devices."
MrZander, 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
"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
"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
"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
"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
"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
"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
"The open Android I knew and loved is long gone."
girvo, Hacker News
"We are talking about something categorically worse than vendor lock-in: Collective vendor lock-in."
anordal, Lobsters
"'Sideload' is like 'jaywalking'; seeks to stigmatize humans being human."
tejtm, 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
"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
"Give me liberty or give me Symbian."
masterofn001, Lemmy
"It took them 17 years to finally pull the cage all the way shut."
Apocryphon, Hacker News
"Google's plan to require developer verification would give Google and governments the ability to ban any app."
Zak, Hacker News
"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
"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
"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
"They have stolen a free product and are now actively locking out the people who built it."
TheTearMiser, Lemmy
"Some time in the future, we will look back to this era and ask ourselves what went wrong."
BenjaminRi, Lobsters
"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
"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
"Google seems to actively hate people who develop for their platforms."
hbn, 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
"Once deployed, there's a near 100% chance of such a mechanism being used for evil."
Zak, Lemmy
"They're boiling the frog -- slowly removing features until all choice is gone."
hn92726819, 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
"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
"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
"For 'security' -- always security with these assholes. They're just building the walls of the walled garden higher."
lynxy, Tildes
"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
"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
"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
"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
"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
"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'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
"Google now has a flag on my phone they can control remotely to keep me from accessing the apps I want."
vala, Lemmy
"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
"Brazil government app refuses to operate with developer mode on."
flykespice (developer in Brazil), 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
"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
"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
"Signal, VPNs -- they'll have a list of everyone opting out of government-mandated backdoors."
Max-P, Lemmy
"The phrase 'sideload' is psychological propaganda we are all best off rejecting."
WaffleMonster, Slashdot
"The war on General Purpose Computing is the death of innovation and a direct attack on digital freedom."
layfellow, Hacker News
"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 wants the authority of a gatekeeper without the overhead of human accountability."
afferi300rina, Hacker News
"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
Voices from the petition
"Silly choice. A large chunk of Android users will definitely switch to Apple with changes like this. "
Kai, change.org
"It is very important that Android remain an open platform. I bought into Android for customization, freedom to mess with things about the operating system, and generally to not have an iPhone. Instead, this lock-down is threatening all of that. Do not proceed with the lock-down, Google. "
Ezra, change.org
"Save APK files!! We need emulators to test it out. And I’ve never use android before, I feel like using it for the future. Please save them!! "
Deryl, change.org
"They just need to be killed. "
Erich, change.org
"They never let us have nice things, i hope we win. "
Victor, change.org
"Just another horrible move from Big Tech companies to further control the rate of which Technology can advance. The only thing I enjoyed about Android - it being very open source and developer friendly - but now that it is being threatened, maybe I should start rallying towards buying ACTUAL Open-Sourced Tech instead of prioritizing capital gain instead of Technical Advancements. "
Aaron, change.org
"One of the reasons why we chose Android was its freedom of doing what you want on your device. Now we have to stop this limitation of a recognized right. "
Francesco, change.org
"Android is not iOS, is monopoly becoming Android to iOS "
RallenPR, change.org
"Google needs to STOP! Taking away MY Right to choose what apps I will or won't use is completely UNACCEPTABLE and ILLEGAL! Freedom of Choice has always been a hallmark of the Android lifestyle. Unlike Apple's closed-box system, Android's relatively open nature gives me the ability to choose FOSS apps over paid closed-source apps, saving me both money AND the lost sleep over repeated worries about tracking, ads and spyware in the apps I regularly use. Google's recent decision to lock the system down and force devs to pay huge "membership" fees, surrender ALL their rights under a TOS that is AGAINST them developing without providing the ID and private signature keys and listing any application IDs they have. If this isn't the behavior of a monopoly, than please define to me what is?! "
Stephen, change.org
"I first switched over to a Samsung phone because of Android being a open OS. I love being able to make small apps for myself as a developer, and as a user I like that I can find small dev groups on places like GitHub making really cool and useful apps that you would never be able to find on the play store. "
Connor, change.org
"Android has always been the more free-range mobile OS. Had this not been the case, I would have switched to Apple long ago. Open-source, third-party software has driven the Android ecosystem and app development. It's no coincidence this is coming at a time when surveillance and squashing opposition is rising parallel with fascism. "
Kahina, change.org
"Google, allow us to actually own our devices! "
cornelius, 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
"Save privacy and security "
Pepe, change.org
"Goolag, you are destroying Android and becoming the new Apple. Soon, there will be no escape from your lifeless, locked-down, prison-sentence operating system. Anyone who wants to use real Android, with APKs, custom ROMs, actual Material design, will be locked out. Rooting will be impossible, and Android will be gone. No more cuddly bugdroids to open the lock. No more Graphene OS. No more Lineage OS. No more TWRP. Terabytes upon terabytes of open-source projects, all rendered obsolete. Keep Android open. Because nobody will buy your half-baked, Gemini-centered trash, and live in your dystopian agentic world. Your aiPhones will sit on shelves, never purchased. Sideloading bans will not protect anyone. They will only make the Android community collapse. If you are not from Goolag, listen carefully. Get a custom ROM now, and remove everything with the word “Google” from your devices. Use Startpage instead. Install NewPipe and bypass Goolag’s ad revenue. Sabotage Goolag in every way possible. But do it legally, friends! You don’t want to be caught by the FBI for criminally pirating paid software off of sites like Aptoide! "
squooshy, change.org
"I have been an android user ever since I got my first smartphone over a decade ago. The only reason I still rock an android phone is the ability to customize my phone to my liking and being able to install whatever I want on the machine that I purchased with my money. Taking away the only feature that separates android from iOS is a terrible decision. This will definitely make a good chunk of your fanbase move over to iOS, including myself. "
Luis, change.org
"Google taking this next step seriously shows to me as a person that they only care truly about money, and do not value their community. I know we were never to expect more from this company, but it is an offense to try and censor what we're allowed to do on our own phones. I do not own a Google phone, I own an android phone, and I was proud to say that, but not anymore. Half the apps on the Play Store are junky, and ad-filled apps that are competing, and suck. If you have ever searched for piano tiles or voice recorder you know what I mean. F-droid, Zapstore, Github store - They are all REAL stores, and I feel safer on them realistically. This decision is not improving the life of consumers for safety, or for developers that wish to remain anonymous. I remember when Google was a liked company (at least for their products), but now it feels like all everyone is trying to do is dodge their bullets. Google, enough. "
A, change.org
"As a kid, I used to think iPhone, and iOS as a whole, was great. As I thought "people don't need alot of things, they have everything they want." Until I had a Google Pixel 6 Pro for Christmas. It became my tinkering device, and allowed me to access things, I never knew I wanted. And it allowed me to have access things that usually would've costed my family a pretty penny. By forcing verification "
Josue, change.org
"Restricting the usage of Android honestly completely removes any point in even getting an Android. Google is doing something very stupid right now. "
Emery, change.org
"WHAT GOOGLE IS DOING WITH ANDROID IS A BIG SCAM AND WE CANNOT LET THIS HAPPEN. LET'S ADVANCE THIS PETITION MORE AND MORE UNTIL THEY GIVE UP ON THIS IDEA. SHARE THIS PETITION AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AND DONATE MONEY SO THAT MORE AND MORE ANDROID USERS SPEAK UP ABOUT THIS CASE TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING!!!!! "
Matheus, change.org
"Esse monopólio é injusto! "
Gabriel, change.org
"Google, you are tearing down the very empire you built through the Android system. I hope that before 2026 you Google team resolve this, otherwise I will opt for an iPhone. "
Alan, change.org
"Turning Android into Google is pathetic "
Scott, change.org
"This decision is about maximizing revenue. And it is Google's near monopoly they are leveraging to do it, despite the negatives for every other person and organisation. Forcing users out of Android with this decision only increases pressure for real alternatives to Android on the smartphone OS, and in the end is Google shooting themselves in the foot. Bit it hurts us too. It's cheaper and easier for everyone to maintain the status quo. Please don't do this, as it erases now decades of work by thousands (millions?) of developers around the world. "
Oliver, change.org
"People originally went to Android way back in 2008 because of the open source nature of Android. It's what still attracts so many people to use Android. It's what keeps people on Android. Google owes so much to the open source community, from app developers to OS developers like the CyanogenMod/LineageOS teams, the CalyxOS team, and the DivestOS team among others all the way to the people who have used XDA's forums since the days of the HTC Dream. I realize Google wants to go into the 3rd stage of "Embrace, Enhance, Extinguish" but that will drive more people to Linux phones. "
Draken, change.org
"The change to requiring app verification through a wireless, centralized service, instead of a feature of the OS, is a change that is inconvenient at best, and threatens the portable device market as it currently stands at worst. By making this change, Google is further revoking the customization and autonomy (or what is left of it on most carrier phones) that not only drives many users to get Android in the first place, but is a reminder of what makes computers so wonderful, in my opinion; the ability for every one to customize, and hack their own device to be perfectly their own. This wonderful thing is a basic function of any "free" computing platform that should not be revoked, but increasingly, it has. Please, Google, do not take this direction, and shut off the venue of customization that allows people to use their devices the way they want to, and has lit the torch for many future software developers and computer scientists. "
Zacario, change.org
"Google already has too much to say on which apps one is allowed to run on their phone. Play Integrity already ruins the Android experience for most custom ROM users and now they're going for side loading, too. This has to stop. "
Alexander, change.org
"Android has always been about freedom. I've always loved side loading an app made by a line developer to complete a niche task/feature. My music player and compass app were side loaded from F Droid and I think it's super cool to be able to install custom versions of stock phone apps. I've side loaded a modded version of my camera app that brought Google Pixel's photosphere to my phone. How else would I have been able to do this without side loading?? There's no reason Android has to go this direction, it may just as well be called mock iOS if all the reasons I chose Android are taken away. May customization, freedom of how I use my phone, and innovation reign once again in the heart of Google's Android! PLEASE 🙏 "
YAIR RAFAEL, change.org
"The biggest edge Android has had is choice, control, and openness, which is sorely lacking in competitors like with Apple's operating systems. This is the exact opposite of what consumers, developers, and contributors to AOSP want. This is a gross overstep. "
Jordan, change.org
"We can stand together to save Android and keep downloading what we love on our Android devices! "
Austin, change.org
"Seriously, this can harm game devs/ports (legally) plus every APK is checked if this decision is accepted. "
Leonardo, change.org
"I bought the whole phone, i'll use the whole phone, whatever way I want. Openness of Android is the only reason I choose android, if I wanted a "Locked Down" phone, i'll just go with Apple at that point. Make these censorship at least optional to block, LET ME DECIDE, but dont force it onto blocking of APK installs all together FOR EVERYONE, let the user decide for themselves. I don't want Google to decide what I can or cannot do with the phone I BOUGHT. If I bought a phone, with the expectation and the capacity of doing X,Y,Z with it, don't take away the Z AFTER I BOUGHT IT. I'll just refuse to update my phone if it get's pushed that way. There's more malware on the ADS you promote, rather than anywhere else, im sure. "
Bryan, change.org
"I buy android to be able to customize my phone as I please. If you do this you lose a loyal customer of over 20 years. "
Jamell, change.org
"Thie is absolutely ridiculous. Nothing but censorship and control everywhere these past several months. They'll all burn for it. "
Jeffrey, change.org
"Google doesn't realise that for many Android users, the ability to install .apk files from unverified developers is the sole reason we don't flock to IOS or another mobile OS. Let's make sure they know. "
Marshall, change.org
"This is a de facto monopolization strategy and must not be allowed. Censorship and data harvesting are already proliferating, this will make those issues worse. "
Michel, change.org
"Removing the freedom that Android provides is not the right way at all. If this is enacted, developers will lose their privacy because they have to give their government ID to a tech giant that also has an ad firm and the OS will not be different than its competition. I got an Android device because of the freedom it gave me, and it's sad to have thoughts about switching to iOS. "
Zach, change.org
"I started using an Android device because of the freedom to use the software I wanted to use. If Google goes forward with these restrictions, I wont have any reason to use Android devices anymore. "
Luis, change.org
"I do not condone google to control everything "
Leticia, change.org
"Users own their devices and should be able to install software they choose on them. "
Paul, change.org
"Without sideloading in Android, it will be impossible for us to install any app outside the Google Play Store, making traditional unverified sideloading much more difficult on certified devices, and therefore blocking it in 2027. This isn’t about protection here. It was more like the beginning of censorship, and monopolization of android OS. Let make our voices heard "
Jacob, 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
"I didn't sideload an app on my phone. I installed software on my handheld computer (phone). I own my device, not Google. This overreach of only being able to install Apple, Google, or Microsoft apps and nothing else is likely to spread to our personal computers if it is not stopped now with our phones. Google Play already protects from malware on the phone no matter where an app was installed from. This is NOT about security and lowering risk. "
Amber, change.org
"Android is all about being open. Removing the ability to install apps without the play store destroys this freedom. This will kill the dreams of young app developers, and will hurt high-quality open source apps that don't have the funding to pay to Google. This move will stifle app development innovation, and will hurt users by removing choice. Without free choice, I am left asking the question "Why Android anymore?" If Android is locked down like IOS, maybe going with Apple is better. I hope I don't have to switch to IOS. "
Austin, change.org
"the declaration of independance prolly said something about this... "
john, change.org
"The point of using Android over iOS is it's openness. Google is destroying one of the core tenets of the operating system under the guise of "protecting users." In reality, this is the same monopoly tactics they've already been legally convicted of. Remember: It's not "side-loading." It's "installing apps." Don't let Google trick you into thinking it's weird by foisting different language on you. "
Wesley, change.org
"the whole point of android is that it is open. i want to OWN and have actual control over my device. google's decision takes that out. It's cruel and straightup dystopian how it is forcing users to just comply; thus having you not actually "own" the device. we want to freely choose what we have on our own devices, and it's quite blatant the "protection from risks" is only a smokescreen to censor and ... ruin android's biggest redeeming quality. this is a horrible choice "
r.w., change.org
"Without users being able yo choose where they get their apps from, smartphones will be a completely locked down means of computing. It does not protect the average user's data, it just makes it so that only the people that Google says can harvest and sell are doing it. They aren't going to vet those people, they're just going to collect their entry fee. "
Nick, change.org
"After dithering for ages, I finally did what I've always wanted to do, I installed a de-googled android it's, E/Os. Its great! If google persist in this, I'm sure more non technical users will too! I also wrote to my mp & to the UK monopoly commission. Search E/Os murena see if you can too! "
ed, 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
"Android should be free; it was supposed to be the hero of free or open-source applications. "
Alan, change.org
"Pure authoritarian control tendency barely even trying to disguise itself as caring for the consumers security. "
Jared, change.org
"Android's freedom of choice is what made me switch from apple. I find that limiting that those freedoms such as sideloading an obnoxious spit in the face of all who use and enjoy this operating system. If I wanted an anti consumer product id buy from apple. "
Link, change.org
"Many of the apps I use daily are FOSS. I would lose a very large portion of the functionality of my phone without them. Some have alternatives available in the Play Store, and some do not. Even for the ones that do have available alternatives, they are measurably worse - crowded with advertisements that make them unusable until you pay (usually a subscription) for the "Pro" version. Then, when the developer stops making enough money, the app breaks and/or disappears from the store. Many of the FOSS apps I use also do exactly what I need, where their alternatives require workarounds or focus on some additional "feature" that I couldn't care less about. There are also several apps that I acquired outside the Play Store that legitimately don't have alternatives, either because they have to violate the rules of the Play Store to function properly, or because the developer believes, as I do, that good software doesn't rely on the existence of a market to function. "
Zachery, change.org
"I dropped iOS and moved to Android when I learned the importance of freedom. If Google makes this movement I don't see what sense makes that change anymore. "
Josh, change.org
"Android is the operating system for those who want freedom, and to take away our ability to install what we wish, is the start of Google trying to take further control over us. The internet is already falling apart with attempts to "protect" people, but in reality, the internet isn't a place for big companies to try and protect people against their will. "
Dino, change.org
"This is crazy. Stop this madness. We pay for our devices and should have the right to install whatever software we like without verification. Keeping us safe with regulation is not the answer. Stop the madness and keep android open. "
Steven, change.org
"who thought it was even a good idea "
Joel, change.org
"Android was always advertised as an open OS for anyone, and was like Windows or Linux, supporting unsigned app installs. If need to use ADB to install some indie app for things, or need to go through a development environment just to install a singular random app, then I might as well switch to iOS, as Android just lost it's best weapon in the battle against Apple. "
Trenton, change.org
"As an Android developer myself, putting restrictions on an OS that people use to escape the restrictions of — let's say — iOS is a really bold and unconditional move. "
EXPOSED, change.org
"I want to own my android and not be censored. "
Analisse, change.org
"As someone who regularly uses apk files on my phone to help fight loneliness and to prevent myself from taking my own life, DO NOT TAKE AWAY OUR FILES!! "
Eric, change.org
"This COULD end piracy of some games, paid apps, viruses/spyware and modded apps/cheats. But as a Brazilian, I'm against this, because there is a lot of Open source apps on github and F-droid with really useful functionalities. "
Gianluigi, change.org
"Either way this is going to lead to a massive lawsuit My phone is my device Google doesn't own it nor does it have the power to tell me what I can and can't install on the device that I own Google believes that it rules the world it's censorship completely destroyed YouTube now they plan to destroy Android in the same way but $1,000 says by this time next year Google will cave to the demands of the people "
Isaiah, change.org
"Big G is destroying Android and controlling the narrative. They want to determine everything you see, think, and can communicate. This is completely against the core freedoms that are constantly under attack. Keeping them from this destructive activity is the only thing that can keep millions of people - at least - alive around the world. Being able to load apps from where ever I want allows myself to even function and communicate. "
Jeremie, change.org
"We will not let Google apply the closed ecosystem to apks. I just want an open system and freedom of apks on Android. An open ecosystem for us to download apks whenever we want. I want Google to get screwed and there will be a rain of lawsuits against this greedy monopoly company called "Google"😠🤬🗡🛡 "
rhyansamuel, change.org
"I've been an Android user for ever since i was 12, im about to be 30 now and i have never looked back, this is do to one main reason, freedom of choice. I always liked that i can install games and apps directly from developers most of the times. Is one of those things that set Android apart from iOS. Im not as tech savvy as some of my peers, but i do often show off the things i can do on my Android device that family and friends cant do on their iOS, so far i have been able to convince people to switch to Android and they have been enjoying the switch. I feel like iOS is finally catching up to Android in terms of customization features that Android has had for years now, but this decision to limit where i can get apps from would make the system just like iOS. I already quit from newer Samsung Galaxy devices since they got rid of features i still utilize to this day like the Headphone jack and Expandable storage. Today i use a Sony Xperia 1 V, which features both. I even did this personal experiment last year where i got an iPhone for 3 months to truly experience "the other side" and apart from getting use to the new User Interface (UI) the thought i kept having for those 3 months was "i cant get that one app im used to" or "i wish i could get this specific app, but is not on the App Store". When i finally got back to an Android phone the difference felt big, not only was i back to an UI i was so used to, i also didn't feel restricted from my choices in what apps i wanted to install. All and all, this decision to restrict Android users from where we can get our apps, is just another thing that i think will not longer set them apart from an iOS device, and there will be less reasons to choose an phone over the other, making them unexciting and eventually just all blend together. "
Anthony, change.org
"I should be allowed to download whatever I want onto the phone I paid for "
Celia, change.org
"Google needs to stop monopolizing Android access "
Allen, change.org
"This is a clear overreach of authority on a platform which has hitherto been a champion of freedom in the segment. This sort of restriction on the Android OS will force those of us with the desire for privacy and freedom of choice to alternative providers, or to create our own. Please re-think this decision and understand that by going this route you are furthering the creation of a world of censorship, restriction, and strife. "
D, change.org
"Android has always been known as the more freedom option on the market. With this move by Google will shatter that belief and create distrust completely. Keep Android free and always will! "
Phuong, change.org
"If Google goes through with this, there will be no more Free and Open Source Software on Android. This move by Google has nothing to do with malware, and everything to do with oversight and control. I bought this Android device specifically because it was sold to me as an open platform. If Google goes through with this, I will be throwing this device in the garbage and sending them an invoice for $600 "
Llywel, change.org
"APKs are the lifeblood of Android's open ecosystem. They let developers distribute apps outside the Play Store, free from Google's 30% cut and arbitrary takedown policies. They give users in underserved regions access to apps unavailable in their country's store. They power the emulation community, open-source projects, and beta testers who help improve software before it reaches the masses. When Google restricts APK usage through warnings, permission walls, or outright blocks, it quietly dismantles the very openness that made Android worth choosing over iOS in the first place. It punishes legitimate users for the sins of bad actors, while determined bad actors find workarounds anyway. "
AJ, change.org
"This OS has been the only place that has felt free, the ability to download anything from anywhere is what a phone should be able to do. They trying to take away my freedom, and I refuse to bend the knee and accept it. "
Austin, change.org
"Android has always been about freedom and customization. Let's keep it that way "
Jacob, change.org
"To whom it may concern. Recently it was brought to my attention that Google is planning on violating my rights by removing the ability to install applications on devices I OWN without googles permission. This decision places ultimate power with google to suppress any speech and crush any competition which operates against their interests. As a consumer, i should have the right to install any software i choose within the boundaries of the law. The devices which i install software on belong to me, therefore, i should be the ultimate arbiter of what runs on my property. Google should not have that power. Please, i beg of you. If there are any principled people left in the US government, then please do not allow google to continue down this path. Below this point are statements which i believe accurately reflect the situation sourced from https://keepandroidopen.org/ In August 2025, Google announced that as of September 2026, it will no longer be possible to develop apps for the Android platform without first registering centrally with Google. This registration will involve: Paying a fee to Google Agreeing to Google’s Terms and Conditions Providing government identification Uploading evidence of the developer’s private signing key Listing all current and future application identifiers What this means for our rights ➤ 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. ➤ You, the creator, can no longer develop an app and share it directly with your friends, family, and community without first seeking Google’s approval. The promise of Android — and a marketing advantage it has used to distinguish itself against the iPhone — has always been that it is “open”. But Google clearly feels that they have enough of a lock on the Android ecosystem, along with sufficient regulatory capture, that they can now jettison this principle with prejudice and impunity. ➤ You, the state, are ceding the rights of your citizens and your own digital sovereignty to a company with a track record of complying with the extrajudicial demands of authoritarian regimes to remove perfectly legal apps that they happen to dislike. The software that is critical to the running of your businesses and governments will be at the mercy of the opaque whims of a distant and unaccountable corporation. "
Micheal, change.org
"The biggest reason I love Android is because it's open. I have had ENOUGH of companies trying to decide what I can and can't do with the devices I purchased. If I spent money on it, it is MINE and I should be allowed to do whatever I want with it. Enough is enough. "
Callum, 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
"I use Android over iOS specifically for the ability to install the applications I want in the way I want. If I can't do that, I might as well not use an Android phone. "
Jeremy, change.org
"One of the reasons that I had chosen android over IOS is its open ecosystem, and the ability to side-load my own apps outside of traditional sources to meet my needs, but by locking this down, not only does this destroy the open-source movement, but it also stalls and even halts development all-together, which means that you will no longer be able to gain the advantage of "community" improving upon the various aspects of the android operating system. "
gabi, 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
"The level of control Google is attempting to exert over developers and users is unreal. If I download an app from a source that isn't the play store, I shouldn't need Google's approval. I will seek alternate operating systems from the Android and iOS duopoly if this goes through. "
Alice, change.org
"I'm not even an Android app developer, but I've always wanted to be. Now, I'm not sure that I do. Making this change will mean that all apps will funnel through Google Play, which gives Google exclusive control and a censorship chokehold on the entire Android ecosystem. I shouldn't have to explain why that would not be good. The whole thing that made Android different from iOS is that it was OPEN. Now Google's just throwing that out of the window. At this point, I might just switch to iOS because Android has lost all of its character. "
Ethan, change.org
"I 100 don't support this, it seems these companies really want to control us and our freedom. If you are frightened by identification theft or scared that someone in your life is not protected enough then teach them, so you can prevent accidents from happening. This isn't a way to go. "
Naba, change.org
"For the freedom of an open and universal system for all! "
Zaphyru's, change.org
"Hands off the APK! I left Russia for Freedom in 2022 and now you trying to restrict our Freedom like a criminal Putin. "
Alex, change.org
"I have been antagonistic towards the Google play store and its selection of poor-quality apps. By taking away the ease of sideloading apps, I might as well have bought a brick with some precious metals in it. None of us do not have to take Google's mandate. "
Nathan, change.org
"Android is Linux. Linux is free! "
Arthur, change.org
"Google’s move to restrict APK file usage is a direct attack on user freedom and device choice. Installing apps outside the Play Store has always been a vital part of Android’s openness, it empowers users, developers, and innovation itself. This change tightens Google’s grip on the Android ecosystem and undermines the freedom that has defined the platform from the start. We, strongly oppose this limitation. Android was built on openness and user control not corporate gatekeeping. We call on Google to preserve the right to install and manage APK files freely. "
Howard, change.org
"I can explain why I use Android, and therefore Google services, by the fact that Google used to care about its users, their rights, and their freedom. Although not as much as we would like. After what Google has presented, my phone will soon be no different from an iPhone. I'm not happy about this; I want freedom. I want the freedom to install the apps and APK files I choose, not just the ones I am "allowed" to download. "
Sviatoslav, change.org
"google take the L "
Miguel, change.org
"this will kill the freedom that android provides and will make you lose a lot of customers you're gonna lose a ton of money from this stupid change "
Jimmy, change.org
"If wee do not stop this then our computers are next. We will end up the same as other countries who put out the same message to their people to condition them. Our freedom of speech and the right to privacy under the privacy act will be taken away. You do not want this!!! "
Keith, change.org
"This is the entire point of many people using Android in the first place, you take this away and something new will come along and replace you. "
Jacob, change.org
"If I choose to install a piece of software written by someone who "isn't verified" on my device that is my business, not Google's. To Google : Right now, one of the few remaining reasons I would choose an Android device over an iOS device is due to the presence of alternate app stores, like F-Droid that allow me to install open source apps. If I lose that ability, why would I continue to use Android over the competition? Don't be evil. "
Cameron, change.org
"While thinking walled garden is a way to milk customers even more when you already collecting , selling , sharing the customer's data even tho the customers already paid for the device , services already. You are basically taking away and ignoring the customer's autonomy and disrespecting us all. "
ilayda, change.org
"What a spit in the face from Google. I switched from iOS to Android for the freedom, and this is what they do to me? Google gave me yet another reason to migrate away from their technocratic oligarchy & seek independence from profit-seeking corporations. Frankly, I don't expect Google to care about its customers anymore. But I'm still going to raise my voice. "
Samuel, change.org
"This "security" feature will stop independent non-commercial projects. We don't want to be locked in commercial CRAP "
David, change.org
"Choice and modification is the root of the Android platform. I should be able to install software I want on my own phone. If Android becomes a walled garden, then there will be no real reason to buy an Android, and I'll buy an Apple. "
Bailey, change.org
"This level of control over a phone i own is unacceptable if i own it i should be allowed to put what ever i want on it whenever i want without googles permission "
Frank, change.org