Your phone is about to stop being yours.

115 days until lockdown

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:

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:

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

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

Worse: this flow runs entirely through Google Play Services, not the Android OS. Google can change it, tighten it, or kill it at any time, with no OS update required and no consent needed.

This is bigger than Android

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

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

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

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

But wait, isn't this...

"...just about security?"

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

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

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

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

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

"...the same thing Apple does?"

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

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

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

Fight back

Everyone

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

Developers

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

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

Google employees

If you know something about the program's technical implementation or internal rationale, contact [email protected] 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

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

Read the full open letter and thank the signatories →

What they're saying

Tech press

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

Tom's Guide

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

Ars Technica

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

heise online

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

Benzinga

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

9to5Google

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

Thom Holwerda, OSnews

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

Android Police

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

TechCrunch

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

Reclaim The Net

"Google's Android developer verification program draws pushback"

InfoWorld

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

Ars Technica

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

TechRepublic

"Google Clamps down On Android's Openness"

Internet Freedom Foundation (India)

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

XDA Developers

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

The Register

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

Gizmochina

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

Android Headlines

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

Slashdot

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

Tuta Blog

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

The Register

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

How-To Geek

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

Techdirt

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

How-To Geek

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

The Register

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

Datamation

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

Infosecurity Magazine

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

Techzine EU

"An 'existential' threat to alternative app stores"

The New Stack

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

How-To Geek

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

The Verge

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

SlashGear

"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

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

I-Programmer

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

How-To Geek

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

How-To Geek

"Keep Android Open"

Linux Magazine

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

How-To Geek

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

Bleeping Computer

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

TechSpot

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

Android Headlines

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

Cybernews

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

Open Source For U

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

Hackaday

Editorials & analysis

Organizations & open letters

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

AdGuard

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

ACLU

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

European Pirate Party

"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

"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

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

European Parliament

"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

"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

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

Tuta

"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

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

AdGuard

"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

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

Tuta

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

F-Droid

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

Brave

"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

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

Nextcloud

"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

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

AdGuard

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

F-Droid

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

Tech-ish Kenya

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

F-Droid Open Letter

"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

"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

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

Osservatorio Nessuno

"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

"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

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

F-Droid

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

Nextcloud

"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

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

Tuta

YouTubers & creators

"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

"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

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

Tuta Blog – Blog

"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

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

ChiefGyk3D – YouTube

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

fireborn – Blog

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

Techlore – YouTube

"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

"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

"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

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

SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) – YouTube

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

Linus Sebastian, LMG Clips – YouTube

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

SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) – 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

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

Linus Sebastian, LMG Clips – YouTube

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

SomeOrdinaryGamers (Mutahar) – 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

"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

"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

"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

"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

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

ChiefGyk3D – YouTube

"Google 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

"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

"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

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

fireborn – Blog

Developers & community

"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

"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

"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

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

vala, Lemmy

"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

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

anordal, Lobsters

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

gumby271, Hacker News

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

Historical-Employ129 (324 upvotes), Reddit

"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

"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

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

Zak, Hacker News

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

girvo, Hacker News

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

hn92726819, Hacker News

"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

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

lynxy, Tildes

"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

"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

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

survirtual, Hacker News

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

Max-P, 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

"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

"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

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

nibbleyou (developer in India), 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

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

flykespice (developer in Brazil), Hacker News

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

Tiraon, Tildes

"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

"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

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

MrZander, Hacker News

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

BenjaminRi, 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

"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

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

BenjaminRi, Lobsters

"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

"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

"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

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

layfellow, 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

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

TheTearMiser, Lemmy

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

gspr, Lobsters

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

afferi300rina, 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

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

Apocryphon, Hacker News

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

gcupc, Lobsters

"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

"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

"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

"Give me liberty or give me Symbian."

masterofn001, Lemmy

"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

"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

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

WaffleMonster, Slashdot

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

koala, Lobsters

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

hbn, Hacker News

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

tejtm, 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

"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

"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

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

Zak, Lemmy

"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

Voices from the petition

"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

"Security is important, but it's not the same as control. They close doors to developers and users. I personally use Android precisely because of the free installation of APKs. For this, I prefer to use iOS. "

Dilan Giovanny, change.org

"Google, which has long positioned itself as a defender of freedom on the internet, now seems to be taking worrying steps by trying to limit the installation of apps outside of the Google Play Store. This move not only restricts users' freedom of choice, but also centralizes even more power in the hands of a single corporation, creating a closed and controlled environment. By forcing developers to comply with its rules and fees, Google eliminates the possibility of cheaper or even free alternatives, making the Android ecosystem more restricted and expensive. Moreover, this decision goes against the very essence of Android, which has always been based on freedom of customization and access. It's a setback for users who seek greater control over their devices and privacy. Limiting app installations outside the Play Store is not just a matter of convenience, but a matter of respecting user autonomy. "

Júnior, change.org

"Personal freedom and technology literacy are two things that allowed me to become so interested in technology in the first place around 4 years ago, and neither of those things are possible without the ability to realize what your phone is doing when installing an app, as well as the ability to look at the code of an open-source app to see how it works. It is allegedly about security, but that is a very insignificant byproduct compared to the real reason you were compelled to introduce this change that applies retroactively, server-side, and to everyone with no manual override, and you have abandoned all pretense of even saying "we're just checking for malware in more places". You aren't even lying to us anymore! You already scan all apps for malware and force all users to go through a series of checkboxes to be able to install apps from alternate sources, which is more than enough guardrails for the hypothetical person you want to protect, who is so smart to not just download but install an APK, but so dumb they install malware and don't realize. For what? So 99% of people will notice nothing different about their device while 1% of people will lose everything that they care about? No, it's not about that. You know that you are turning a perfectly guarded town into a police state. There might be less unpunished crime by the citizens, but that comes at the cost of more state-sanctioned crime from power-tripping assholes wanting to do the king's bidding. But we are waking up to this fact. And even besides these dictatorial changes made due to unregulated business practices, these people in power wanting you to censor their opponents will soon be kicked out, and you will face accountability for these actions you have taken to support the worst of the worst when you had the power to do the opposite. Reverse this proposition, and we'll turn the crosshairs to someone else for now. Actively fight against the enshitification of technology itself, either by example or encouragement, and we will welcome you, because our side is correct and improves the human condition, so it will win. "

Cameron, change.org

"This will affect corporate privacy for those that rely on FOSS. Personal and Business privacy will be even more at risk if these changes are applied. From the Conglomerate owner to the DIY hobbyist, we will all be affected only negatively by this. So much of the world relies and depends of FOSS, and with the already dying privacy, many people are going to be literally put at risk of injury or cessation of life because of these changes. No this isn't an overstatement, I'm serious. The amount of NDIS and NDIA workers that use FOSS to protect their clients and their information is staggering. And this will effectively cause them to provide a lower quality service. "

Tobias, change.org

"As a long-time Android enthusiast, I strongly oppose your push to force developer ID verification for APK sideloading. This policy erodes the open ecosystem that drew millions to Android, blocking access to legacy apps, region-locked content, and custom tools from sources like F-Droid. Under the guise of security, it stifles innovation and user freedom. Please reverse this immediately and honor Android's roots in choice and accessibility. "

Lucas, change.org

"Jesus christ google you want to drive away your entire customer base? You realize that the only reason we don't buy iphones is because they don't give us this freedom that Android does. I know you think no one can touch your multi billion dollar empire but know that you have that data because of us. The customers. NO ONE ASKED FOR THIS, NO ONE WANTS THIS. First you "detected root" then you "implemented safety net" then you implemented "play integrity and certification" just pushing and pushing and pushing developers to bow down to you. And now this? No. You aren't staying on top forever. Think very carefully if this is the road you want to tread because we will all leave. And it won't be just Android. Alternative search engines exist. Alternative emails exist. Alternative cloud storage exists. We don't have to bow down to Google. If you do this, it's over. "

Genalio, change.org

"Google is going to ruin what they built and turn into Apple. "

Abnormal Software, change.org

"The only reason I use Android since 2012 is for the freedom it gives over iphones and the ability to install what I want. Fine to give a warning (they already do) but blocking this is unacceptable and against what Android has always stood for. "

Allen, change.org

"Sideloading is only reason I use an Android phone. You will lose many users because of this decision. "

Niall, 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

"Google can't do whatever it wants with Android. I paid for Android precisely for the freedom. If I wanted to stay in a closed system, I would have bought an iPhone. '-' "

Sandro, change.org

"I use sideloaded android apps all the time! They are very useful to have. Android removing this feature will be detrimental to me and many other android users. "

Ian, 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

"As a young developer, you need to stop! What you re doing will prevent anyone below the age of 18 from developing apps for their own purpose and installing on their device, which they payed for, imagine giving a toy to a kid, then putting it into a box that they can't open, that is what you are doing right now. "

Alex, change.org

"Android has been the place for people to create and discover... It's extremely secure already, and there's no need to submit us all to the recent authoritarian wishes of Google... They want to have the developer's full information, to ban you if you challenge them or make an app that they don't like, but people do. We need to stop this... We thank Google for all of what they've done so far... But if they are going down this path, it's time for a TRULY open alternative... "

javier, change.org

"Keep the Android system free, that's what made me buy an Android phone in the first place, if Google goes through with this it means we're not going to be allowed to install whatever app we as consumers have the right to install. "

Lautaro, change.org

"As a hobbyist and tinkerer I rely on sideloaded apps to manage my smart devices, maintain privacy and access key items on other devices. Many of these services that I have set up would be unavailable if this goes forward. What's more there is no foreseeable reason why one shouldn't be able to modify, edit and change their own devices as they see fit. Every other computer works in this manner and Android has been no different. Maintaining this freedom is a must going forward and has one of the primary draws to the ecosystem. Google's choice to stop sideloading is not fooling anyone, it's a method of control and siloing. I left Apple because of this, don't think I won't leave Android too. "

Matthew, change.org

""DEATH TO GOOGLE!" "

Ryan, change.org

"I am not a developer, I am just a user, and I think it is very important to say that this does not just affect developers. There is nothing good about locking down an open ecosystem. There is no good reason for Google mandating ID Verification aside from pushing their dominance over Android. This is disgusting, given that Android has always been seen as the free haven away from Apple's walled garden. Now the only way to achieve freedom is by using a fork of Android, which will become harder and harder as Google inevitably enforces locked bootloaders. Seeing Android turn into a Google flavored IOS is just a huge punch in the gut, and really puts into perspective what can be lost under greedy leadership. "

Zakery, change.org

"Android phones letting me control my apps in my way is why I love and stick with Android. I can't support upstart developers without our current APK framework. A future without one of the lead reasons I own an Android phone, is a future where I just stop owning a phone. "

Kyle, change.org

"I got an Android specifically to be able to get apps from third party developers. This level of censorship is not right, and will hurt many independent developers "

Caspian, change.org

"What software I choose to create or install on my computing devices, no matter whether they fit in a pocket, is my choice alone. Google, Microsoft, Apple, et al. have zero business trying to arbitrate how I use the hardware that I own. Android is quickly becoming the very thing it swore to destroy--an opaque, locked-down, walled garden where the very concept of ownership is drawn into question--and I am already taking steps to distance myself from it should the worst come to pass. "

James, change.org

"As user and developer, this is surely concerning and, obviously, unwanted. For a period in my life I've used iOS, but didn't think twice before abandoning it completely, just as I did when moving from Windows to Linux. Again, as user and dev., I treasure having (maximum) control and privacy over my very own devices. To s##t with these ridiculous policies. "

Anthony L., change.org

"Limiting APK file issue is not a good idea. It is basically like apple os and will greatly hurt my projects... "

Josias, change.org

"I'm only using android for apk's otherwise I would be using IOS/iPhone, Also without apk's there would be no reason to keep updates going for certain developers, we would be losing one of the things that makes android what it is, That is my opinion on this whole idea from google "

JaCureon, change.org

"Way to get people Ungoogling "

Martin Moe, change.org

"Android has always been about freedom. "

ben, change.org

"The fact is that Google does not have a valid cause to further restrict Androids app open sources due to “alleged need to protect Android users safety “ by only allowing apps to be installed through their paywall, I mean service, google play store. This personally affects me, as I have been using Android for years, and prefer to switch devices when it is best for me, I have a difficult time learning about tech as it is and with the massive amount of wrongs that company has done, it is only growing greedier while treating the users, as captives, not even providing sufficient opt ins, opt outs, and giving the choice to not have any private identifying datas sold out to any unsafe nefarious entity willing to pay. That data would not exist were it not for us individuals it is inextricably tied to, and if anyone has the authority to opt in or out to whats done, especially the selling of my private datas, that would exclusively be Me,Myself, and I. Google is neither fair nor honest, they sneak about doing unethical things until being discovered, and this is just Un American, and totally Anti Capitalism. They wish to eradicate possiblities of choice, wherever possible. They want a monopoly, not a fair market and I will be forced to ditch my Android , if I cannot use open source apps on it, the open source apps have much less problems from my experience, I dont end up with fake apps that mess up my phone, and or cannot be deleted. Once i know a device fairly well it really does not serve me well just to have to find something else, which likey i should do because it was built already infected with google, I trusted that company to be better,gave it a chance, but it is no ones friend. Im not even requesting anyone to stop the google nonsense, just dont let it stop use of upen source on Android, please. Thank you for taking time to read my message. "

Sara, change.org

"Do not allow this tyranny! Refuse this overeach and help promote free software and your right to be able use your device the way YOU see fit. "

Nichita, change.org

"Android meant freedom; it meant the opportunity to make the device your own even when everyone was using the same model. Android allowed the freedom of APKs, the freedom to port video games to the phone without differentiating or hiding anything from users; it allowed them to be free from blame or credits. "

José Roberto, change.org

"I switched to Android to escape Apple's aggressively anti-consumer walled garden. My S20 Ultra (that I paid over $1600 for, after tax) is finally starting to show it's age, but now I have no incentive to get another android device for my next smartphone if you follow through with these changes. I've been a vocal supporter of Android for years, but if you don't scrap this change, I will boycott Alphabet products altogether and do my best to ensure as many others as possible are well-informed on why they should do the same. "

Jacob, change.org

"Openness was supposedly Android's mission to difference itself from iOS and now they're gonna take it away? I don't want a closed system, you're just making a worse version of iOS and throwing away one of the biggest selling points of your OS, keep Android open. "

Ernesto, change.org

"I use Android specifically because it is a more open platform. I develop apps for myself and family members and I have no intention of becoming any kind of approved developer just to continue to do that. This is an absolute bait and switch to the most loyal of Android users and is going to drive many of us to seek out alternative operating systems. And sadly makes me want to de-google my life even further. "

greg, change.org

"I regularly use FOSS apps and apps I've been bringing with me in APK form from phone to phone, and the promise of being able to develop and run my own code has been part of what's kept me using Android all these years. For Google to then yank the rug out from under us is a betrayal of the highest order, and for what? Shareholders? To feed the addiction held by seemingly every person in a seat of power to know exactly what a given Android owner ate for breakfast on any given date? What a fall from grace from a company that once touted the mottos "Don't be evil" and "Do the right thing." "

Catherine, change.org

"The ability to download external APKs which give my phone some really neat functionality is what prevents me (for the most part) from switching to IOS. Google, please don't take that away from us. At least tell us why you wish to restrict Android. "

D, change.org

"Keep android open, or there will be a fork. Open software always prevails "

Mikka, change.org

"I stayed away from smart phones in the early days because they were locked down. It was only after I saw that Android was an open platform that I was willing to even try one. If Google locks down Android, then I will either switch to a basic feature phone, with no data (suits me fine, mobile data is ridiculously expensive), or I will hack together a Linux phone. What's the point in having Android if it just turns in to a.aecond-rate iOS? "

William, change.org

"As a amateur developper involved in game development and fanmade communities, this decision would mean the death of a lot of project. This is unnaceptable! "

Morgane, change.org

"Apk's are the best part of Google so � "

Nick, change.org

"This change would kill the biggest reason I use Android, because I have the freedom to sideload useful apps that aren't available in the official store. I have never once bought an iPhone, but Apple's comparative respect for user privacy seems preferable now, so I'll most likely make the switch. "

Raymond, 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

"The transformation of Android into a closed platform would likely erode its competitive advantage over Apple, potentially positioning Apple as the superior option. As an open-source project, Android should ideally operate without the necessity of governmental or private authorizations. Should Google proceed with such a change, it is highly probable that new operating systems will emerge. These decisions by Google could result in significant detriments to the company without yielding any discernible benefits. As a shareholder, I strongly recommend that Google refrain from pursuing this course of action. I oppose any initiative that would necessitate third-party authorization upon installing and operating applications for the Android platform, as this represents a threat to consumers and creators alike, and moves us closer to a monopolistic market. "

Pedro, change.org

"Dystopian, unaccountable corporate control and rug pulling. "

Ethan, change.org

"Absolute nonsense from Google, the flexibility of the Android OS has been the only thing differentiating it from Apple products and keeping me in this ecosystem. Each "update" is just another layer of restrictions at this point. With current market prices and the state that Google is developing android, I might as well just buy a laptop instead of a flagship android. "

Pwon, change.org

"Android promised us a choice. We shouldn't let them take it away from users and developers alike just to have more control. "

Cross, change.org

"Google is communism, non-google app markets are liberty and freedom. Are you rooting for "One Nation Under God" or "One Store Under Google" "

Jamie, change.org

"Please stop monetizing making your software worse. I will quit using it. "

Bobby, change.org

"I have Android phones for just one reason: The freedom they provided so far. Some of my main apps are side-loaded. This move of Google is a huge disappointment. It’s a terrible abuse of monopoly power. "

Andreas, change.org

"Locking down android will create incredible friction to open source and 3rd party application stores. Imagine if you could only install PC programs from Microsoft Store. "

Andres, change.org

"I strongly oppose this change. Google should HIGHLY reconsider this idea. It's SPECIFICALLY this freedom that makes me go with android to begin with. This freedom of choice is what separates them from Apple. If this change goes into effect you will see many users either switch to Apple, or find any possible alternatives that support these options. "

Zachary, change.org

"To move forward with the developer verification process is both anticompetitive and counter intuitive. Google stands to lose it's only incentive to attract users and developers. To build from a foundation of open source/free software to this is simple greed. Without such foundations Android wouldn't exist today, nor would modern technology. This process will simply hurt consumers, developers, and Google as a company. It will bring forth a new competitor who cares about digital freedom and open source software. Please reconsider. Don't be evil. "

Davy, change.org

"I develop apps for personal use and use fdroid for open source and privacy focused apps. This will just be another step towards tyranny and control "

Jackson, change.org

"I've been using Android since I was little. Openness of the system was the main reason why I never chose Apple, and never will. Google crosses all lines and has no right to do any promises ever! "

Emil, change.org

"This change has nothing to do with security, it wants to remove the power of choice from the user and screw up many developer by forcing them to use the Play Store. Android is all about freedom and will always be. "

Yuri, change.org

"We will seek another way. Having only google apps would be like an iphone and why then would i keep android? will be jumping on the iphone train!! and using other phones and resources that get around the ban. privacy and diversity are important and there will always be some of us who pursue it. Apps like F-droid have been very cool and usefull. being told you can't use other non-google place store apps will cause the loss of many android phone users. "

sasha, change.org

"Promote Foss and let's talk about the next phone OS "

james, change.org

"Play Integrity, Custom ROM/Root discrimination because of that, and now this? What have you BECOME, Google? You're not helping anyone, and I don't even think it helps them. If I had to pick between an unmodded Galaxy S25 (or whatever the latest one is) and a modded Galaxy S10, I'm picking the S25. It doesn't influence sales, all it does it make life harder, for everyone. Including the people imposing the restrictions, HEY, WHAT A COINCIDENCE! Just stop making the available mobile operating systems "iOS, iOS 2, and the other manufacturers' versions of iOS 2." I've talked more about custom ROMs, but replace it with customs apps and the same point is easily carried over. And because the 2 are interconnected in nature of them both being stuff that Google might not like. "

Gavin, change.org

"Google, let us keep being able to install whatever we want on our own devices. Otherwise there isn't really a reason to NOT get an iPhone because your platform isn't really open anymore. Don't alienate a large portion of your tech savvy customers and developers. Eliminating the possibility for people to write and distribute their own apps would harm the Android ecosystem. You would kill the pipeline for new developers to work their way up to creating the next big thing and your marketshare would suffer as a result. "

Sam, change.org

"At that point highkey I'd just use IOS. Why remove one of the main things that lets android be android "

Josue, change.org

"Google can not be allowed its voracious devouring of apps and data. Every move builds on its frightening monopoly, quashing any freedom and privacy. "

Kristi, change.org

"Android became popular because it offered freedom and customization. Reducing APK access risks moving away from those values and limiting innovation within the ecosystem. We are asking Google to protect user choice, maintain transparency, and preserve the openness that defines Android. "

Assif, change.org

"Sim ao Android "

Cristina, change.org

"This is an attempt to stifle free and open development because that development has created avenues that subvert Google's bottom line. People are becoming tired of being the product and have the right to their privacy- but Google belives they have a right to force people to become said product by limiting where and how they use their devices. Buzz-words like "a more secure ecosystem" are used to hide their true initiative: their bottom line. Ironically, this corse of action may become the driving force that pushes Linux phones into full maturity, thus amputating the open-source-development community as revenue. I don't subsidize my mobile device purchases so that I may have full control over what I can do with them. Upon this move, I will gladly suffer the inconvenience of a less-mature operating system or less-developed device over a walled garden built by greed mascurading under the guise of "This is what will be best for everyone." "

Jake, change.org

"I resent Google trying to invade, record and control more and more of my life. My enthusiasm for tech has really fallen off a cliff over the past 10 years and it just continues to fall. I've continued to move more of my activities to a self-hosted environment to preserve my sanity, information and preferences as mainstream services continue to change for the worse. "

Leah, change.org

"APKs CANNOT be ripped away from us. "

Twily, change.org

"Android should remain free; we are taking more and more steps towards an authoritarian global society and less individual freedom. FREEDOM is a non-negotiable right. "

Farid, change.org

"For a large portion of Android users, the freedom and openness of the OS is why they choose to use it in the first place. I can certainly say for myself that if this goes through, I will no longer use Android as my smartphone OS. Enshittification like this will only cause Android to lose market share and will be destructive in the long run. "

Nawton, change.org

"We live in a declining society where it is becoming ever more apparent that those in power wish to hoard & guide technologies to enrich themselves more. Enough! Proprietary systems are no different than a safe, one you may use only in the manner that those with enough wealth & influence to have the safe's combination are willing to allow its usage. Such systems are a net negative to wider societal growth & stability. Meant to lock out new talent & stifle overall creativity which could massively improve the system overall. Just another example of a tech company's massive overreach. It should 100% be stopped. "

Aaron, change.org

"Android needs to remain about choice not a locked down OS like Apple, that's the reason I and so many others choose android "

Sean, change.org

"The only thing that set Android apart from Apple (and frankly made it objectively better than Apple) is the freedom of control you have over a device you actually own. Removing that ability makes Android no better than Apple, might as well say you don't really own that phone or tablet when you take away such freedoms. "

George, change.org

"Don't make daddy Torvalds mad what you did with his kernel "

Silas, change.org

"For Freedom! "

Ömer Can Devrim, change.org

"If you break android in this way, we will go elsewhere, and more code will be written, more avenues gone down and new ways to sidestep your control and ditch your software will emerge. You can't win, but you can lose. "

Daniel, change.org

"Please don't limit the choice of those users who are either more technically inclined or simply need to use an app that isn't available on a store or signed by a registered developer. This is the kind of thing that really makes me sad. The flexibility of Android is gradually getting chipped away. First you take steps to make it incredibly difficult to have a usable experience on a rooted device via Play Integrity Services, and now you're going to take away our choice to sideload on devices that are supposedly "secure" as well? This is so anti-consumer and so against the spirit of freedom that Android afforded for those who didn't want to be locked in that I just can't find any way to justify it. How can you? "

Dustin, change.org

"Enough is enough google! I am already swapping back over to iOS for more than a few reasons other than oh i dont know, YOUR OWN PHONES CATCHING FIRE ON MY BEDSIDE TABLE! As a developer, This makes it really hard to want to make an app cross-compatible with your OS! First you flatten the bugdroid, then you make unsafe phones, now this?! Sorry, but even I, a hardcore android fan am taking Apple's stance on this. "

Shibe, change.org

"I use a de-googled phone and F-Droid is my store. This will destroy F-Droid. If I pay for a device I should be able to load what every I like on that device. Google is using it's monopoly powers to force us into a box. I'm a great believer in privacy and freedom and I see it day by day gradually eroded. "

Peter, change.org

"As an average user, this policy just feels awfully abusive. I have always had the mindset that if a device is yours, it should be you who gets to decide what's put in it, and to see Google make such a constraining change and directly cause so much harm to all Android users' freedom and specially small creators capacity to be a part of the community and to CREATE just deeply revolts me. The freedom and the customization of Android is what has always made me use it in the first place, if we can't even have THAT then what even is the point anyways?! "

Kris, change.org

"If I wanted my phone to be a prisoner in a fascist dictatorship I'd have an iPhone. I've been thinking about degoogling my life, maybe now is the time to do it. "

Karl, change.org

"Android is open source, period. On top of that, I'm buying the device. I own my phone, and that means I should be allowed to do whatever the hell they want with it! If I want to click on links from sketchy sites and download things that are not directly from the Google Play Store, I should be able to. Google claims this is to protect their users, but it's nothing more than censorship and crushing competition from a private, anonymous, and often better competitors making free and open source apps on platforms like F-Droid or Obtanium. It's like saying that you aren't allowed to hang a picture you bought from your friend in your own house that your bought, unless your friend pays Google $25 and gives them their ID, but you can hang as many pictures in your house as you like if you buy them directly from Google. Doesn't that sound absurd? "

Thomas, change.org

"Android, if you are going to be just like Apple, I think many might as well just switch to Apple devices..... Please reconsider "

Kaleonahe, change.org

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

Bryan, change.org

"We should be able to do what we want with the devices we own. Locking everyone into only downloading from the google playstore will just create the walled garden that iPhone has already. "Sideloading" shouldn't be viewed as a bad thing, or something you shouldnt do. Its the same as downloading something on a computer. Im just downloading software on my phone. Imagine if they blocked you being able to downloading anything outside of the Microsoft Store on Windows. This needs to be stopped. The main (and basically only reason) I get an android phone is to have control over it. If this is removed from hs I will have no reason not to use an iPhone instead. "

Steven, change.org

"if this goes ahead I will simply refuse to use Android and move to a linux 'phone. "

Graham, change.org

"Android should not become a locked down plarform. Especially since its built upon a lot of open source technologies. It should be the open mobile platform. Not just another walled garden. If it does that, it will just be an inexpensive version of iOS. "

José Javier, change.org

"Literally the only reason I swapped to android years ago was because it had freedoms that iPhones didn't. I may as well swap back if this is how things are going. "

Robert, change.org

"Android being open is the one thing that set it apart . Giving people a option to be open source is the one of the best things about Android . Censorship is not the way to go . as some one just getting development i was looking foreword to making my on apps and becoming a registered developer doesn't sound great to me . "

Jo, change.org

"Android has long been the operating system that has allowed customization and freedom. It's the bedrock on why I use the platform. Taking away the ability to use FOSS and alternative sources just kills what makes Android Android for me. At that stage I might as well give in and get a blue bubble and better base privacy. Super disappointed in this direction. "

Jacob, change.org

"Keep Andriod open! "

Andre, change.org

"I'm getting so sick of governments/ corporations thinking they can just take away our right to privacy online under the guise of "security", and the more they're able to get away with it, the more we'll see it happening. I'm not a developer and I barely use 3rd party apps, but that doesn't mean I won't fight for our ability to use our phones as we see fit "

Danielle, 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

"Android will no longer be what it was initially pitched to be, a phone OS with the freedom to do virtually anything you wanted. After many years of owning android phones I have had to move to iPhone as I can no longer stand how google operates and what they are doing to restrict the android OS. "

Aiden, change.org

"Everything about this software/app lock out is beyond wrong. So is age verification. It is all beyond dystopian. George Orwell is spinning in his grave. My wife works in a major hospital and that hospital is already in a major panic because they have internal apps that can not be put out to apps stores for major security reasons. They have no idea what they are going to do when these apps stop working and can not be installed, used or updated because of these dystopian lockouts (i.e. blocking non app stores' apps from being installed; not to mention the major security risks of age verification). The app monitors many vital operations and medical equipment across three major medical facilities in the same hospital network; among branch facilities. It alerts staff and is used for many areas of communications in the hospital network. If this app can no longer be integrated into the hospital's operations network, the entirety of the hospital's facilities shuts down. I'm sure that if the hospital at which my wife works uses internal apps, then there are many other medical facilities that do also. A neighbor that I check on daily uses an app for necessary medical reasons. This app is not and will never be in any app store. Her doctors and the company that makes the device for thousands of people are in a panic. They can't just put this control/monitoring app out there. They would have to redesign the device's entire system and it could take several years. Plus, there are the major security risks. A friend has advanced diabetes and has a monitoring device stuck in his arm. The monitoring/alert app comes from the device manufacturer and not any app store. I also use medical apps that are not in any app store. I am also diabetic (not as badly as my friend) and disabled. There are several other people in my area that depend on medical apps that are not in any app store and are ONLY provided through a medical facility or medical device manufacturer. These companies do not put these apps out to these app stores for anyone to get their hands on for security reasons. If someone malicious got their hands on these medical device control apps, tampered with it, and re-uploaded it for patients to then obtain, thousands of patients could die. What am I and all these people that depend on proprietary and device specific medical apps across the country going to do when our apps/devices can't be installed or updated and just stop working? These dystopian app lock outs and the risks of age verification will put millions of peoples lives on the line and will have biblical level consequences. This all needs to stop immediately! "

John, change.org

"Google wanna eliminate biggest advantage of Android over iOS "

Misa, change.org

"Android Freeeeee!! "

Tymmi, 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

"In the past, Google claimed to be "good" with its "don't be evil" slogan. That time has passed. Now we need to fight against these clearly evil policies. Join this cause! "

Cristiano, change.org

"One reason people buy android devices is for the freedom it offers. As it stands, should I buy a phone in the future, I'll probably just pick a Linux phone instead to avoid Google. "

Timothy, change.org

"Open Source change my life, and it's really awesome, not just for the Android ecosystem, for the tech industry in general "

abel, change.org

"I refuse to be locked into only the play store. I need to be able to use f-droid and or install my own apk files as I will. It's my comptuer! "

Tom, change.org

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

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