Petition to stop Google from restricting sideloading and FOSS apps
A developer started a petition to stop Google from limiting app installation on Android devices unless developers provide personal identity documents.
Even though Google has not revoked similar controversial policies in the past, we do our best as much as we can. This change particularly threatens the freedom to build, share, and use software without giving away sensitive personal information. It affects independent developers, FOSS contributors, and even regular users who want to install apps outside of Google Play.
``Just imagine giving sensitive personal, government-issued ID to a corporation to install an app outside Google Play``
Let’s stand together to protect our freedom to create and use software without handing over personal information to a corporation. Every signature, share, and voice counts here
Support the petition here: https://chng.it/MsHzSXtJnw
51 comments
[ 3.1 ms ] story [ 77.0 ms ] threadEU have done it with Apple and their trash lightning cable, forcing them to adopt the USB c standard. EU fined Meta and Google for mishandling our personal data (like all the time), and forced (kinda) both Google and Apple to allow alternative stores. This bs will not fly in the EU.
I will not tell you to stop using Google products and Android, since you are most likely a dev or FOSS on the Android ecosystem. But yeah, Google are pretty evil.
- sent from my Android - /s
An open letter from the lead developers and decision makers of top-rated apps in the Play Store would be useful. But that takes work, unlike an online petition.
In Spain, I have to give my NIE (National ID number) and show my government ID just to send or receive a package from FedEx. Why should I have to give up sensitive information just to receive a package?
If Google is hostile to me an my users, I prefer to dedicate my volunteer time to respectful plateforms instead.
You can sideload apps on non-google-certified android builds/installs just fine right? If you're going to publish an app that literally be installed on billions of devices, is this not a sensible measure? Long overdue even? Why isn't Windows and Linux distros enforcing this as well is my question!
Do you guys understand that people's lives are being ruined by malware? and the most popular way of deploying malware on the most popular platform (android) is sideloading apps!
This is a similar situation as "Freedom of speech isn't freedom of reach". You can publish any android app you want, that doesn't give you the right to anonymously deploy those apps on everyone's personal tracking devices (phones).
I get a petition to allow alternative attestation and verification authorities. and honestly, I don't think Alphabet has much choice on that given EU and US anti-trust policies. I can't image the EU being ok with a US company collecting the IDs of all its developers.
For about a decade now, on Windows, you are required to have an ID-verified code signing certificate so sign drivers for example. And that has dramatically reduced rootkit abuse on the platform. Don't get me wrong, I also don't want to submit my ID to anyone. But this is a very sensible measure, one that will improve security in measurable and significant ways to millions of regular people.
Often bank scams rely on sending money to another account (obviously registered with an ID), and then being drained at ATM. The account is going to be registered on a drop or another victim. Sure, it's burned after that, but as long as it's an insignificant cost, scamming is still profitable.
The same situation with malware, bad actors are incentivized to put effort into bypassing this, so dev accounts will be registered on random homeless people, stolen IDs, or just fake IDs. While normal developers will choose to give away IDs.
And as always, it starts with 'protect the children/elderly/vulnerable', then that authoritarian country requires Google to give away info on every developer to operate legally, then it's UK and other 'democracies', then you can't run your code on your device without the government approval.
There was a person there
Who put forth the proposition
That you can petition the Lord with prayer
Petition the Lord with prayer
Petition the Lord with prayer
You cannot petition the Lord with prayer!
If you truly want to protect your rights then don't petition Google, but instead petition FTC and other antitrust agencies. Petitioning Google just establishes that they have a choice here.