Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Alternative app repository F-Droid has once again fired shots at Google for its new developer verification rules that threaten to kill sideloading on Android devices.
- The platform calls Google’s assurances about sideloading not going anywhere “clear, concise, and false.”
- It argues that Google’s new rules may technically keep sideloading alive, but they will take away the openness of the process.
In a new post titled “What We Talk About When We Talk About Sideloading,” F-Droid calls Google’s assurances that “sideloading isn’t going anywhere” “clear, concise, and false.” The platform notes that while Google insists Android users will still be able to install apps from outside the Play Store despite its developer verification rules, that freedom will be meaningless in practice.
“As a reminder, this applies not just to devices that exclusively use the Google Play Store: this is for every Android Certified device everywhere in the world,” F-Droid warned.
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According to the platform, Google’s new process, which requires every developer to verify their identity with government documentation and link apps to a registered account, effectively puts independent app stores and developers under the company’s control. Essentially, if Google doesn’t approve apps, they won’t be available for sideloading, thereby changing the very nature of the whole process:
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, starting next year, 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.
F-Droid also takes issue with the word “sideloading,” which implies something risky or unsafe. The project notes that it’s simply another way of installing software, not a loophole. “Google is defining sideloading as if it were a problem they graciously allow,” the post notes.
This isn’t the first time F-Droid has raised an objection against Google’s developer verification rules. Back in September, the platform warned that Google’s verification system could wipe out sideloading and alternative app stores. Google quickly pushed back, saying that sideloading was fundamental to Android and would continue to exist. The company maintained that the new policy was meant to improve security, not limit user choice.
F-Droid says Google’s assurance is false.
But F-Droid says Google’s assurance is false. It argues that Google’s new rules would technically keep sideloading alive, but threaten to take away its openness. The group also urged regulators to scrutinize Google’s plans, saying the system would give the company too much power over app distribution.
“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 post noted.
Google’s developer verification rollout is expected to begin in phases next year.
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