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Google has news on what you will need to do for still being able to sideload apps
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limerod reddthat.com limerod@reddthat.com
Joined: 2023-06-24
Quote

  • enable developer options
  • confirm that you are not tricked
  • restart phone and re-authenticate
  • wait one day
  • confirm with biometrics that you know what you are doing
  • decide if you only want unrestricted installs for 1 week or forever
  • confirm that you accept the risks
  • enjoy the few apps that still have developers motivated to develop for a user-base willing to put up with this
87   Original
limerod Moderator limerod@reddthat.com
Joined: 2023-06-24
#2 · Quote Reply

This is so stupid. At this rate I will have to consider Linux powered phones before switching phones in the future.

Needing to wait and follow so many tedious steps to install apps I want, ugh.

This was how xiaomi started to limit bootloader unlocking to the current 3 months wait model.

There's also a video by a google person in the mastodon toot saying how this is a positive change.

38
mannycalavera feddit.uk mannycalavera@feddit.uk
Joined: 2023-07-02
#3 · Quote Reply

This post is slightly disingenuous. It's not all side loading. It's only for unverified apps.

What side loading do you need to do where the app developer hasn't verified or isn't using the limited distribution? The sad reality is that the vast majority of what remains are scam apps.

Android is perhaps a victim of its own success here in that it now needs to worry about the old grannies that get pressured into installing scam apps more than a tiny minority of power users.

-15
Steve communick.news Steve@communick.news
Joined: 2023-08-05
#4 · (edited) Quote Reply

I'm almost certain there will be an ADB hack to bring this process down to a couple min. Or faster

It only took me ~10min to install GrapheneOS. A whole new OS!
Changing a single setting should be super quick.

12
Scrubbles poptalk.scrubbles.tech scrubbles@poptalk.scrubbles.tech
Joined: 2023-06-02
#5 · Quote Reply

This is so stupid. At this rate I will have to consider Linux powered phones before switching phones in the future. Needing to wait and follow so many tedious steps to install apps I want, ugh. This was how xiaomi started to limit bootloader unlocking to the current 3 months wait model. There's also a video by a google person in the mastodon toot saying how this is a positive change.

I switched over to the fairphone which is degoogled android, and it's been honestly great. Linux phone has a way to go, mostly needing to be able to run android apps I think, but /e/OS is a good bridge

9
petrescatraian libranet.de petrescatraian@libranet.de
Joined: 2026-02-16
#6 · Quote Reply

This is so stupid. At this rate I will have to consider Linux powered phones before switching phones in the future. Needing to wait and follow so many tedious steps to install apps I want, ugh. This was how xiaomi started to limit bootloader unlocking to the current 3 months wait model. There's also a video by a google person in the mastodon toot saying how this is a positive change.

@limerod I already jumped the ship and ordered a Jolla phone. Hope I made the right choice. But if you cannot get it for whatever reason, you can always get one of the supported devices and install Postmarket OS

3
Multiplexer discuss.tchncs.de Multiplexer@discuss.tchncs.de
Joined: 2025-08-25
#7 · Quote Reply

This post is slightly disingenuous. It's not all side loading. It's only for unverified apps. What side loading do you need to do where the app developer hasn't verified or isn't using the limited distribution? The sad reality is that the vast majority of what remains are scam apps. Android is perhaps a victim of its own success here in that it now needs to worry about the old grannies that get...

What side loading do you need to do where the app developer hasn't verified or isn't using the limited distribution?

Well, most of what I install via fdroid?

Only reason for trying to let people jump so many crazy hoops is that they want to secure their app store, control and monetization monopoly.

There is no reason why enabling obscurely hidden dev options and setting the corresponding tick after reading a warning message is not already enough to show that people are aware of what they are doing.

14
limerod Moderator limerod@reddthat.com
Joined: 2023-06-24
#8 · Quote Reply

This post is slightly disingenuous. It's not all side loading. It's only for unverified apps. What side loading do you need to do where the app developer hasn't verified or isn't using the limited distribution? The sad reality is that the vast majority of what remains are scam apps. Android is perhaps a victim of its own success here in that it now needs to worry about the old grannies that get...

Open source developers who do not want to register with google, and provide identity verification to google?

23
limerod Moderator limerod@reddthat.com
Joined: 2023-06-24
#9 · Quote Reply

@limerod I already jumped the ship and ordered a Jolla phone. Hope I made the right choice. But if you cannot get it for whatever reason, you can always get one of the supported devices and install Postmarket OS

I have an old redmi lying unused. I will have to experiment on it to understand the ROM flashing scene. PostmarketOS is a good project. Hopefully, the community interest will increase and make things more accessible for everyone.

3
Shellofbiomatter lemmus.org Shellofbiomatter@lemmus.org
Joined: 2026-03-04
#10 · Quote Reply

What if I haven't set up biometrics?
Cant do it at all or forced to set up biometrics?

5
limerod Moderator limerod@reddthat.com
Joined: 2023-06-24
#11 · Quote Reply

What if I haven't set up biometrics? Cant do it at all or forced to set up biometrics?

Your lockscreen Pin/pattern should be used. Unless, they manage to block that someway..

7
Pika sh.itjust.works Pika@sh.itjust.works
Joined: 2023-08-15
#12 · Quote Reply

I switched over to the fairphone which is degoogled android, and it's been honestly great. Linux phone has a way to go, mostly needing to be able to run android apps I think, but /e/OS is a good bridge

I could never use the fairphone after reading about how the leadership responded to grapheneos disclaiming their claims that it was a secure device.

Instead of rebuking their statements, the founder resorted to personal attacks on the the leadership of grapheneos and reiterated the false information that the graphene project had.

Until i had read that I had a very positive mentality of the project but, that definitely has made me think twice about using anything related to /e/os in the future regardless if grapheneOS claims are true or false (they seem true)

7
Pika sh.itjust.works Pika@sh.itjust.works
Joined: 2023-08-15
#13 · Quote Reply

Your lockscreen Pin/pattern should be used. Unless, they manage to block that someway..

The better question will be, since authentication is required to complete it, does this mean that devices that don't have any security or lock pin are not going to be allowed to use unsigned applications?

5
PhireFloofski lemmy.world PhireFloofski@lemmy.world
Joined: 2023-07-29
#14 · Quote Reply

This post is slightly disingenuous. It's not all side loading. It's only for unverified apps. What side loading do you need to do where the app developer hasn't verified or isn't using the limited distribution? The sad reality is that the vast majority of what remains are scam apps. Android is perhaps a victim of its own success here in that it now needs to worry about the old grannies that get...

it's always "protect old grannies" "protect the children" and never "protect people's interest" "protect freedom" "protect customers rights"
riddle me this...

10
nil piefed.ca nil@piefed.ca
Joined: 2025-12-04
#15 · Quote Reply

Plug your Pixel to your PC, click several times on GrapheneOS website and there you go, you've just got both freedom and security.

Or go to lenovo store and buy motorola.

15
timidtaxidermist lemmy.ca timidtaxidermist@lemmy.ca
Joined: 2025-08-27
#16 · Quote Reply

Plug your Pixel to your PC, click several times on GrapheneOS website and there you go, you've just got both freedom and security. Or go to lenovo store and buy motorola.

why Motorola?

2
mushroommunk lemmy.today mushroommunk@lemmy.today
Joined: 2025-08-18
#17 · Quote Reply

why Motorola?

They're partnering with GrapheneOS to build a phone fully supported by GrapheneOS and to their security standards

7
Lee Duna lemmy.nz throws_lemy@lemmy.nz
Joined: 2023-06-30
#18 · Quote Reply

This is like you bought android phone but you don't own it

fck goolag

5
Shellofbiomatter lemmus.org Shellofbiomatter@lemmus.org
Joined: 2026-03-04
#19 · Quote Reply

Your lockscreen Pin/pattern should be used. Unless, they manage to block that someway..

Well at least that's an easy one to setup and later disable again.

1
VibeSurgeon piefed.social VibeSurgeon@piefed.social
Joined: 2026-01-15
#20 · Quote Reply

I'm almost certain there will be an ADB hack to bring this process down to a couple min. Or faster It only took me ~10min to install GrapheneOS. A whole new OS! Changing a single setting should be super quick.

adb-installs are explicitly allowed to skip the 24 hour wait limit.

This thing is nominally there to shut down phone scammers - people who are technically fluent enough to install adb are very unlikely to be susceptible to them.

4
Kairos lemmy.today LodeMike@lemmy.today
Joined: 2023-12-26
#21 · (edited) Quote Reply

They're partnering with GrapheneOS to build a phone fully supported by GrapheneOS and to their security standards

Other motor roll of Motorola phones probably won't be compatible with grapheneOS

11
Scrubbles poptalk.scrubbles.tech scrubbles@poptalk.scrubbles.tech
Joined: 2023-06-02
#22 · Quote Reply

I could never use the fairphone after reading about how the leadership responded to grapheneos disclaiming their claims that it was a secure device. Instead of rebuking their statements, the founder resorted to personal attacks on the the leadership of grapheneos and reiterated the false information that the graphene project had. Until i had read that I had a very positive mentality of the proj...

Better than Google.

4
bl4kers beehaw.org bl4kers@beehaw.org
Joined: 2023-06-19
#23 · (edited) Quote Reply

The first prompt is pretty bad. Information is shared through instruction and guides.

1
π•Έπ–”π–˜π–˜ infosec.pub 01189998819991197253@infosec.pub
Joined: 2023-06-04
#24 · Quote Reply

Other motor roll of Motorola phones probably won't be compatible with grapheneOS

I know what you meant, but I gotta say, I thoroughly enjoyed the autocorrect mishap, so thanks for leaving it intact

4
π•Έπ–”π–˜π–˜ infosec.pub 01189998819991197253@infosec.pub
Joined: 2023-06-04
#25 · Quote Reply

it's always "protect old grannies" "protect the children" and never "protect people's interest" "protect freedom" "protect customers rights" riddle me this...

It's not really about protecting anything on the user side, and never has been. Those are just pretenses to their true cause. It's all always been about censorship, control, and tracking.

2
Atherel lemmy.dbzer0.com Atherel@lemmy.dbzer0.com
Joined: 2024-06-14
#26 · Quote Reply

I know what you meant, but I gotta say, I thoroughly enjoyed the autocorrect mishap, so thanks for leaving it intact

I would have totally missed it without your comment!

4
roofuskit lemmy.world roofuskit@lemmy.world
Joined: 2023-11-03
#27 · Quote Reply

This is so stupid. At this rate I will have to consider Linux powered phones before switching phones in the future. Needing to wait and follow so many tedious steps to install apps I want, ugh. This was how xiaomi started to limit bootloader unlocking to the current 3 months wait model. There's also a video by a google person in the mastodon toot saying how this is a positive change.

Not sure if you noticed but this is a one time process per phone.

1
limerod Moderator limerod@reddthat.com
Joined: 2023-06-24
#28 · Quote Reply

Not sure if you noticed but this is a one time process per phone.

I'm aware. But, why should I go through so many extra steps and wait 24hrs to install apps on a phone I paid. Also, who is to say they won't increase the requirements later in the name of "security"?

This is not a thing on Linux and Windows. Why should it be on android?

7
biscuit lemdro.id biscuit@lemdro.id
Joined: 2023-07-07
#29 · Quote Reply

This is so stupid. At this rate I will have to consider Linux powered phones before switching phones in the future. Needing to wait and follow so many tedious steps to install apps I want, ugh. This was how xiaomi started to limit bootloader unlocking to the current 3 months wait model. There's also a video by a google person in the mastodon toot saying how this is a positive change.

Respectfully, grow up.

It's a one-time action, and it's a necessity because humans are dumb and have allowed scammers to guide them through installing dodgy APKs.

We are globally asking for regulators to regulate big tech and this whole verification thing was Google's attempt to quell that storm. Obviously the original plans weren't acceptable but this really doesn't seem like that big of a deal anymore, now that they've compromised.

I really don't see the issue here that power users need to tap a few buttons and wait 24 hours once for each device. You don't even need to leave developer options enabled, and you've still got ADB installation options if you urgently need an APK installed and you hadn't previously gone through this flow.

The comparison to bootloaders is also a stretch. People in this Lemmy community are so quick to enflame and enrage themselves, it's worse than Reddit....

-8
biscuit lemdro.id biscuit@lemdro.id
Joined: 2023-07-07
#30 · Quote Reply

The better question will be, since authentication is required to complete it, does this mean that devices that don't have any security or lock pin are not going to be allowed to use unsigned applications?

It's too early to say but I think it's fairly obvious that it's just a mechanism to confirm that the owner of the device is the one making the change. If no biometrics are set, and no lock screen is set, I'd assume the check isn't needed.

0
biscuit lemdro.id biscuit@lemdro.id
Joined: 2023-07-07
#31 · Quote Reply

This post is slightly disingenuous. It's not all side loading. It's only for unverified apps. What side loading do you need to do where the app developer hasn't verified or isn't using the limited distribution? The sad reality is that the vast majority of what remains are scam apps. Android is perhaps a victim of its own success here in that it now needs to worry about the old grannies that get...

The hysteria is rife on this subject and it's exhausting.

-1
smiletolerantly awful.systems smiletolerantly@awful.systems
Joined: 2024-04-27
#32 · Quote Reply

Respectfully, grow up. It's a one-time action, and it's a necessity because humans are dumb and have allowed scammers to guide them through installing dodgy APKs. We are globally asking for regulators to regulate big tech and this whole verification thing was Google's attempt to quell that storm. Obviously the original plans weren't acceptable but this really doesn't seem like that big of a dea...

It ensures that non-power users stay in the clutches of Google.

5
smiletolerantly awful.systems smiletolerantly@awful.systems
Joined: 2024-04-27
#33 · Quote Reply

Not sure if you noticed but this is a one time process per phone.

I rely on xdrip+ for getting blood clucose measurements. That app is not on the play store.

So, in case I'll loose my phone and have to buy one (or even just need to reset it) I'm 24hrs without blood glucose measurements...? Yeah that sounds great /s.

3
biscuit lemdro.id biscuit@lemdro.id
Joined: 2023-07-07
#34 · Quote Reply

It ensures that non-power users stay in the clutches of Google.

the clutches of Google

Please reread the first three words of my previous message.

-3
biscuit lemdro.id biscuit@lemdro.id
Joined: 2023-07-07
#35 · Quote Reply

I rely on xdrip+ for getting blood clucose measurements. That app is not on the play store. So, in case I'll loose my phone and have to buy one (or even just need to reset it) I'm 24hrs without blood glucose measurements...? Yeah that sounds great /s.

Install it using ADB which doesn't adhere to the 24 hour waiting period.

2
MonkderVierte lemmy.zip MonkderVierte@lemmy.zip
Joined: 2025-05-30
#36 · (edited) Quote Reply

Fuck it. For the same effort i'll unlock the bootloader and flash LineageOS.

3
smiletolerantly awful.systems smiletolerantly@awful.systems
Joined: 2024-04-27
#37 · Quote Reply

the clutches of Google Please reread the first three words of my previous message.

You're not talking about growing up, you're talking about giving up.

4
limerod Moderator limerod@reddthat.com
Joined: 2023-06-24
#38 · Quote Reply

Respectfully, grow up. It's a one-time action, and it's a necessity because humans are dumb and have allowed scammers to guide them through installing dodgy APKs. We are globally asking for regulators to regulate big tech and this whole verification thing was Google's attempt to quell that storm. Obviously the original plans weren't acceptable but this really doesn't seem like that big of a dea...

Absolutely, no. I don't want to jump hoops or follow complicated procedures and wait a day or longer to start using the apps I want to use on my device I paid with my bills.

If we are on the subject of app installation. Desktop users can already install any and all apps that they desire. Your malware scanner will warn you if you attempt to install a malicious software.

For those people who cannot think for themselves advanced protection mode already disables app installation not approved by play store. So, even this point is moot. Besides, if we let google do this they may add age verification like some social media websites.

The comparison to bootloaders is also a stretch. People in this Lemmy community are so quick to enflame and enrage themselves, it's worse than Reddit....

Maybe, they have the foresight to see how much worse it can get. It started with the advanced protection setting a year ago. Later OEMs started to add restrictions to bootloader unlock methods. Some like samsung simply removed it with latest software updates.

2
modus lemmy.world modus@lemmy.world
Joined: 2023-06-12
#39 · Quote Reply

They're partnering with GrapheneOS to build a phone fully supported by GrapheneOS and to their security standards

Is there a release date for this? Or is it still too early?

1
mushroommunk lemmy.today mushroommunk@lemmy.today
Joined: 2025-08-18
#40 · Quote Reply

Is there a release date for this? Or is it still too early?

I've heard they're targeting early 2027 but I've not seen anything official. Just the announcement they've agreed to a partnership

1
biscuit lemdro.id biscuit@lemdro.id
Joined: 2023-07-07
#41 · Quote Reply

You're not talking about growing up, you're talking about giving up.
[deleted]
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oatscoop midwest.social oatscoop@midwest.social
Joined: 2023-06-30
#42 · (edited) Quote Reply

[deleted]

I'm twice that age: you're being an immature and a jerk. They're not the one calling people names.

0
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