You have the choice to install any app you want, says Google

(FROM OUR STORE)

Je suis Clippy!

That's nothing new. I honestly cannot think of a single Android device that I considered to be a step forward from my very first: an HTC Desire circa 2010. Literally ever step or ratchet since that HTC has come across to me as a bad thing or a worse thing.

Ultimately, I use my mobile for calls and texts and the fact that it has a GPS sensor is convenient just as long as that sensor is only ever used based on my initiative to find my location and draw a dot on a map, showing it.

That venerable HTC Desire could do that. Technically, so could any Android device of today but the problem is what they CAN ALSO do, not what they can no longer do. Newer devices are much like newer cars: ruined by software and ruined by software nobody's wanting.

Facebook installed out the box and hard to remove. Automatic updates put all the bloat back. Locked bootloaders. First voice assistants (always listening, sometimes could be "disabled" but never properly or permanently and never actually removed) and now likely AI versions of the same.

My car (VW Golf) is the same: four wheels, engine, steering vaguely-circular-input-device – exactly like my Open Astra back in 2002. Yet the VW also slams on the brakes upon a whim on the open road for no reason. It beeps like it's going to go nuclear just to flash up massively bright red icon (too fast to see if your eyes are on the road) at random intervals without rhyme nor reason. It sends telemetry to VW with its built-in mobile SIM.

I learned to drive in Africa and I drive with my eyes on the road because I learned to drive in a place where *anything* could actually happen and being surprised was a slow way to react. Driving the VW is insanely triggering because it literally shreds my attention to notify me of something that's clearly unimportant because although I've been suffering with this behaviour for five years, now, I *still* haven't worked out what it is trying to tell me or why it's doing that. Service mechanic just waves it off as known-bad software.

Now, if you can't even sideload unapproved stuff or make a bad situation a little less bad by sourcing software from F-Droid, Android is even worse. This is just another ratchet, though.

The problem is that there isn't really another option.

The problem is that there isn't really another option.

Try [1]LineageOS

[1] https://lineageos.org/

"Try LineageOS"

Using non-Google ROM images leads to a game of whack a mole with banks and other secure apps, including things that want to read your passport, that might or might not work with your ROM distribution.

Interaction or communication with your government or bank might become extremely difficult.

I know in some countries you have to use a smartphone, but the application should be also available outside of the playstore if it's mandatory to use it to access certain govt. services.

For example, last time i checked in Hong Kong the govt apps are available on Google Play store, Huawei store and as APK.

I know it's a pain, but you might file a formal complain if you must use a certain app but you cannot do it without a google account.

For the banks it's easier, pick a banck that doesn't require an app or do not use their app (you probably shouldn't anyways)

Interaction or communication with your government or bank might become extremely difficult.

I do not care. I do not do banking with my 'phone, they are not secure and easily lost. On-line banking I do from my Debian (Linux) machine.

well, there are alternatives, not just as cool or as convenient.

LineageOS or other flavours of Android can be installed without depending on google.

I use one and t's not a big deal...Of course if your main iemail account is Gmail it's inconvenient.

Use proton mail as your main account and install their mail/calendar application. Use openstreetmap instead of google maps. Aurorastore (or other 'tools' like apk pure) to get the apps that are only available in play store etc.

As for VW, if my memory serves, on Passat at least, the spy module should be located under passenger seat, can be disconnected. I'm fairly sure the other sensors can be 'manipulated' in a way that stops the nagging (check with your insurance if that's ok/ what kind of 'manipulation' is acceptable).

I agree. Since about 5.0 successive android versions have worked harder to stop ME having control over MY device.

Lot's of useful things don't work anymore.

Look at Ubuntu Touch which works for me: ubports.com

I wonder if this is an unintentional consequence, or actually the main purpose of this change?

Imagine if a bank said it was closing all its cash machines and card machines because certain people had been writing the PIN on their cards and leaving them around unattended in public.

If a user installs an unknown client and clicks "allow this app full access to my phone, sms, and call logs" then whose fault is it other than themselves?

To be fair to Google, the media carries a lot of the blame. In the first example, the headline would be "Idiot tells the world their PIN, and doesn't know how all their money was withdrawn", in the second it would be "Android phone spends all users money on premium numbers and texts behind their back".

Of course, if a sideloaded app exploits a bug to do evil things, then that is on Google - the system is meant to provide a sandboxed (sorry, "sandpitted" for us Brits!) environment to installed apps.

Mind you, Google removing the "allow this app internet access" permission, and setting it to always-on is on THEM, and we all know why that restriction was removed.

@Google: No, you don't have any business to tell me what I can and cannot download and start my device. If I decide to download an APK from whatever source I make that decision, not you.

That said, the examples where you cannot load/run state- or bank-mandated apps on non-certified Android clones like LineageOS are numerous in the EU.

Will be interesting to see how the EU will react to Google enforcing a Gatekeeper position for itself between the EU member states and their citizens.

>> the code is available to audit by anyone

But not anyone is competent to do that. And even if they are competent, that doesn't mean they will do it.

This is the mythological "community" in the open source world. I get it - I don't expect everyone to be a programmer. When Bob says "the community checks it", he means he thinks somebody other than him is checking it.

Google locking down app installation should be raised as an attempt to enforce a monopoly with the relevant anti-monopoly authorities in every jurisdiction possible.

Its clear to me that these changes have nothing to do with Google wanting to protect Android users from side loading malicious apps, but purely as a way to kill off third party app stores and force all devs to register with Google and host their app on Google Play.

This definitely something the EU DMA should be looking into if they aren't already.

This sounds bad, but would registering the f-droid public key solve it? I didn't understand that from the article.