Looks like Android is looking to kill sideloading

chrismscotland · 17 Sep 2025 at 12:59

Rroff said:
They are much less likely to be held to account on things like that though if generally things are more locked down.

It hasn't stopped Apple being held to account; if anything they were far more restrictive and locked down before they were ordered to open up.

413x · 27 Sep 2025 at 18:53

Although I'd hate it.. I'm not sure what else I could use if they did this? Problem with a basic monopoly

Orcvader · 29 Sep 2025 at 13:01

F-droid finally made a statement on this: https://f-droid.org/2025/09/29/google-developer-registration-decree.html

darael · 29 Sep 2025 at 13:24

Mr Firestick Man on Facebook won't like it if Android do block side loading apps.

chrismscotland · 29 Sep 2025 at 20:31

Orcvader said:
F-droid finally made a statement on this: https://f-droid.org/2025/09/29/google-developer-registration-decree.html

Totally agree with them; I also think there's no chance at all this gets past the EU Competion Regulator. That said Google could easily do what Apple have done and have different rules/restrictions in the EU than other areas.
We're still in an odd place where the AltStore App Store is freely able to be sideloaded in EU territories yet its still a faff in the US, UK and elsewhere.

something daft already!! · 29 Sep 2025 at 20:35

I have only side loaded one app which is one I plan to use a lot. It's the app for my new drone.

Conan257 · 30 Sep 2025 at 08:44

There's a lot of diabetics who sideload apps which support better tools for managing their condition. Although it's unlikely most of those will struggle to get through the approval process, there are some "Build your own" apps which will never get approval as the app itself is unique to each person.

Medically, this is a step in the wrong direction....

reflux · 3 Oct 2025 at 09:47

This is crazy, but obviously in line with the general trend of basically every digital product getting worse as companies try and take more control to make more revenue. Very frustrating.

pinkpound · Thursday at 21:16

Looks like google have backed down slightly

Google, in a blog post, says that it is building a new “advanced flow” that will allow people to side-load unverified apps once they accept the risks of doing so. We assume that Android's system settings will offer an option to allow the user to install unverified apps. When they try to enable it, the operating system may warn the user about its risks. If the user accepts the risks, the system may let them install unverified apps.

Android developer verification: Early access starts now as we continue to build with your feedback

News and insights on the Android platform, developer tools, and events.

android-developers.googleblog.com

InkZ · Thursday at 22:45

It’s prob a good idea as the default option

Orcvader · 2025-11-14T10:29:24+0000

Based on this feedback and our ongoing conversations with the community, we are building a new advanced flow that allows experienced users to accept the risks of installing software that isn't verified. We are designing this flow specifically to resist coercion, ensuring that users aren't tricked into bypassing these safety checks while under pressure from a scammer. It will also include clear warnings to ensure users fully understand the risks involved, but ultimately, it puts the choice in their hands. We are gathering early feedback on the design of this feature now and will share more details in the coming months.

I'm curious how complicated/easy this will be, but hopefully easy enough for F-Droid to still be around and work seamlessly as it does now.

Putty · 2025-11-14T11:07:12+0000

I still side-load apps. here and there so this is going to be a bit of a bummer - hopefully the workaround won't be too rough.