373

Google is requiring mandatory developer verification for all Android apps in 2026 (keepandroidopen.org)

submitted 1 month ago by TheTearMiser@lemmy.world to c/android@lemmy.world

191 comments fedilink hide all child comments

If you haven't seen this yet, Google is planning to require mandatory developer identity verification for all Android apps, including apps distributed outside the Play Store, taking effect September 2026. This affects every independent and open source Android developer directly.

This is not just about the Play Store. After September 2026, on any certified Android device, applications from unverified developers will be blocked by default. The only proposed bypass, the "advanced flow", exists only as a blog post and has not appeared in any beta, dev preview, or canary release. No one outside Google has seen it.

The community has been fighting back at keepandroidopen.org:

Read the full breakdown of what this means
Sign the open letter (organisations only)
Contact your national regulators — contacts listed by country on the site
Add the countdown banner to your project

September 2026 is closer than it looks. The time to push back is now.

(page 3) 50 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old

[-] coredev@programming.dev 1 points 1 month ago

How will this affect MDM-solutions that installs apps from outside the GMS world

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] Zink@programming.dev 1 points 1 month ago

The whole tech world is just so frustrating. (in before reply pointing out that it's capitalism causing the frustration - yup)

Some of these "features" and "safeguards" might make sense coming from a trusted entity. Even in the real world with evil Google the changes might help some users who use Google everything and might benefit from being blocked from doing stupid things.

But it's not even close to worth it. They cannot be trusted on their own, and now the influence and access of the US government seems 10x worse than it already was.

[-] poopkins@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

I'm mostly annoyed about the reboot and wait period.

I can guide my users through selecting the right options, but rebooting your phone is a nuisance. And getting back in touch with them after 24 hours loses the sense of urgency to install my app and probably at that point they're already gone.

It really doesn't matter if it's 24 hours or 5 minutes.

Hopefully some popular OEMs choose not to implement this so it's possible to know based on the user agent if the user is unlikely to be able to sideload.

load more comments (2 replies)

[-] iceonfire1@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

Lol imagine if Microsoft had succeeded in controlling the development and distribution of all software used on Windows. We'd all lose something.

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] palmtrees2309@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

We need a platform like Framework in mobile sector.

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] starblursd@lemmy.zip 1 points 1 month ago

There actually has been an update on this. The advanced flow has been revealed and it's like a 24-hour wait and a few prompts to go through and I'll reboot and enabling developer mode... Bit of friction but all in all it's better than nothing I guess.

The dev verification is "optional". With the condition that if a developer doesn't then users can only install after jumping through a few hoops.

load more comments (1 replies)

[-] anticurrent@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 month ago

Google is the biggest threat to anything good in technology, this cancer must be eradicated

load more comments

this post was submitted on 21 Mar 2026

373 points (97.7% liked)

Android

33933 readers

1 users here now

DROID DOES

Welcome to the Android community on Lemmy. Here you can participate in amazing discussions and events relating to all things Android.

The rules for posting and commenting, besides the rules defined here for lemmy.world, are as follows:

Rules

1. All posts must be relevant to Android devices/operating system.

2. Posts cannot be illegal or NSFW material.

3. No spam, self promotion, or upvote farming. Sources engaging in these behavior will be added to the Blacklist.

4. Non-whitelisted bots will be banned.

5. Engage respectfully: Harassment, flamebaiting, bad faith engagement, or agenda posting will result in your posts being removed. Excessive violations will result in temporary or permanent ban, depending on severity.

6. Memes are not allowed to be posts, but are allowed in the comments.

7. Posts from clickbait sources are heavily discouraged. Please de-clickbait titles if it needs to be submitted.

8. Submission statements of any length composed of your own thoughts inside the post text field are mandatory for any microblog posts, and are optional but recommended for article/image/video posts.

Community Resources:

founded 2 years ago

MODERATORS

Rooki@lemmy.world

L3s@lemmy.world

L4s@lemmy.world