Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

f-droid.org

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

361–370 of 793 posts

Re: Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

#361

Post by int_19h »

orian wrote: post #196
transcriptase wrote: post #25

I think the most fun part with Google is that if some wayward algorithm decides it doesn’t like you, along with nuking your app and developer account it will probably nuke your 20 year old gmail, your kids Google Drive accounts, your wife’s YouTube premium, the Adsense account of some company you worked for in 2008, and disable your Nest cameras. And you’ll never reach a human to sort it out.

All service providers above some scale should be obliged to create a transparent processes or be taken for external jusges. Even better: all providers of services with more than 100K users or 10% of country internet users should be forced to provide API to export / import data in open format.

Maybe service providers above some scale just shouldn't exist, period?

It would be a lot harder to erect walled gardens if you're only serving a small subset of users - they would balk and leave at any attempt to prevent them from interacting with others outside of the ecosystem, and it would be a lot easier to do so.

Re: Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

#362

Post by LtWorf »

RegW wrote: post #267
hollow-moe wrote: post #188

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And all are useless because you can't use your mandatory bank or gov id app.

I don't have a mandatory bank or gov id app. Where are you living?

In sweden it's not "mandatory" in the sense that it's illegal not to have it. It's just really really complicated to live without.

Many services won't work at all.

Re: Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

#363

Post by user43928 »

transcriptase wrote: post #25

I think the most fun part with Google is that if some wayward algorithm decides it doesn’t like you, along with nuking your app and developer account it will probably nuke your 20 year old gmail, your kids Google Drive accounts, your wife’s YouTube premium, the Adsense account of some company you worked for in 2008, and disable your Nest cameras. And you’ll never reach a human to sort it out.

To avoid this, I tried to close my Google Play Developer account. A decade ago I published a free app on it, which was online for half a year.

It was to no avail. They will not close the account.

I received only automated responses about bringing my old app into compliance with current policy, to then transfer it to another developer account.

Only then would Google graciously allow me to close my Developer account.

Meanwhile, private Google services charge me the wrong prices, because I have a Payments profile in another country. It is associated with a Merchant account, which is linked to the Google Play Developer account.

The support concluded that this can also not be closed, and that I should close my Developer account first.

It's hell.

Re: Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

#364

Post by anonzzzies »

birdsongs wrote: post #255
artisinal wrote: post #221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

iOS can be used without an account. iPhones can be acquired outside of Apple. The EU has the alternative App Store option that doesn’t require an Apple account.

But I can't use my Norwegian BankID unless I have an apple store or play store account. This is required for every aspect of society. Heathcare, banking, taxes, driving, using my debit card online. They removed SMS 2FA options recently, the only non-tech monopoly method is a 2fa codebrick that's getting harder and harder to acquire (there are new ridiculous facial ID and passport scanning requirements, run by a priva…

We need all countries and the EU govs to mandate companies to provide the same vital access via a Web page that works on the 4 major browsers (not an issue anymore) as via the app. All my banks have it; I need an otp device but thats fine; it works well. I wish EU would mandate that plus an EU made hardware device on which all seeds can be stored and otps generated. That can be the size of an USB stick you can put on your keyring. Add NFC/qr so you don't have to type the otp and there we go.

Re: Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

#365

Post by int_19h »

matheusmoreira wrote: post #212
linuxhansl wrote: post #29

What Google is doing is shameful. One of the promises of Android was being more open than the restrictive Apple ecosystem. Now that they reached penetration they do the switch - under the guise of security. Just let me do with my hardware what I want to do it. Let it be my responsibility to install whatever I want (and stop calling it "side-loading", as if I am doing something shady from the "side"). We need to resis…

It's not just shameful, it's stupid. Freedom was the whole point of tolerating the shittiness of Android. If they get rid of that, then there is no point, and I'll just buy an iPhone instead. If I must be in a walled garden, I'll choose the better kept garden, and it sure as hell isn't Google's.

Pragmatically speaking, I doubt that the percentage of users currently choosing Android over iOS for this reason would add up to even 1%. Android dominates worldwide by and large because of cost, and unless Apple pulls another Neo this shall remain regardless of how locked down they make it.

Re: Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

#366

Post by terminalbraid »

jzer0cool wrote: post #239

As user wouldn't you like knowing there is a non-verified app? Is it restricting And still providing way to override if you choose?

Is that not already the case today? Everything on the play store is verified. Anything outside of that is not by google and you are shown something.

The whole point out of this outrage is alternative stores (like f-droid) can wholly and entirely be shut down on a whim without recourse.

Re: Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

#367

Post by paulnpace »

transcriptase wrote: post #25

I think the most fun part with Google is that if some wayward algorithm decides it doesn’t like you, along with nuking your app and developer account it will probably nuke your 20 year old gmail, your kids Google Drive accounts, your wife’s YouTube premium, the Adsense account of some company you worked for in 2008, and disable your Nest cameras. And you’ll never reach a human to sort it out.

Yep! One way, or another, we gotta' get people out of the system.

Re: Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

#368

Post by armadyl »

kuschku wrote: post #145
Aachen wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's one of its primary arguments: besides the hardening against exploits, they're considered such a safe OS because you cannot access your data either and give the wrong app root access. Everything lives in a sandbox. Whether not being able to grant full access to e.g. adb shell, Termux, or Restic is what you want is a personal choice, but it adds a layer of security against any malware that tries to get you to gr…

So it doesn't actually do anything to give control of the device back to the user? One of the core tenets of truly free software is that I as user must be able to run, access, edit, and view everything .

You are free to make your own build of GrapheneOS with root access and have extremely reduced security. Just don’t expect support on the forums and waste everyone’s time when something happens.

Re: Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

#369

Post by like_any_other »

geocar wrote: post #252
RandyOrion wrote: post #227

Android developer verification program, together with recent reCAPTCHA push [1], and Manifest v2 force depreciation on chrome [2], make one thing crystal clear. When companies like GOOGLE talks about things in the name of "your security", it's a sign that they want you to sacrifice your own things, e.g., privacy, freedom, etc., for their own security. And if you trust them and show your consent by doing nothing, you…

Google has been attempting to license the right to write. There are a lot of poor people, mostly brown people, who do not have the ability to get one of these licenses. Some of them are feeding themselves with their ability to write, and Google is literally stealing that food from their mouths.

Careful about demanding that dystopia not discriminate against anyone. Because you just might get it, and it'll still be a dystopia.

Re: Android Developer Verification: Threat masquerading as protection

#370

Post by mirsadm »

int_19h wrote: post #365
matheusmoreira wrote: post #212

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not just shameful, it's stupid. Freedom was the whole point of tolerating the shittiness of Android. If they get rid of that, then there is no point, and I'll just buy an iPhone instead. If I must be in a walled garden, I'll choose the better kept garden, and it sure as hell isn't Google's.

Pragmatically speaking, I doubt that the percentage of users currently choosing Android over iOS for this reason would add up to even 1%. Android dominates worldwide by and large because of cost, and unless Apple pulls another Neo this shall remain regardless of how locked down they make it.

An older iPhone is already better than most new cheaper Android phones.
Post reply on HN