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Google details new 24-hour process to sideload unverified Android apps

arstechnica.com

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Re: Google details new 24-hour process to sideload unverified Android apps

#591

Post by [deleted] »

al_borland wrote: post #579
lelandfe wrote: post #497

Earlier quoted context omitted.

An actual example of this lives in the Gmail iOS app. Click a link in an email and every x days, a sheet appears: https://imgur.com/a/nlGS4Yk 1. Chrome 2. Google 3. Default browser app (w/unfamiliar generic logo) They removed the option for Safari some time in the last two years; here's how it looked in 2024: https://imgur.com/1iBVFfc And the cherry on top of dark UX patterns: an unchecked toggle rests at the bottom.…

I hate this pop-up so much. I don’t even have Chrome installed on my phone. How about open up on the only browser I have installed… This kind of thing should be illegal. The default browser is the default for a reason, to avoid this kind of stuff. I think I’ve reported this as a bug to Google a couple times, in a couple different apps… as they do it in their other apps too. The only thing that bothers me more are the…

[deleted]

Re: Google details new 24-hour process to sideload unverified Android apps

#592

Post by andrekandre »

AdmiralAsshat wrote: post #569

How exactly is this going to stop scammers from simply modifying their scam runbook to say "Turn this thing on, and get back to me in 24 hours.", and then continue on from the next step? We know from Nigerian email scams that these things can stretch out days, weeks, months, all to get the victim to do the thing.

  > We know from Nigerian email scams that these things can stretch out days, weeks, months, all to get the victim to do the thing.
the real issue i think is using technology to stop a non-technology problem (scams) as that is a society problem

but it seems govts arent interested or incapable of solving the causes (education, opportunity, destitution, etc etc) and probably also influx of scams from sanctioned countries (again a society/world level problem) that cant participate in the world trade etc...

so they lean on the technology companies to lockdown things more because what else can they do?

Re: Google details new 24-hour process to sideload unverified Android apps

#593

Post by SergeAx »

grishka wrote: post #87

At this point I'm convinced that there's something deeply wrong with how our society treats technology. Ruining Android for everyone to try to maybe help some rather technologically-hopeless groups of people is the wrong solution. It's unsustainable in the long run. Also, the last thing this world needs right now is even more centralization of power. Especially around yet another US company. People who are unwilling…

Yellowstone rangers taught us that building an effective anti-bear trash container is impossible because the top 10% of bears are smarter than the bottom 10% of tourists.

Re: Google details new 24-hour process to sideload unverified Android apps

#594

Post by NotPractical »

NotPractical wrote: post #490
GeekyBear wrote: post #281

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> People who are unwilling to figure out the risks just should not use smartphones and the internet People who aren't technically sophisticated should choose the smartphone ecosystem that was designed to offer the safety of a walled garden from the start. Google sold Android as the ecosystem that gave users the freedom to do anything they like, including shooting themselves in the foot. Google should not be allowed t…

Choosing an iPhone is not sufficient to avoid the risks of technology. The majority of online scams require nothing more than two pre-installed apps: Safari and Phone.

Before downvoting, consider providing evidence that sideloading comes anywhere close to being the root cause of most online scams.

Just yesterday I discovered that my grandmother had been receiving calls from "Google business support" on her iPhone. The fact that they can't get her to sideload some app doesn't seem to stop them.

Re: Google details new 24-hour process to sideload unverified Android apps

#595

Post by JoshTriplett »

wswin wrote: post #387
tavavex wrote: post #271

The part in the flow where you select between allowing app installs for 7 days or forever is a glimpse into the future. That toggle shows the thought process that's going on at Google. I can bet that a few versions down the line, the "Not recommended" option of allowing installs indefinitely will become so not recommended that they'll remove it outright. Then shrink the 7 day window to 3 days or less. Or only give us…

what's your solution to combat scammers?

"Warning: if someone is talking to you and walking you through this screen, you may be being scammed!"

Done.

Re: Google details new 24-hour process to sideload unverified Android apps

#596

Post by potsandpans »

MishaalRahman wrote: post #40
astra1701 wrote: post #14

This is going to hurt legitimate sideloading way more than actually necessary to reduce scams: - Must enable developer mode -- some apps (e.g., banking apps) will refuse to operate and such when developer mode is on, and so if you depend on such apps, I guess you just can't sideload? - One-day (day!!!) waiting period to activate (one-time) -- the vast majority of people who need to sideload something will probably no…

>- Must enable developer mode -- some apps (e.g., banking apps) will refuse to operate and such when developer mode is on, and so if you depend on such apps, I guess you just can't sideload? Hi, I'm the community engagement manager @ Android. It's my understanding that you don't have to keep developer options enabled after you enable the advanced flow. Once you make the change on your device, it's enabled. If you tur…

> I'm the community engagement manager

On a scale from "not worried" to "let them eat shit", how is the product team thinking about the breakage you'll get from people moving off platform?

Re: Google details new 24-hour process to sideload unverified Android apps

#598

Post by nibbleyou »

rtkwe wrote: post #35
astra1701 wrote: post #14

This is going to hurt legitimate sideloading way more than actually necessary to reduce scams: - Must enable developer mode -- some apps (e.g., banking apps) will refuse to operate and such when developer mode is on, and so if you depend on such apps, I guess you just can't sideload? - One-day (day!!!) waiting period to activate (one-time) -- the vast majority of people who need to sideload something will probably no…

> - Must enable developer mode -- some apps (e.g., banking apps) will refuse to operate and such when developer mode is on, and so if you depend on such apps, I guess you just can't sideload? What apps are those? I've yet to run into any of my banking apps that refuse to run with developer mode enabled. I've seen a few that do that for rooted phones but that's a different story. I've been running android for a decade…

All the banking and payment apps in India refuse to open if you have developer mode on

Re: Google details new 24-hour process to sideload unverified Android apps

#600

Post by zmmmmm »

It probably sounds like a nitty gritty detail here but who is enforcing the 24 hours and how are they enforcing it?

Because if that "enforcement" is Google then they are still engineering a situation where they hold the keys to the kingdom. They may benevolently let you install what you want, but the sword of damacles will hang over everyone forever, with the darth vader contract in full force ("pray we don't change the deal any further"). If nothing else, it will have a chilling effect. But more than likely, it will attract regulators like moths to a flame to coerce Google into banning their favorite open source apps that they don't like. In other words: it won't solve anything at all, really.

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