Google to lock down Android and prevent third party unverified apps from installing in September 2026. Attack on FOSS, distribution (F-Droid etc.), small developers.
"Almost 40 organizations, including Techlore, published an open letter to Google opposing Android Developer Verification, a program that would require all developers to register with Google before distributing apps on Android starting September 2026. Before explaining why we signed, I need to address something: the widely-circulated narrative that Google already backed down from this. They didn't, and that misunderstanding may be the most dangerous part of the story right now."
https://youtu.be/5MZfGq5F1NU
https://keepandroidopen.org/open-letter/
https://www.change.org/p/stop-google-from-limiting-apk-file-usage
https://f-droid.org/en/2026/02/24/open-letter-opposing-developer-verification.html
#AndroidDeveloperVerificationProgram
#Android
#Google
#Alphabet
#LockDown
#Censors
#FDroid
#FOSS
#OpenSource
#Verified
#Developers
#AdGuard → https://adguard.com
#AppFairProject → https://appfair.org
#ARTICLE19 → https://article19.org
#AssociaçãoNacionalParaOSoftwareLivre ( #ANSOL ) → https://ansol.org
#AuroraStore → https://auroraoss.com
#CenterForDigitalProgress ( #D64 ) → https://d-64.org
#ChaosComputerClub ( #CCC ) → https://ccc.de
#Codeberg e.V. → https://codeberg.org
#Cryptee → https://crypt.ee
#DataRights → https://datarights.ngo
#DigitaleGesellschaft → https://digitale-gesellschaft.ch
#DigitalRightsFoundation → https://digitalrightsfoundation.pk
#DigitalRightsWatch → https://digitalrightswatch.org.au
#EpicenterWorks – for digital rights → https://epicenter.works
#EFoundation → https://e.foundation
#EuropeanDigitalRights ( #EDRi ) → https://edri.org
#ElectronicFrontierFoundation ( #EFF ) → https://eff.org
#Fastmail → https://fastmail.com
#FUTO → https://futo.org
#Ghostery → https://ghostery.com
#FDroid → https://f-droid.org
#FreeSoftwareFoundation ( #FSF ) → https://fsf.org
#FreeSoftwareFoundationEurope ( #FSFE ) → https://fsfe.org
#GuardianProject → https://guardianproject.info
#IzzyOnDroid → https://izzyondroid.org
#JMPChat → https://jmp.chat
#KDE e.V. → https://kde.org
#LineageOS → https://lineageos.org
#microG → https://microg.org
#Molly → https://molly.im
#Obtainium → https://obtainium.imranr.dev
#OpenStreetMapFoundation ( #OSMF ) → https://osmfoundation.org
#OpenRightsGroup ( #ORG ) → https://openrightsgroup.org
#OsservatorioNessuno OdV → https://osservatorionessuno.org
#ProtonAG → https://proton.me
#RossmannGroup → https://rossmanngroup.com
#SoftwareFreedomConservancy → https://sfconservancy.org
#Techlore → https://techlore.tech
#TorProject → https://torproject.org
#TutaMail → https://tuta.com
#VivaldiTechnologies AS → https://vivaldi.com
ImYour Huckleberry
npub1lm…rd0ae
2026-02-27 03:33:08 UTC
Author Public Key
npub1lme7lw7lj9m0jwp2v76wad4uf0ag7k6trvuawy5lup7e0lqhxuwqyrd0aePublished at
2026-02-27 03:33:08 UTCEvent JSON
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"content": "Google to lock down Android and prevent third party unverified apps from installing in September 2026. Attack on FOSS, distribution (F-Droid etc.), small developers.\n\n\"Almost 40 organizations, including Techlore, published an open letter to Google opposing Android Developer Verification, a program that would require all developers to register with Google before distributing apps on Android starting September 2026. Before explaining why we signed, I need to address something: the widely-circulated narrative that Google already backed down from this. They didn't, and that misunderstanding may be the most dangerous part of the story right now.\"\n\nhttps://youtu.be/5MZfGq5F1NU\n\nhttps://keepandroidopen.org/open-letter/\n\nhttps://www.change.org/p/stop-google-from-limiting-apk-file-usage\n\nhttps://f-droid.org/en/2026/02/24/open-letter-opposing-developer-verification.html\n\n#AndroidDeveloperVerificationProgram\n#Android\n#Google\n#Alphabet\n#LockDown\n#Censors \n#FDroid\n#FOSS\n#OpenSource\n#Verified\n#Developers\n\n#AdGuard → https://adguard.com\n\n#AppFairProject → https://appfair.org\n\n#ARTICLE19 → https://article19.org\n\n#AssociaçãoNacionalParaOSoftwareLivre ( #ANSOL ) → https://ansol.org\n\n#AuroraStore → https://auroraoss.com\n\n#CenterForDigitalProgress ( #D64 ) → https://d-64.org\n\n#ChaosComputerClub ( #CCC ) → https://ccc.de\n\n#Codeberg e.V. → https://codeberg.org\n\n#Cryptee → https://crypt.ee\n\n#DataRights → https://datarights.ngo\n\n#DigitaleGesellschaft → https://digitale-gesellschaft.ch\n\n#DigitalRightsFoundation → https://digitalrightsfoundation.pk\n\n#DigitalRightsWatch → https://digitalrightswatch.org.au\n\n#EpicenterWorks – for digital rights → https://epicenter.works\n\n#EFoundation → https://e.foundation\n\n#EuropeanDigitalRights ( #EDRi ) → https://edri.org\n\n#ElectronicFrontierFoundation ( #EFF ) → https://eff.org\n\n#Fastmail → https://fastmail.com\n\n#FUTO → https://futo.org\n\n#Ghostery → https://ghostery.com\n\n#FDroid → https://f-droid.org\n\n#FreeSoftwareFoundation ( #FSF ) → https://fsf.org\n\n#FreeSoftwareFoundationEurope ( #FSFE ) → https://fsfe.org\n\n#GuardianProject → https://guardianproject.info\n\n#IzzyOnDroid → https://izzyondroid.org\n\n#JMPChat → https://jmp.chat\n\n#KDE e.V. → https://kde.org\n\n#LineageOS → https://lineageos.org\n\n#microG → https://microg.org\n\n#Molly → https://molly.im\n\n#Obtainium → https://obtainium.imranr.dev\n\n#OpenStreetMapFoundation ( #OSMF ) → https://osmfoundation.org\n\n#OpenRightsGroup ( #ORG ) → https://openrightsgroup.org\n\n#OsservatorioNessuno OdV → https://osservatorionessuno.org\n\n#ProtonAG → https://proton.me\n\n#RossmannGroup → https://rossmanngroup.com\n\n#SoftwareFreedomConservancy → https://sfconservancy.org\n\n#Techlore → https://techlore.tech\n\n#TorProject → https://torproject.org\n\n#TutaMail → https://tuta.com\n\n#VivaldiTechnologies AS → https://vivaldi.com \n\n",
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