"Select Play Partners" can block unofficial installation of their apps.

You might sideload an Android app, or manually install its APK package, if you’re using a custom version of Android that doesn’t include Google’s Play Store. Alternately, the app might be experimental, under development, or perhaps no longer maintained and offered by its developer. Until now, the existence of sideload-ready APKs on the web was something that seemed to be tolerated, if warned against, by Google.

This quiet standstill is being shaken up by a new feature in Google’s Play Integrity API. As reported by Android Authority, developer tools to push “remediation” dialogs during sideloading debuted at Google’s I/O conference in May, have begun showing up on users’ phones. Sideloaders of apps from the British shop Tesco, fandom app BeyBlade X, and ChatGPT have reported “Get this app from Play” prompts, which cannot be worked around. An Android gaming handheld user encountered a similarly worded prompt from Diablo Immortal on their device three months ago.

Google’s Play Integrity API is how apps have previously blocked access when loaded onto phones that are in some way modified from a stock OS with all Google Play integrations intact. Recently, a popular two-factor authentication app blocked access on rooted phones, including the security-minded GrapheneOS. Apps can call the Play Integrity API and get back an “integrity verdict,” relaying if the phone has a “trustworthy” software environment, has Google Play Protect enabled, and passes other software checks.

Graphene has questioned the veracity of Google’s Integrity API and SafetyNet Attestation systems, recommending instead standard Android hardware attestation. Rahman notes that apps do not have to take an all-or-nothing approach to integrity checking. Rather than block installation entirely, apps could call on the API only during sensitive actions, issuing a warning there. But not having a Play Store connection can also deprive developers of metrics, allow for installation on incompatible devices (and resulting bad reviews), and, of course, open the door to paid app piracy.

  • penquin@lemm.eeEnglish
    41·
    3 months ago

    What’s the point of having an android phone then? I fucking hate android so much, but I only use it, not iOS, because of sideloading. Of If they take that away from us then why not just get an iPhone then? Our only hope is Linux phones picking up a little.

    • lemme in@lemm.eeOPEnglish
      12·
      3 months ago

      This is just Google’s clever way of not removing the sideloading feature from their OS.

      They let app developers to prevent users from using sideloaded app.

      This way they can avoid antitrust lawsuits.

      • penquin@lemm.eeEnglish
        2·
        3 months ago

        I have high hopes for apps like lucky patcher and Revanced manager to help us avoid this bullshit

    • Peruvian_Skies@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
      83·
      3 months ago

      One reason would be that with an iPhone, you’re paying two to five times the price of an Android phone with comparable hardware.

      • whats_all_this_then@lemmy.worldEnglish
        41·
        3 months ago

        Hardware isn’t everything. Apple has a couple of advantages over iPhone that let them do more with less:

        • iOS needs to support a MUCH fewer devices than Android. Even before they switched to their own silicon, they’ve been optimizing the OS to the hardware really well giving you devices that go toe to toe with Android flagships of the same generation with SIGNIFICANTLY better hardware and like double the RAM. Also why Apple doesn’t really care to increase RAM as much as the android side of things.
        • Apple silicon is actually really good and making their own hardware allows them to optimize on both sides of the equation and lets them do more with less.

        The selling points for Android (at least the way I’ve seen it over the years) have always been full control (talking about non-root, I’d rather not go down the root rabbit hole here) and (since iPhone 11 started doing firmware blocks on parts) reparability…but both seem to be going out the window lately.

        Prices are crap though, but then again Android phones on the top end don’t seem much better. 1-2 gen old iPhones are usually a bit more reasonable though tbh.

      • penquin@lemm.eeEnglish
        1·
        3 months ago

        I do the same on android, as I have always owned a Samsung Note/Ultra. Only this year have I purchased a OnePlus phone, and I’ll never fucking do it again, I hate this phone so much. Going back to Samsung for sure once the S25 Ultra drops.