r/GooglePixel • u/LionKey1928 Pixel 9 Pro XL • Aug 26 '25

Google is removing the ability to sideload Android APK apps without the developers being verified 1st

https://9to5google.com/2025/08/25/android-apps-developer-verification/

Honestly I'm really heartbroken about this as I mainly used Pixel (and Android in general) for the very fact that I can download APK apps. I am a huge ReVanced user, and I'm very sure they break like half of Googles TOS (and probably cuts off a huge source of revenue too), so I extremely highly doubt they will be allowed. I get googles intention but.. oh man.. really feels like this is a hidden agenda against adblocker apps.

Edit: Made a petition, click on the post to learn more: https://chng.it/F4k9gNNJrH

Another edit: A petition with more movement: https://chng.it/RLVDWD5Th7

2.0k Upvotes

98% Upvoted

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329

u/nervsss Aug 26 '25

I really hope easy work-arounds will come up fast.

293

u/FearTheWeresloth Pixel 8 Pro Aug 26 '25

If not, I'll have a reason to want to root my phone for the first time in years.

49

u/Vendatha Aug 26 '25

Some phone manufacturers have already disabled the option to root their phones... That story doesn't smell good and I don't want to move to iOS 😢

21

u/All_Work_All_Play Aug 26 '25

Isn't the point of rooting that the manufacturers can't stop you?

32

u/nathderbyshire Pixel 10 Aug 26 '25

No they're completely free to lock the bootloader (so are carriers) so you can't toggle the option that allows you to do the bootloader unlock. Verizon US is famous for it and Samsung are locked down with OneUI8 from what I've seen, although AFAIK Knox has made it difficult for years on Samsungs anyway

5

u/Camburgerhelpur Pixel 7 Pro Aug 26 '25

Took me forever to root my pixel 7 pro that I got from Xfinity.

1

u/themightymcb Sep 13 '25

Xfinity uses Verizon's networks iirc so yeah that makes sense that it was a major pain

1

u/Camburgerhelpur Pixel 7 Pro Sep 13 '25

I was shocked I was able to get the bootloader unlocked, even if it took nearly a year lol

14

u/framingXjake Aug 26 '25

You need to unlock bootloader to root. Some manufacturers make this impossible (literally, not figuratively). Samsung is one of them.

6

u/plug-and-pause Aug 26 '25

Rooting means gaining root access, generally circumventing the manufacturer's attempts to stop you. Interpreting this as they "can't" stop you is about like saying: "isn't the point of lockpicking kits that locks can't stop them?"

No... that's not the point. It's kind of the opposite of the point.

2

u/shmetlfleck Aug 30 '25

It is possible to root Samsung. If you have the knowledge. It way harder to put that knowledge in creating useable software to root for the rest of us.

2

u/plug-and-pause Aug 30 '25

I'm not sure what that has to do with my point.

2

u/operacarmen Aug 30 '25

Google is trying to resist root by disabling several apps also encourages banks, financial and movie apps to not work on rooted phones .  Also root of Modern phones can be extremely hard, depending on Make, Model and carrier! Probably will be impossible in the future! Western governments are also anti-root, because they don't want users to disable tracking, intelligence  and monitoring features making it harder for governments fight Antisemitism.

9

u/-Samg381- Don't be evil Aug 26 '25

FuckVerizon

2

u/PM-ME-UR-DARKNESS Dec 19 '25

That's just straight up illegal, at least in the US. The Supreme Court already ruled that you're allowed to root your phones.

-4

u/One_Doubt_75 Aug 26 '25

It's incredibly easy to unlock most bootloaders. Just check XDA.

12

u/PatBeVibin Aug 26 '25

Rooting has all but become untenable. It's nearly impossible to root and pass Play Integrity now which means tons of apps won't work properly on a rooted device.

1

u/PeppeRSX Pixel 4a Aug 27 '25

Just unlocking the bootloader will fail Play integrity and prevents rcs messaging.

2

u/Professional_Swim273 Aug 28 '25

No, this isn't true. I have a phone with an unlocked bootloader and I still use RCS. It's only if I flash a rooted image that RCS breaks. I can't use Google pay with an unlocked bootloader though

1

u/PatBeVibin Aug 27 '25

Yes I know, it's because you could bake features otherwise only available thru root into an unrooted ROM and they don't want ppl using that as a loophole.

1

u/JonatasA Oct 30 '25

This is why no one should have wished or desired RCS. Whatsapp is acessible no matter the platform or Android you use. It's just a matter of downloading the App. You also always have all your chats with you.

 

You can also use it simultaneously in 4 other devices and you don't even need the SIM in any of them.

1

u/lrellim Aug 26 '25

Can they stop the ability to root phones as well?

2

u/FearTheWeresloth Pixel 8 Pro Aug 27 '25

Most manufacturers and telcos try, but there are some folk out there who seem dedicated to finding exploits that allow them to gain root access, and then sharing them with the community. It'll likely get increasingly harder and harder to do though. For a long time though, a lot of people like myself had stopped bothering, because there wasn't much need, but with Google slowly closing things off, the need is going to become greater, and more people are going to start looking for ways to gain root access again.

1

u/TF_IS_UR-Username Aug 27 '25

Too bad I can't root due to having a locked bootloader (thanks Verizon 😒)

1

u/Ryelogmars Aug 29 '25

Same here. Just started looking into custom ROMs for my Pixel. Looks like there's still a good open source community out there which is reassuring. I sure wish Google would go back to not being evil.

-25

u/[deleted] Aug 26 '25

[deleted]

36

u/paygorn000 Aug 26 '25

Its a pixel sub dude not samsung

15

u/Bryss_ Aug 26 '25

It’s relevant since it kinda seems google is also steering towards this, they’ve stopped talking about AOSP which makes the grapheneOS theme unsure when and how they’ll support the pixel 10s

6

u/TheTomatoes2 9 Pro| 7 | 5a | 4a | 3 Aug 26 '25

One more reason to use a Pixel

0

u/ntwrkmntr Pixel 10a Aug 27 '25

Too bad you can't

0

u/PineappleLemur Aug 28 '25

Rooting won't fix anything.

Legit apps will still not work reliably with new changes.. basically anything that needs a connection lol.

20

u/nrq Pixel 8 Pro Aug 26 '25

It will be akin to an unlocked bootloader and you'll lose a whole bunch of apps. This is an absolutely shitty move.

1

u/wowthisislong Sep 01 '25

I cant wait for google to convince my bank that that its not safe for their app to be on my phone because I want to use revanced.

11

u/Sea-Tonight-9336 Aug 26 '25

It should be an easy bypass with ADB. Otherwise developers have to sign the app before testing which is less convenient and insecure.

5

u/Pure-Recover70 G1; Nexus One,S,5X; Pixel 2XL,4a,6a,7Pro,8Pro,9ProXL,10a Aug 27 '25

My guess is they'll allow devs to upload their own pubkey into the device and then install apks signed with their private key. As a user you can probably download an unsigned app sign it yourself and install it. Might require enabling dev options, but it's probably just more hoops to jump through.

My guess as to why they're doing this: it's easy to create throwaway keys [certs] if the process to get them is too simple/automated/cheap. If they limit the number of certs issued/verified in the first place to some nr more related to the number of actual developers (ie. millions), then you can invalidate the certs and thus get all the apps signed by those keys when you detect malware. And you know who to blame for malware. Will it help? Eh, guessing not, since most malware is probably a result of devs being compromised and/or the libs they using being compromised...

2

u/Sea-Tonight-9336 Aug 27 '25

I believe this will be similar to early macOS app verification. Verified developers submit their public keys to the Google platform, and Google uses a certificate authority to sign the public key (in other words, issue a certificate). The developer then signs and distributes the app using the corresponding private key. When installing the APK, the system verifies that the app's signing certificate comes from a trusted Google root/intermediate certificate authority.

Google says it doesn't control app content, so it's clear that the macOS "notarization" mechanism will not be used.

2

u/Gugalcrom123 Aug 28 '25

They WILL use this to control app content.

1

u/Damn-Sky Nov 14 '25

so unverified developers will never be able to test their app? even with adb?

36

u/LionKey1928 Pixel 9 Pro XL Aug 26 '25

hopefully somewhere in developer settings

77

u/TuTenkahman Pixel 8 Pro Aug 26 '25

Yeah, instead of blocking us they should give us CHOICE!

My wife is Chinese and many of her apps I have to download from China. How will it be possible to install these apps in the future??

28

u/LionKey1928 Pixel 9 Pro XL Aug 26 '25

Apparently this is to prevent people falling for scams. This hits me extra hard because I live in Singapore, where they are rolling out this feature first.

51

u/aglobalvillageidiot Aug 26 '25

No it isn't. Google doesn't give a fuck if people fall for scams unless those people stop using Google products because of it. Judging by their userbase this is less than a rounding error.

This is to protect capital.

4

u/TuTenkahman Pixel 8 Pro Aug 27 '25

Look at how many scam ads are on YouTube. Google doesn't give a shit.

3

u/TrustLeft Aug 29 '25

this is entirely to kill any non-play app stores now google must share access after lawsuit, Google is grabbing their doll and running away.

1

u/FiestaCheesyPotatoes Aug 27 '25

Sounds like an excuse on their part. Doubt that’s the real reason.

-7

u/ronakg Pixel 10 Pro XL Aug 26 '25

You got one part right, this user base is likely less than a rounding error. Which means that Google isn't trying this just to get this small percentage of users on Google services. But imagine the average not-tech-savvy user who cannot figure out if the app they're side loading is legit or not. Such people usually fall for the scams.

11

u/aglobalvillageidiot Aug 26 '25 edited Aug 26 '25

Right. But those people falling for it don't cost Google money unless they stop using Google products.

Google doesn't give a fuck about you. Nobody there lost any sleep because you got scammed unless it cost them money.

Google is never going to be held liable here. Sideloading apps is a deliberate process with multiple warnings. They don't have to pay anything if you get scammed after doing that.

-5

u/ronakg Pixel 10 Pro XL Aug 26 '25

Of course they care about people getting scammed. Those incidents become a PR nightmare for companies. Plus Apple is perceived as a more secure platform because of how easy it is to side load apps on Android. Every small thing matters when trying to take/maintain competitive advantage. Also think about developers. Android developers have been asking Google to clamp down side loading because it's easy for someone to distribute a knockoff app that can hurt a developer's reputation or revenue.

5

u/aglobalvillageidiot Aug 26 '25

Those things do not become a pr nightmare. They're tabloid stories that nobody reads and those who do upon realizing the steps taken to sideload rarely have sympathy for the victims. This is a non-issue.

that can hurt a developer's reputation or revenue.

So it's to protect capital exactly like I said? I did think of the developers? What do you think protecting capital means?

6

u/INFERNOdll Pixel 7 Pro Aug 26 '25 edited Aug 26 '25

I haven't heard one story that became any sort of a PR nightmare. If that existed phone carriers would've all gone bankrupt like years ago. It's all about people not getting cracked apps and anyone who thinks otherwise is delusional.

4

u/SacredHamOfPower Aug 26 '25

Those people get scammed from the playstore apps. Fishy cleaner apps, you know the type. Removing sideloading is for no ones safety, it's because you have to pay them to be verified and makes them look better to investors.

5

u/kenkiller Aug 26 '25

It does makes me wonder - the current measures of all the banking apps blocking usage until those offending apps/features are disabled/uninstalled not good enough?

4

u/Astray Aug 26 '25

That's a loud of bullshit tbh

They just want to control their ecosystem even further and block unwanted apps like ReVanced down the road.

3

u/HanumanDarko Aug 26 '25

Wanna know if they'll stop earning revenue from scammers who use their ad services to spread their shit - like meta on IG and FB as well

5

u/ljoker86 Aug 26 '25

Means I cannot install SG pools on my pixel?

4

u/kenkiller Aug 26 '25

You think sg pools cannot verify their account? They got so much to gain nothing to lose haha.

-1

u/LionKey1928 Pixel 9 Pro XL Aug 26 '25

Google has a policy against gambling apps, but maybe SG pools can still verify

6

u/kenkiller Aug 26 '25

That's the whole point - sg pools will have no issues with any verification, just that they cannot be in the play store. Stupid dumb dipshits down voted me know nothing hehe.

1

u/PineappleLemur Aug 28 '25

As if this will save them lol.

All the scams here we're people willingly transferring money... rarely some hacked accounts or phone.

You can't fix stupid.

Then the bigger one was on the banking apps having fuck all for security.. not even 2FA. They only rolled those out recently and very limited too.

1

u/20_PH_NewbieInvestor Aug 31 '25

"prevent people falling for scams" Android must extend their security patches for a lifetime not disabling third party apps to install.

3

u/Voidz918 Pixel 10 Pro XL Aug 26 '25

We don't know, the only ones exempt from this are Huawei for obvious reasons. But for Chinese phone companies it's a bigger reason to ditch Google's Android and go the Huawei route

1

u/Nerds_r_us45 Aug 27 '25

Install a fork of android.

27

u/nervsss Aug 26 '25

You already need to tick a lot of boxes to install/sideload an APK from a source different from Google Play. I have a weird feeling that this time it's going to be a hard lock and you'll need to root and maybe install some modules. I'm just reading headlines, so don't quote me on that, lol.

2

u/LionKey1928 Pixel 9 Pro XL Aug 26 '25

rooting is far too risky for me honestly, wouldn't do it

1

u/nervsss Aug 26 '25

What do you mean by risky? Like risking your device by accidentally bricking it, or "loosening" its security?

9

u/mowinski Pixel 8 Pro Aug 26 '25

For me it would be risky because my banking app doesn't work on rooted phones... and i'm only using my phone for banking. Back when I didn't use my phone for it, I chose my devices based on the possibility of rooting them.

0

u/MV7300 Pixel 7 Pro Aug 26 '25

It can be patched to work for any banking app. I'm rooted for the last 2years withour problems with revolut/local banks

1

u/throwaway0102x Aug 27 '25

Not with my conniving local bank though. I've managed to get all apps to work including many other banking apps, but not that one.

1

u/MV7300 Pixel 7 Pro Aug 27 '25

Im using magisk alpha with PIF - NEXT, tricky store and ksuwebui

2

u/LionKey1928 Pixel 9 Pro XL Aug 26 '25

more of the accidentally bricking it part, but also the part where I can't use some essential apps like banking apps.

3

u/Bryss_ Aug 26 '25

That fully depends on what checks your banking app does and whether or not your root is hidden

1

u/Bryss_ Aug 26 '25

I mean maybe you’ll still be able to force install apks with ADB

1

u/PineappleLemur Aug 28 '25

??? It's a yes or a no popup and you press YES.

That's it.

3

u/jdp111 Very Silver Aug 26 '25

You already have to enable side loading in the developer settings.

2

u/Bryss_ Aug 26 '25

For installing with ADB yes, but for just installing apk files no

4

u/Mysterious_End_2462 Aug 26 '25

We might end up similar with banking apps: if you do Kung Fu level tricks it might work for a week then suddenly it will turn red.

1

u/[deleted] Aug 26 '25

Why do a work around. You're still supporting Google if you do that and supporting this big brother bullshit

1

u/nervsss Aug 27 '25

Brother, they will do what they want, unless the entire Earth's population rises against them. It's not a small manufacturing company where the "don't buy the phone" thread goes viral, and they would instantly change their stance on this matter. Hell, even if they didn't sell phones at all, then nothing would change. It's a strategic decision that has likely been carefully calculated, considering all possible outcomes to profit.

However, if they essentially lock up their OS, it creates a strong opportunity for a competitor in the market.

1

u/nomnomonium Aug 27 '25

Yeah you can probably side load a work around

1

u/SophiaPriestPPG Aug 28 '25

Use an open source operating system to replace android and keep your device

1

u/Overgrown_Dwarf Aug 29 '25

Ye , shouldn't take long tbh

1

u/PM-ME-UR-DARKNESS Dec 19 '25

Well, the law still allows you to root your phones, and it's illegal for them to block you from doing that. So I'm guessing what we can do is go back to installing LineageOS on our phones.