Google Plans To Exempt Sanctioned Nations From Android Developer Verification (arstechnica.com) 28
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: We are a month away from the initial rollout of Google's Android developer verification system, and the company contends this policy does not impinge on the platform's open nature. Still, the restrictions will be a big change, and there are still some unanswered questions. An issue that has come up repeatedly in the run-up to verification is what will happen to devs who can't verify because of where they live. It turns out that Google has a cryptic answer for that buried in an FAQ. Developer verification will soon block the installation of apps from unverified developers on any Android device running Google services, which is functionally all Android phones outside Russia and China. Developers who want to keep releasing software, even if it's not in the Play Store, have to provide Google with their ID and pay a small fee.
But what if you're an Android developer living in a sanctioned nation? Currently, the U.S. sanction list includes Iran, Cuba, North Korea, and occupied areas of Ukraine. Given the current uncertain state of US foreign policy, that list could change in the future. Google doing any business with developers in those places is a thorny issue, and it seems like the company has decided to just leave them hanging. A rather lengthy FAQ a few levels deep on the Google developer site addresses various issues around dev verification. Smack in the middle is this: "How does this program impact developers in sanctioned countries? Devices in sanctioned countries will be excluded from Android developer verification checks. This allows any developer to continue distributing apps in these regions without verification, though users there won't benefit from the enhanced security benefits of the program."
[...] A Google spokesperson has expanded on the FAQ and confirmed to Ars that people living in sanctioned nations will not be allowed to go through the verification process. That means they will not be able to effectively distribute software through any channel internationally. Today, someone making an app in, say, Cuba can distribute it freely around the world, as well as at home. Anyone can install it and see their work in action after tapping through a few sideloading alerts. In the coming months, that will no longer be the case. These unverified apps will only be easily installable in the sanctioned countries where verification doesn't exist.
But what if you're an Android developer living in a sanctioned nation? Currently, the U.S. sanction list includes Iran, Cuba, North Korea, and occupied areas of Ukraine. Given the current uncertain state of US foreign policy, that list could change in the future. Google doing any business with developers in those places is a thorny issue, and it seems like the company has decided to just leave them hanging. A rather lengthy FAQ a few levels deep on the Google developer site addresses various issues around dev verification. Smack in the middle is this: "How does this program impact developers in sanctioned countries? Devices in sanctioned countries will be excluded from Android developer verification checks. This allows any developer to continue distributing apps in these regions without verification, though users there won't benefit from the enhanced security benefits of the program."
[...] A Google spokesperson has expanded on the FAQ and confirmed to Ars that people living in sanctioned nations will not be allowed to go through the verification process. That means they will not be able to effectively distribute software through any channel internationally. Today, someone making an app in, say, Cuba can distribute it freely around the world, as well as at home. Anyone can install it and see their work in action after tapping through a few sideloading alerts. In the coming months, that will no longer be the case. These unverified apps will only be easily installable in the sanctioned countries where verification doesn't exist.
Sanctions working as expected (Score:2)
You can't help it that your country is sanctioned, but this is what sanctions mean... It's a very broad weapon and hits indiscriminately.
You can hardly blame Google for that. What you can blame them for is being a monopoly which, if remedied, would also possibly make the sanctions less useful.
Re: (Score:2)
I'm not sure they do work, though. All they seem to do is cement an unfriendly regime's power and make us out to be enemies in the eyes of their people.
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I'm not sure they do work, though.
There are two ways sanctions work:
1: They are a negative economic factor. Over the long term, growth will be slower, meaning their army will grow relatively weaker and weaker. Biden tried to use this method of sanctions. The obvious example is North Korea.
2: An outright blockade. This can severely damage the economy, which is what happened in Gaza and Trump is trying to do in Iran (with apparent success, although it's hard to untangle the various factors there).
All they seem to do is cement an unfriendly regime's power and make us out to be enemies in the eyes of their people.
When the dictator controls the press, ther
Re:Sanctions working as expected (Score:5, Insightful)
> You can hardly blame Google for that
You can, actually, blame Google for implementing an unnecessary code signing requirement that only works if Google is allowed to do business in your country.
Also, well done Google! You've just given millions of people entirely legitimate reasons to find workarounds your attempt to lock up Android, and entire Nation States a legitimate excuse to hack your operating system, or even ban it and support free forks.
Re: (Score:3)
It is safer to piss off a few developers/users than to face the wrath of the US government.
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You sanction nations, not people, otherwise it's "racism". It is also pointless because people in general do not influence policy short-term, for that you have to hit elites. But you can't because that'd be opening season on yourself.
So it's all empty posturing also known as international law.
Re:Sanctions working as expected (Score:4, Insightful)
You can blame them. As a developer you are able to build a system that is always the same to all people, e.g., by just not using mechanisms that can block installations. Then a sanction doesn't do anything, as if there is no list of allowed actors, then there is no list where sanctioned ones can be removed from. For every control (surveillance, etc.) mechanism in software and hardware, there was an engineer who put it in there.
Last Android? (Score:4, Interesting)
The idea of having to go through this all over again is bad enough that I've pretty much dropped the idea of looking for a new phone. Coupled with this additional nonsense? The next phone will be dumb or 2nd-hand.
Re: (Score:2)
Maybe some company starts maintaining a fork of android and an open store. Current ROMs have problems from if the hardware can be unlocked over how complicated it is to get the ROM on there, to how to get people to know they exist and finally no company being motivated to put their app in other stores than the Google appstore. Amazon at least managed to run a second appstore for some time, but they also gave up on that.
Exempt from verification? (Score:5, Funny)
How can I move to North Korea?
Re: (Score:3)
Re: Exempt from verification? (Score:2)
You just made my day
Re: Exempt from verification? (Score:3)
Re:Exempt from verification? (Score:5, Funny)
How can I move to North Korea?
Carrying a 20 kilo bag of rice in your arms usually facilitates an intial friendly reception.
You can still get around it (Score:2)
Eventually assuming all goes as planned they will take that feature away once they get Europe under control and get their people in charge over there. Europe can see that coming but it's going to be hard to stop it because frankly America just has too much money
Re: (Score:2)
You greatly underestimate the EU. I know it's hard to imagine politicians that aren't working for corporations first, but the way the EU is set up it's very difficult for them to gain traction. Look at all the pissing and moaning about GDPR, RoHS and so forth. The EU made it happen anyway.
So at least for Europeans that option to side-load any app we want isn't going away. What's more, Google is now required to allow third party app stores on Google Play, and I think it's only a matter of time until those st
Re: (Score:2)
You greatly underestimate the EU. I know it's hard to imagine politicians that aren't working for corporations first, but the way the EU is set up it's very difficult for them to gain traction. Look at all the pissing and moaning about GDPR, RoHS and so forth. The EU made it happen anyway.
This isn't saying much. GDPR has improved neither privacy nor security. EU regulation has the same effectiveness of CA cancer warnings.
Re: (Score:2)
You greatly underestimate the EU.
It greatly overestimates its intelligence and ability to function as a human being.
Re: (Score:2)
That's the whole point: The stores can sign the apps, but Google needs to sign the developer keys. As it currently looks the implementation will mainly be that on devices with play services (and in particular play protect), the services will disable apps that are not from developers that identified themselves to google.
Tortious interference (Score:4)
It is none of Google's business what software any of us run on our own computers.
Re: (Score:2)
This is true. And if you don't use any Google services with an alternate firmware, you still can.
Developer verification is enforced through Google Play Services, even for apps that are installed from other sources. It's a pretty neat way of allowing third-party app stores while still guaranteeing their cut.
Re: (Score:3)
. It's a pretty neat way of allowing third-party app stores while still guaranteeing their cut.
It should be illegal.
Ahh! (Score:3)
Now it becomes clearer, what the main goal is. Not just accountability and the option to retract dangerous apps, but full control over who can create software for Android.
Nonsensical headline and summary (Score:2)
Google is not allowed to do business at all in sanctioned nations, so devs there can't even access Google Play Services in the first place, which is where the developer verification takes places. No Google services, no Google Play, no Play Services, no developer verification. So there's no "exemption" at play. Surely Google never said any such thing as the headline and summary imply. By this logic, LineageOS or Android OSP without gapps installed is exempted from Google's developer verification program t
Work-around (Score:2)
So, change Locale-Country in Android settings, VPN into selected country, then download desired applets. It's strange to think censorship is driving people INTO a 'rogue' nation.
It's also interesting that Google is working to maintain market dominance in sanctioned nations, even though they can't (legally) sell anything.