If you haven’t seen this yet, Google is planning to require mandatory developer identity verification for all Android apps, including apps distributed outside the Play Store, taking effect September 2026. This affects every independent and open source Android developer directly.
This is not just about the Play Store. After September 2026, on any certified Android device, applications from unverified developers will be blocked by default. The only proposed bypass, the “advanced flow”, exists only as a blog post and has not appeared in any beta, dev preview, or canary release. No one outside Google has seen it.
The community has been fighting back at keepandroidopen.org:
- Read the full breakdown of what this means
- Sign the open letter (organisations only)
- Contact your national regulators — contacts listed by country on the site
- Add the countdown banner to your project
September 2026 is closer than it looks. The time to push back is now.
People don’t get it: it doesn’t matter Graphene or LineageOS. Its still Android and will still be bound to the same limitations, unless you go fully degoogled which means give up on internet banking, cardless payments and government apps. (And much more like m Donalds app and more… But I don’t care for those)
We need open trust platform not one controlled by Google, Graphene or lineage are just not valid alternatives. We need a Linux phone.
People should just stop being so addicted to convenience.
Quit internet banking and cardless payments.
For me its maps. Getting directions is mostly why im still on /e/. I would love a linux phone! But im stuck at the moment.
I don’t care for cardless payments, but I do use internet banking, you cannot do without at least here, and government apps too are useful and doing with out is just… Impossible.
Mobile banking is mandatory here, if not able to do mobile banking then you can use non free SMS messages, which sucks.
Government apps mandatory I mean that without, you are cut from most digital government services, which is not practical at all. Survivable, but a pain.
This is the route I’ve gone, also if you think any bank, or government is going to suddenly support a Linux phone I’ve got bad news
Given an open certification process anybody could apply and achieve that, at least in theory. Something that with play integrity you cannot being obscured and proprietary.
So who knows, maybe one day even a Linux phone could. But not unless we get an open certification approach.
https://grapheneos.social/@GrapheneOS/116261301913660830
Not sure if it applies to users only or to developers making apps too. Anyone knows?
For now a linux phone will still lack native banking apps, cardless payment and government apps. Unless the app can run on a degoogled OS (Graphene, waydroid, etc.).
By open trust platform do you mean something akin to play protect?
Yes an alternative to play protect/play integrity… But at very least not vendor locked
Graphenes is degoogled and can support play services in a locked down environment so it doesn’t have full control of your entire system. Play services is what is expected to be used to do the verification process.
While play services are mandatory for play cartification, the opposite is not automatic. In fact, bootloader and device fingerprint play an important role and when you replace the stock OS usually play integrity fails by design.
Do you know first hand that you can achieve play integrity with Graphene and no strange tricks like spoof signature or root?