• @yeather@lemmy.ca
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    1810 months ago

    It shows every time you try and sideload a different app. Overall it’s probably a good idea but unlike every other warning on android there is no option to silence it forever.

    • @moody
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      910 months ago

      Honestly, I don’t really see an issue with that. It seems no more annoying than Windows UAC or Linux sudo popups. It’s a reminder that your app may have some behavior that you wouldn’t expect from the regular sources. Mainly that it may not get regular updates along with the rest of the apps on your phone.

      Of all the annoying things that Google and Android do this is pretty minor.

      • Kairos
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        10 months ago

        Yeah because the infinite malware available on the play store is so much safer

    • deweydecibel
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      10 months ago

      It’s also very obviously an attempt by Google to scare non-tech savvy people away from third party app stores and sideloading. Regardless of the actual risks involved, it’s very beneficial to their bottom line if people fear anything “unofficial”, so they’re going to maximize every chance to reinforce that fear. A tactic Apple and Microsoft also use to great effect.

      • @Ottomateeverything@lemmy.world
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        210 months ago

        Shame on Google where shame is due, but I don’t think this is it.

        There are actual risks here. You could end up here without realizing what you’re doing. The action itself is kind of scary so any messaging around it is inherently going to be scary.

        That said, Google is much more open about allowing these doors to remain open than their competition. And they don’t have nearly as much fear mongering about these things than their competition. Sure, it would help their bottom line too, but this one actually has some credibility. But you could say that about almost any decision - that doesn’t mean it’s “obviously an attempt to…”

        Let’s burn Google at the stake for lots of the shit they do, but this ain’t it.

      • @BearOfaTime@lemm.ee
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        110 months ago

        It also adds FUD, masking the issue of the play store being the greatest distributor of malware

      • Justin
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        10 months ago

        But for example, the only official download page for “AccuWeather” is the Google Play Store. Downloading apps from unofficial sources is a common avenue for malware. If you are installing an apk from something that’s not the official page for that app, you had better know what you’re doing.

        I don’t think this shows up if you’re trying to download an update to an F-Droid app, or even F-Droid itself, since those apps don’t use this feature.

        I think Google Play Protect uploading all your sideloaded apps is a bigger issue than showing a warning for unofficial downloads of official apps.

        The only risk I see is that maybe this could be annoying for Aurora Store users, but I would think there’s some bypass for people with degoogled roms.

        • @Lojcs@lemm.ee
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          110 months ago

          Except you can’t update an app at all if the new apk was modified and thus its signature doesn’t match with the installed one. The only thing it’s trying to ‘protect’ from is updating from other sources

      • HubertManne
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        010 months ago

        I mean if someone is sideloading apps I think we have to admit a bit of tech savvyness

        • @Ottomateeverything@lemmy.world
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          010 months ago

          I strongly disagree. You can literally just search like “xxx app free” and find a link to download it and click “open”. I wouldn’t consider that tech savvy at all.

          • HubertManne
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            110 months ago

            that actually is dangerous though and should spark a warning. Man I don’t even remember the time when it was relatively safe to just search an app and install it.