Blocking of unverified apps on Android starts in Brazil and other three countries

Google’s new arrangement for installing unverified apps on Android takes effect this Thursday (Oct. 1st) here in Brazil. Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand are also among the first countries to be affected. F-Droid and other free and/or Google-independent initiatives have been raising a ruckus over the changes. They are, indeed, an extra hurdle for apps distributed without Google’s blessing. Verifying an app means identifying yourself to Google, which — understandably — many developers don’t want to do. Heads-up! In July, Google announced that the first phase, running from now through 2027, will only affect apps distributed through specific stores: its own Play Store, Honor, Oppo, Samsung, Transsion, Vivo/Jovi, and Xiaomi. In other words, F-Droid got a breather until 2027. What a mess! I covered the story [pt_BR] here at Manual before Google unveiled the so-called “advanced flow” for enabling the phone to install unverified apps. The flow, as per Google, works like this: Enable…