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> F-Droid is different. It distributes apps that have been validated to work for the user’s interests, rather than for the interests of the app’s distributors.

> F-Droid is different. It distributes apps that have been validated to work for the user’s interests, rather than for the interests of the app’s distributors. F-Droid's curation saved me at least once when I wanted to upgrade my Simple™ apps and couldn't find them in F-Droid anymore, which led me to learn that SimpleMobileTools was sold to a company that closed sourced the apps[1] and that there's a free fork called Fossify[2]. Had I installed these through Google Play, they wouldn't have cared about this particular change and I would've gotten whatever random upgrades the new owners pushed. Each app store's policies have their pros and cons, but that's why it's so important to have a diversity of marketplaces. [1] https://github.com/SimpleMobileTools/General-Discussion/issues/241 https://github.com/SimpleMobileTools/General-Discussion/issu... [2] https://github.com/FossifyOrg https://github.com/FossifyOrg

getpokedagain 1y ago
This sort of application acquisition game happens on ios as well and is part of the reason I am experimenting with a graphene OS phone sans any Google. I guess daddy Google is trying to come fuck me too.
Sarky 1y ago
I used Simple apps in the past but lost track of them. Now i know why. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. Indeed we need diversity of the ecosystems.
- amelius 1y ago
  Yes, and it is crazy that Apple/Google want us to think that AppStore, OS and ContentFilter are not mutually orthogonal concepts.
jackstraw42 1y ago
> F-Droid's curation saved me at least once when I wanted to upgrade my Simple™ apps and couldn't find them in F-Droid anymore, which led me to learn that SimpleMobileTools was sold to a company that closed sourced the apps[1] and that there's a free fork called Fossify[2]. > Had I installed these through Google Play, they wouldn't have cared about this particular change and I would've gotten whatever random upgrades the new owners pushed. sheesh. I've spent my whole mobile device life on iOS and am just now learning an Android device. While I feel I have more control over the finer details of my personal privacy and security, this ecosystem is a total minefield if you care about avoiding spyware and malware. I'm glad I trusted my instincts and only installed F-Droid first before any apps from the Play Store. Just now found the Isolation app so I can create a Work Profile and separate personal life from the life that the relentless data vacuums are constantly trying to pull from the simplest apps these days. Neither mobile OS is perfect, but I feel like I was correct about Apple having the user's personal privacy still much more of a priority than Google. There was never any question if those were the two options, IMO. But it does seems like now, finally, Android might be ready to deploy as a mobile operating system for the public. I'm fairly certain that this Android ecosystem that's used its users for so long as guinea pigs (not just Android, but the full unrefined and frankly unsophisticated media sphere as a whole that's been figuring out how to effectively work on us) has harmed the last generation or two beyond repair. This became all too clear when the first thing I did on my first Android device a few weeks ago was install an offline keyboard from devs with my privacy interests in mind. Spent a few minutes thinking about what it would have been like living with this shitty keyboard system on iOS and realized that honestly, I am lucky that I stuck with iOS through all of this and feel like my mental health is much better than it would have been had I been fighting a malware-riddled Android device this whole time. edit: I'm not saying you shouldn't use Android or that it's a bad idea, I do think that it is solid enough now (and maybe has been for a while, I don't know) that I can safely protect myself after learning. But ask yourself if all Android users would take the time to properly learn? What about kids?
- vasco 1y ago
  Billions of people use android phones without malware, you are exagerating slightly.
  - array_key_first 1y ago
    Depends on your definition of malware. If you consider adware to be malware, which I personally do, then I would estimate close to zero Android phones are operating without malware.
  - jackstraw42 1y ago
    I don't really see how you can guarantee your Android phone doesn't have malware, I feel like you may be exaggerating here. I also don't mind the downvote, but if you would please tell me how you are able to guarantee your Android phone doesn't have malware, please tell me instead of hiding behind a downvote. Otherwise my solution is don't use an Android device. wow, downvotes on all three comments! thanks, stranger.
    - vasco 1y ago
      I didn't downvote you, and it's against the rules to focus on the voting anyway.
      - jackstraw42 1y ago
        Ok, thanks for saying that I guess. FYI I wasn't talking directly to you on the second line.
    - user_7832 1y ago
      > I don't really see how you can guarantee your Android phone doesn't have malware, I feel like you may be exaggerating here. Can you do it on an iPhone? (You can't.) Between android and ios, which platform is considered more secure or safer? It's not easy to find out directly, but bug bounty programs can be used as a heuristic. Guess which one it is, after both being the same for a long time? (It's android). You can check out https://www.wired.com/story/android-zero-day-more-than-ios-zerodium/ https://www.wired.com/story/android-zero-day-more-than-ios-z... and https://cyberscoop.com/ios-zero-day-zerodium-high-supply/ https://cyberscoop.com/ios-zero-day-zerodium-high-supply/ > I also don't mind the downvote, but if you would please tell me how you are able to guarantee your Android phone doesn't have malware, please tell me instead of hiding behind a downvote. Otherwise my solution is don't use an Android device. The same way you guarantee it on any other OS, be it windows or macos or linux. You do your best, don't download sketchy apps, and don't be a political figure. Of course that doesn't guarantee it, just makes it 99% likely. > Otherwise my solution is don't use an Android device. Do you think you can guarantee this on an iPhone? May I ask you how you are able to guarantee this on iOS? (I haven't downvoted you)
sans_souse 1y ago
Is Simple Gallery known to do anything shady now, behind the scenes? I had no idea it was sold either, and it's been my go to gallery app on all my devices for a long time. Just curious.
- GreenWatermelon 1y ago
  Fossify Gallery os a drop in replacement with no risk of data siphoning.
- eulgro 1y ago
  Uh, I was still using it up until today... I did block its Internet access though.
- tredre3 1y ago
  Simple Gallery Pro hasn't been updated since the takeover and doesn't even have the Internet Permission, so it is still perfectly safe to use. It is still superior to Fossify Gallery because of its proprietary photo/video editor (IMG.LY). Fossify's photo editor is extremely limited, and there's no video editor at all. If you don't use the editors (or if you're using the non-Pro Simple Gallery) then you should probably switch to Fossify now. If you do use the editors then you should probably disable automatic updates in Google Play, so you get a heads up if they ever push a shady update.
  - sans_souse 1y ago
    super helpful, thank you
- monyarm 1y ago
  This is how I found out my preferred gallery app is crap. I've switched to Fossify Gallery. Also, it's stupid that Simple Gallery just calls itself "Gallery" when it's installed. I almost didn't check.
goku12 1y ago
The SimpleMobileTools fiasco and the way FDroid stayed resilient against it is the perfect example case of how their 'security' argument behind the side loading ban and developer registration mandate is hollow, misleading and harmful.
- enriquto 1y ago
  please fix your ambiguous use of "their"... you mean google and apple, don't you?
  - goku12 1y ago
    Yes. I thought that was clear from the context. Unfortunately, it's no longer editable.
  - rudderdev 1y ago
    thank you for posting this, emotional roller coaster the parent comment was
disiplus 1y ago
This weekend I needed to send a few PNGs by email. They were huge, so I figured I’d just grab an image compressor from the Play Store. I checked out five different apps, each with millions of downloads. Every single one was riddled with data collection prompts and stuffed with ads. Fine, I thought, I’ll pay to remove the ads. But the options were: - “Free trial” that defaults into a $5/month subscription - Or a $19 “lifetime” purchase It’s so clearly designed to trick people into a recurring subscription for what’s essentially nothing. These apps are just wrappers around existing Android libraries. And if you check the reviews, they’re obviously bought. This was literally the first time in a year I tried to download something from the Play Store, and the experience was so bad I just gave up and solved it faster in the browser instead.
- Imustaskforhelp 1y ago
  Yes browser is a really good tool for utilities like this actually. But also I suppose that f-droid doesn't have paid reviews or well, everything in f-droid is mostly open source, so I am curious if there are apps in f-droid that could've well suited your need. I just search on whatever I want on duckduckgo,"open source X android app" or "open source alternativeto Y" or just directly trying to search it in f-droid too.
- brnt 1y ago
  This is why I find the thesis that Google and Apple are good stewards hilarious if not malicious. There is absolutely nothing safe about their app stores. Certainly not more safe than something like f-droid.
  - metadat 1y ago
    Are Google and Apple's stores safer than the open web? It really doesn't seem like it, in a lot of ways.
    - freedomben 1y ago
      I strongly don't think they are, because the ability to be invasive to the user with a native app is much higher. There is also a stronger financial incentive to do so since payments are easy. And that's before we consider the much stronger user control presented by the open web. I can run an extension like uMatrix and take back control of my browser. On mobile now I can't even proxy and inspect the network requests that the apps are making without resorting to insane hackery tricks. The more these things evolve, The more against native apps I am becoming.
tjpnz 1y ago
Google has a track record of turning a blind eye to malware and fraud delivered through their own channels. I like how F-Droid tackles them both - they've been my default app store for years at this point.
inanutshellus 1y ago
HA! I use the "Simple" apps as the poster child for my rants about apps kneecapping themselves on purpose. It's funny how the more one gets burned the more one becomes the kooky old fart the cliche requires us to be...
beezle 1y ago
Thank you for this info. I had no idea why a couple weeks ago the calendar app was suddenly needing to connect to the net on startup and then doing a splash ad. Will be installing the Fossify version shortly!
brendyn 1y ago
I had no idea fossify was fork. Until this moment I had apps from both of them, some orange, some green, but the calendar started bugging out by opening a different date to what I clicked on. I see my phone hasn't updated it since last year. Now finally I've deleted them all in favour of the fossify ones. Thanks.
cobertos 1y ago
I did the exact same research and came to the same conclusion. I wouldn't have been prompted to do it without F-Droid

getpokedagain 1y ago

This sort of application acquisition game happens on ios as well and is part of the reason I am experimenting with a graphene OS phone sans any Google. I guess daddy Google is trying to come fuck me too.

Sarky 1y ago

I used Simple apps in the past but lost track of them. Now i know why. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. Indeed we need diversity of the ecosystems.

amelius 1y ago
Yes, and it is crazy that Apple/Google want us to think that AppStore, OS and ContentFilter are not mutually orthogonal concepts.

jackstraw42 1y ago

> F-Droid's curation saved me at least once when I wanted to upgrade my Simple™ apps and couldn't find them in F-Droid anymore, which led me to learn that SimpleMobileTools was sold to a company that closed sourced the apps[1] and that there's a free fork called Fossify[2]. > Had I installed these through Google Play, they wouldn't have cared about this particular change and I would've gotten whatever random upgrades the new owners pushed. sheesh. I've spent my whole mobile device life on iOS and am just now learning an Android device. While I feel I have more control over the finer details of my personal privacy and security, this ecosystem is a total minefield if you care about avoiding spyware and malware. I'm glad I trusted my instincts and only installed F-Droid first before any apps from the Play Store. Just now found the Isolation app so I can create a Work Profile and separate personal life from the life that the relentless data vacuums are constantly trying to pull from the simplest apps these days. Neither mobile OS is perfect, but I feel like I was correct about Apple having the user's personal privacy still much more of a priority than Google. There was never any question if those were the two options, IMO. But it does seems like now, finally, Android might be ready to deploy as a mobile operating system for the public. I'm fairly certain that this Android ecosystem that's used its users for so long as guinea pigs (not just Android, but the full unrefined and frankly unsophisticated media sphere as a whole that's been figuring out how to effectively work on us) has harmed the last generation or two beyond repair. This became all too clear when the first thing I did on my first Android device a few weeks ago was install an offline keyboard from devs with my privacy interests in mind. Spent a few minutes thinking about what it would have been like living with this shitty keyboard system on iOS and realized that honestly, I am lucky that I stuck with iOS through all of this and feel like my mental health is much better than it would have been had I been fighting a malware-riddled Android device this whole time. edit: I'm not saying you shouldn't use Android or that it's a bad idea, I do think that it is solid enough now (and maybe has been for a while, I don't know) that I can safely protect myself after learning. But ask yourself if all Android users would take the time to properly learn? What about kids?

vasco 1y ago
Billions of people use android phones without malware, you are exagerating slightly.
- array_key_first 1y ago
  Depends on your definition of malware. If you consider adware to be malware, which I personally do, then I would estimate close to zero Android phones are operating without malware.
- jackstraw42 1y ago
  I don't really see how you can guarantee your Android phone doesn't have malware, I feel like you may be exaggerating here. I also don't mind the downvote, but if you would please tell me how you are able to guarantee your Android phone doesn't have malware, please tell me instead of hiding behind a downvote. Otherwise my solution is don't use an Android device. wow, downvotes on all three comments! thanks, stranger.
  - vasco 1y ago
    I didn't downvote you, and it's against the rules to focus on the voting anyway.
    - jackstraw42 1y ago
      Ok, thanks for saying that I guess. FYI I wasn't talking directly to you on the second line.
  - user_7832 1y ago
    > I don't really see how you can guarantee your Android phone doesn't have malware, I feel like you may be exaggerating here. Can you do it on an iPhone? (You can't.) Between android and ios, which platform is considered more secure or safer? It's not easy to find out directly, but bug bounty programs can be used as a heuristic. Guess which one it is, after both being the same for a long time? (It's android). You can check out https://www.wired.com/story/android-zero-day-more-than-ios-zerodium/ https://www.wired.com/story/android-zero-day-more-than-ios-z... and https://cyberscoop.com/ios-zero-day-zerodium-high-supply/ https://cyberscoop.com/ios-zero-day-zerodium-high-supply/ > I also don't mind the downvote, but if you would please tell me how you are able to guarantee your Android phone doesn't have malware, please tell me instead of hiding behind a downvote. Otherwise my solution is don't use an Android device. The same way you guarantee it on any other OS, be it windows or macos or linux. You do your best, don't download sketchy apps, and don't be a political figure. Of course that doesn't guarantee it, just makes it 99% likely. > Otherwise my solution is don't use an Android device. Do you think you can guarantee this on an iPhone? May I ask you how you are able to guarantee this on iOS? (I haven't downvoted you)

sans_souse 1y ago

Is Simple Gallery known to do anything shady now, behind the scenes? I had no idea it was sold either, and it's been my go to gallery app on all my devices for a long time. Just curious.

GreenWatermelon 1y ago
Fossify Gallery os a drop in replacement with no risk of data siphoning.
eulgro 1y ago
Uh, I was still using it up until today... I did block its Internet access though.
tredre3 1y ago
Simple Gallery Pro hasn't been updated since the takeover and doesn't even have the Internet Permission, so it is still perfectly safe to use. It is still superior to Fossify Gallery because of its proprietary photo/video editor (IMG.LY). Fossify's photo editor is extremely limited, and there's no video editor at all. If you don't use the editors (or if you're using the non-Pro Simple Gallery) then you should probably switch to Fossify now. If you do use the editors then you should probably disable automatic updates in Google Play, so you get a heads up if they ever push a shady update.
- sans_souse 1y ago
  super helpful, thank you
monyarm 1y ago
This is how I found out my preferred gallery app is crap. I've switched to Fossify Gallery. Also, it's stupid that Simple Gallery just calls itself "Gallery" when it's installed. I almost didn't check.

goku12 1y ago

The SimpleMobileTools fiasco and the way FDroid stayed resilient against it is the perfect example case of how their 'security' argument behind the side loading ban and developer registration mandate is hollow, misleading and harmful.

enriquto 1y ago
please fix your ambiguous use of "their"... you mean google and apple, don't you?
- goku12 1y ago
  Yes. I thought that was clear from the context. Unfortunately, it's no longer editable.
- rudderdev 1y ago
  thank you for posting this, emotional roller coaster the parent comment was

disiplus 1y ago

This weekend I needed to send a few PNGs by email. They were huge, so I figured I’d just grab an image compressor from the Play Store. I checked out five different apps, each with millions of downloads. Every single one was riddled with data collection prompts and stuffed with ads. Fine, I thought, I’ll pay to remove the ads. But the options were: - “Free trial” that defaults into a $5/month subscription - Or a $19 “lifetime” purchase It’s so clearly designed to trick people into a recurring subscription for what’s essentially nothing. These apps are just wrappers around existing Android libraries. And if you check the reviews, they’re obviously bought. This was literally the first time in a year I tried to download something from the Play Store, and the experience was so bad I just gave up and solved it faster in the browser instead.

Imustaskforhelp 1y ago
Yes browser is a really good tool for utilities like this actually. But also I suppose that f-droid doesn't have paid reviews or well, everything in f-droid is mostly open source, so I am curious if there are apps in f-droid that could've well suited your need. I just search on whatever I want on duckduckgo,"open source X android app" or "open source alternativeto Y" or just directly trying to search it in f-droid too.
brnt 1y ago
This is why I find the thesis that Google and Apple are good stewards hilarious if not malicious. There is absolutely nothing safe about their app stores. Certainly not more safe than something like f-droid.
- metadat 1y ago
  Are Google and Apple's stores safer than the open web? It really doesn't seem like it, in a lot of ways.
  - freedomben 1y ago
    I strongly don't think they are, because the ability to be invasive to the user with a native app is much higher. There is also a stronger financial incentive to do so since payments are easy. And that's before we consider the much stronger user control presented by the open web. I can run an extension like uMatrix and take back control of my browser. On mobile now I can't even proxy and inspect the network requests that the apps are making without resorting to insane hackery tricks. The more these things evolve, The more against native apps I am becoming.

tjpnz 1y ago

Google has a track record of turning a blind eye to malware and fraud delivered through their own channels. I like how F-Droid tackles them both - they've been my default app store for years at this point.

inanutshellus 1y ago

HA! I use the "Simple" apps as the poster child for my rants about apps kneecapping themselves on purpose. It's funny how the more one gets burned the more one becomes the kooky old fart the cliche requires us to be...

beezle 1y ago

Thank you for this info. I had no idea why a couple weeks ago the calendar app was suddenly needing to connect to the net on startup and then doing a splash ad. Will be installing the Fossify version shortly!

brendyn 1y ago

I had no idea fossify was fork. Until this moment I had apps from both of them, some orange, some green, but the calendar started bugging out by opening a different date to what I clicked on. I see my phone hasn't updated it since last year. Now finally I've deleted them all in favour of the fossify ones. Thanks.

cobertos 1y ago

I did the exact same research and came to the same conclusion. I wouldn't have been prompted to do it without F-Droid