Google to block the uploading of verified developers on Android devices from next year: all you need to know

Google brings a controversial new reform to the way programs are installed on Android devices from next year. The technical giant is known for giving users the freedom to adjust their experience, something that distinguished it from the walled gardens from Apple, but the choice has slowly disappeared over the last few years and the latest reform may be the biggest change to the pattern to date. Google now brings in a developer verification program under which all Android developers must be verified by Google to have their apps installed on ‘Certified Android Devices’. Remarkably, Google has already verified from all Developers of Play Store app to offer their apps on the platform since 2024, but the new change will even be registered with Google third-party app developers to host their apps on Android devices. The change applies to all phones preceded by pre-installed Google services but not on custom ROMs or some Chinese devices that come without Google services. Google compares its verification program with an ID check at the airport, where the company can verify the identity of the developer but will not review the content of their app. The technical giant is also building a new Android developer console where developers who distribute programs outside the App Store must register to complete their verification. Google will start testing the new system from October, while all developers will have access to the new Android console in March 2026. Google plans to adopt the requirements in Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand in September 2026 and can then expand it worldwide in 2027. Why make Google this change? Google claims that the internal data shows that there is 50 times more risk for malware from the sidel charged programs on the internet than on those installed at Play Store. To limit this risk, the company wants to identify the identity of all Android developers to make it more difficult for “malicious actors to quickly spread another harmful app after we have taken the first one,”. The company also mentions that since the implementation of similar protocols in Play Store in 2023, a decrease in bad actors has been exploiting anonymity to spread malware, commits financial fraud and stealing sensitive data. “If you bring a similar process into the broad of Android, it will provide a consistent baseline for the liability of developers in the ecosystem,” Google claims in its blog post. The underlying subtext behind the new rule changes may also be the recent decision it lost in the Epic Games the Antitrust case. The company said it would appeal the decision in the US High Court, but that it would have to make significant changes in the way apps were distributed on Android. For example, Google will now have to allow third-party app shops to be listed in the Play Store, and these new stores will also have access to all apps in Google’s Play Store. In this context, the new regulations can be a way for Google to maintain control, even if third -party app stores begin to become more mainstream.