Currently, developers who create “sideloaded” Android apps are exempt from Google’s verification requirements.

Google wants to make sideloading safer on Android by verifiying the identities of developers who distribute apps outside the ...

Scheduled for rollout starting in September 2026, the program aims to restrict malware distribution by requiring developer ...

With claims that sideloaded apps are 50 times more likely to contain malware, Google is tightening restrictions for ...

Google is also developing a new Android Developer Console specifically for Android developers who don't distribute their apps via Google Play, and there will be a separate console for student and ...

The tech giant stresses that this does not mean developers can’t distribute outside of the Play Store through other app ...

Google will require developer identity verification for all Android apps, including sideloading. New non-Play Developer ...

Currently, developer verification is already required for the Play Store but not for apps installed from other sources. Today ...

Google will implement a new safety feature that would require developers to verify their identity if they want Android users ...

Google will block APK sideloading on Android by 2026. What does the ban mean for developers, consumer rights, and the future ...