Starting September 2026, a silent update, nonconsensually pushed by Google, will block every Android app whose developer hasn't registered with Google, signed their contract, paid up, and handed over government ID.
Google announced that as of September 2026, it will no longer be possible to develop apps for the Android platform without first registering centrally with Google. This registration will involve:
Paying a fee to Google
Agreeing to Google’s Terms and Conditions
Providing government identification
Uploading evidence of the developer’s private signing key
Listing all current and future application identifiers
Meaning You, the consumer, purchased your Android device believing in Google’s promise that it was an open computing platform and that you could run whatever software you choose on it. Instead, as of September 2026, they will be non-consensually pushing an update to your operating system that irrevocably blocks this right and leaves you at the mercy of their judgement over what software you are permitted to trust. This gives Google a monopoly. Now, Google is controlling the Operating System level. Even if you don't use the Play Store, you still have to register with Google and pay them a fee just to make your app run on an Android phone. And Google frames this as a "security update" to stop malware.
Rooting disables OEM updates and makes your device unofficial, so you will probably still be able to sideload apps. Depending on how this shitstorm turns out though, and if there will ever be a need for it, I would love to help people root their smartphones.
Another idea is to collaborate on a wiki that aggregates and documents all rootable versus non rootable smartphones and the methods that work.
Rooting services
We could setup a chatroom on Signal or any other platform that enables voice and/or video chat. People would also be able to send their smartphones to another person that roots it. Or like street vendors, setup a pipe chair and table and do it on scene at festivals and other gatherings.
The wiki
I could host something fresh from my desktop or create a community on some fedi instance. The wiki would aggregate preexisting information but also be open for continuous updates by the community.