Android has always differed from iOS in openness and omnivorousness. If iPhone allowed downloading software only from the official catalog, then smartphones based on the OS from Google accepted any applications from anywhere. This allowed users to save a lot by downloading hacked versions of paid programs Android completely free of charge. So what if there is a risk of running into some Trojan? After all, the main thing is that you didn't have to spend money. And the antivirus will cope with trojans. So, at least, many users thought. But Google decided that this casts a shadow on its reputation and everything needs to be changed urgently.
With the release of Android 11, installing the APK will be a little more complicated
Google plans to make it more difficult to install APKs for third-party applications with the release of Android 11. New mechanisms to prevent installation have already appeared in the test version of the update, but initially the testers did not attach much importance to this. Then they turned to Google with a request to fix the 'bug', but the company said that the operating system interacts with software from third-party sources exactly as the developers intended. Therefore, no changes are expected.
Install APK to Android
APK installation is more dangerous than regular applications from Google Play
According to testers, any attempt to install the APK results in Android warning of the danger of this action. But if earlier the user was allowed to simply agree that all responsibility from the moment the application was loaded from an unknown source falls on him, now everything happens a little differently. The system warns that installing the APK can be dangerous, asking for permission to continue, and then unloading the application through which the installation is made from memory.
Simply put, if you downloaded the APK in Chrome and installed it from the browser storage, the operating system will force a reload and force you to repeat the entire process again. Only then will you be allowed to complete the installation. Really looks like a bug. However, according to Google, this is an absolutely regular process, which stems from the peculiarities of the Scoped Storage mechanism, which creates a separate memory cell for each application. That is, in fact, it is a kind of protective mechanism that protects user data from disclosure.
APK is not installed
Can't install the APK? This is Google opposing
Despite the fact that so far Android 11 is still far from iOS, which generally does not allow installing software from third-party sources, it is obvious that everything is gradually moving towards this. Google understands that the practice of installing applications from outside of Google Play is harmful to Google itself. Indeed, in this way, firstly, users suffer who periodically stumble upon various kinds of Trojans, which in turn creates Android the reputation of a problematic OS. And, secondly, if users download software from outside of Google Play, Google loses money from sales commissions.
Is this the right way? I think so. No matter what conventionally advanced users say, who are not fed with bread, let me download the hacked software from unreliable sources, it will benefit the operating system. Still, most people use Google Play to download new applications. And there, as you know, the risk of stumbling upon malware is tens, if not hundreds of times lower than when using independent resources, where enthusiasts are free to load any software without prior quality control.