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iOS 17 to Support App Sideloading to Comply With European Regulations

While it breaks the vertical integration and opens the user to more risk, ultimately this is something that needs to be done. I support Apple encouraging users to stick with the “safest” options and, indeed, many will rather than spend effort trying to do something else. I also wonder if Apple will put some kind of tag on App Store distributed apps so that if a fault occurs in an app without the tag Apple will disclaim responsibility entirely and refer the user to the original App Store and/or developer.

I also see more data breaches ahead as not every developer/App Store will put the resources in place to ensure proper data security practices and updates. Although does that matter since most info is already out there and people give it away for free to various companies for free stuff?
 
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I hope this also works in the US. That way, I can use some of these 3rd party apps/mods from Android that would allow me to tweak the official Twitter app since they removed 3rd party Twitter support. I hate the official Twitter. It’s so clunky and my feed is 80% ads, so I barely use it anymore.
 
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This is just unbelievably dumb. You don't want to give Best Buy a cut to put your TV on their shelf?

Fine with me. As soon as I can, since I manage over 10,000 Apple devices in an MDM, I am BLOCKING side loading and if our employees want to endanger their devices, they can do it on their own and not the company's.

This is just dumb. This is why corporate IT abandoned Android.

And if you want the FREEDOM to get malware and have to put a Threat Protection such as Virus Scanner, etc on a device that for 16 years HAS NOT NEEDED ONE, go ahead. Have fun!

When someone hacks your phone and steals your credit card info, passwords, etc all because you didn't wanna give Apple a 15% marketing fee for the privilege of being on THEIR STORE, then that's on you.

DO NOT blame Apple when viruses and scams multiply and threaten even the locked down devices because you just had to follow the lyric "Now here you go again, you say you want your freedom. But who am I to keep you down?"
 
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MrWillie said:
Two close friends. Tee shirts with a custom local design (which they stole the design and and were sued), and deer stands. These were both at local Walmarts, not corporate.
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And add the slotting fees you'll need to pay just to get store space where you can put your products. And they charge thousands of dollars per SKU.
 
robbietop said:
This is just unbelievably dumb. You don't want to give Best Buy a cut to put your TV on their shelf?

Fine with me. As soon as I can, since I manage over 10,000 Apple devices in an MDM, I am BLOCKING side loading and if our employees want to endanger their devices, they can do it on their own and not the company's.

This is just dumb. This is why corporate IT abandoned Android.
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It's dumb to be able to install software you want outside of an app store?

Guess the Mac is dumb then, since it can do that.
 
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magicvash said:
This is great right up until companies refuse to offer App Store version of their software and force users to sideload. I can see Meta doing this and bringing along spyware and user tracking that they were forced to eliminate due to apple’s tracking bans
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Users can just refuse to do that. Freedom is wonderful. If you want the walled garden, that's great. But if you don't, I never saw any reason for Apple preventing one from installing whatever software one wants, on a legally purchased and owned device.
 
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MacRumors said:
Apple has claimed that sideloading will "undermine the privacy and security protections" that iPhone users rely on, leaving people vulnerable to malware, scams, data tracking, and other issues.
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I can understand this. THere's a lot of malicious people out there, and a lot of non-technical people who would fall for these scams. Hopefully, Apple can & will build in additional safeguards to prevent this kind of stuff from happening.
MacRumors said:
However, Apple must comply with the DMA or it risks fines of as much as 20 percent of its global revenue if the EU laws are violated.
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*ALL* revenue, not just profits?
 
magicvash said:
This is great right up until companies refuse to offer App Store version of their software and force users to sideload. I can see Meta doing this and bringing along spyware and user tracking that they were forced to eliminate due to apple’s tracking bans
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The App Store is not iOS. Isn’t all that stuff built into the OS and not just a function of the App Store? And Apple is so convinced they rightfully deserve a cut of developers revenues they’ll find a way to get it even outside the App Store. They’re not giving up that enormous cash cow.
 
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magicvash said:
This is great right up until companies refuse to offer App Store version of their software and force users to sideload. I can see Meta doing this and bringing along spyware and user tracking that they were forced to eliminate due to apple’s tracking bans
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As Android has proven that's not the case. Apps that left the Google Play Store see a lot less traffic than apps that are on the Google Play Store. Case in point: Fortnite. Very few downloaded the Fortnite APK from Epic's website which is why Epic had to reluctantly get Play Store approval

So any app that pulls out of the App Store once sideloading goes live would be committing corporate suicide.
 
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magicvash said:
This is great right up until companies refuse to offer App Store version of their software and force users to sideload. I can see Meta doing this and bringing along spyware and user tracking that they were forced to eliminate due to apple’s tracking bans
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Epic tried doing that on Android and their sales plummeted because users were used to using the Google Play Store to install software, so Epic caved in, accepted Google’s terms and put their software back on the Play store.

Apple can also mandate that sideloaded apps be run in a sandbox that would effectively neuter user tracking across apps.
 
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DaPizzaMan said:
And that is your choice to make! See, now everyone is happy.
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Spaceboi Scaphandre said:
God can iOS 17 hurry up already? I need this bad.



Then don't. That's the beauty of it, it's a choice. You're not forced to if you don't want to.
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Only if all apps are required to exist in AppStore as well. Otherwise it won't be any choice and your are forced to sideload apps you need.
 
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Abazigal said:
The question isn't whether Apple will implement side-loading, but how. We know Apple has been fighting this for the longest time, and you can be sure that sideloading on iOS will come with enough caveats and asterisks that the process is not going to be as straightforward as some might expect.
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Exactly. Like Gatekeeper on the Mac the user has to take personal action to download and install software that is not from a verified developer. The user has to turn off/override macOS security measures to do so. Then there’s the matter of System Integrity. Mac users can no longer install software that messes with the core files because said developer thinks they know more about macOS than Apple does.

So if Apple locks down iOS in a similar manner, making it the user’s responsibility to override security and accept the results then maybe the damage won’t be too great.

Remember, the user base of both iOS and Android are gullible and stupid with little to no technical knowledge. If it’s a little more difficult to install that shiny object promising everything they may just pass.
 
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twintin said:
Only if all apps are required to exist in AppStore as well. Otherwise it won't be any choice and your are forced to sideload apps you need.
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Repeating what I said: Most apps aren't going to pull out of the App Store when sideloading goes live, otherwise they'd be committing corporate suicide. Android has sideloading yet the majority of developers still use the Play Store since the Play Store gets them the most traffic versus having their app only available as a downloadable APK. You'll be fine.
 
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coffeemilktea said:
Seems a little dramatic considering that sideloading has existed on Android since day 1 and yet, somehow, most people with Android phones aren't complaining about suffering from endless malware. 😅
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Maybe that's because very few actually sideload.

Also unclear to me, if sideload is a thing on Android, why does companies like Epic do not offer their apps for sideloding on ANdroid or do they ?
 
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