Just searched degoogle in Lemmy

https://lemmy.world/c/degoogle@lemmy.ml

There are levels to it. The advanced level is using a custom Android ROM for your phone that has no Google play services/apps on it and that'll depend on what's available for your phone from community ROM makers. You can see if any of these support your phone or plan any future phone of yours around these

https://itsfoss.com/android-distributions-roms/

An easier first step is just starting with non-Google apps. You can start with replacing Google apps like replace Maps with Organic Maps or something similar. Replace Gmail with something like Proton Mail. Same with calendar and cloud storage. Proton has alternatives. They even have an okay Google docs feature. Use a different search engine like duckduckgo rather than Google.

F-droid as an app store. Instead of Google authenticator use Aegis. Instead of Chrome use Firefox or a fork of it.

It's difficult so a process over time of lessening dependency on Google applications

Just saw there's a sort of large Lemmy degoogle community

https://lemmy.world/c/degoogle@lemmy.ml

Personally I think it's a good start to just replace Google applications. Organic Maps over Google Maps. Proton Mail/Drive/VPN/Calendar over Google stuff. Firefox and forks over Chrome. Duckduckgo over Google search. After that you can maybe find an old old Google Pixel phone and then start flashing ROMs off XDA forums as practice before you try a newer more expensive phone

Gemini is an app, I disabled that. I also shut off the key press and there's some other places you can turn off some of the automatic AI features, and also there's a setting to disable the "online" AI in general.

But that's why in another comment I said, I am still not sure I turned it all off (or even if it is possible to).

You might be thinking of the normal Google Assistant

You can remove most apps using ADB. Universal Android Debloater is helpful for this, just make sure you read the comments for each app so you dont remove something you need.

ew. Tell your government to stop mandating spyware.

Graphene does let you re-lock the bootloader. IIRC, whether an app works depends on whether they require SafetyNet full, or just basic. I have so far only found one app that refuses to work. However... it looks like MitID was recently updated and no longer works.

https://gist.github.com/lbschenkel/4199be415f2a139b64688ae74c92a7fc

Starting on 2024-06-12, MitID have started using Google Play Integrity API during activation. This means that new installations will no longer work in GrapheneOS nor any other non-stock Android, as they are not certified by Google and will not pass the required checks. The app still works (for now) if you managed to get it activated before that date.

I can also recommend CalyxOS. Locked bootloaders, open source emulation of all Google's play services (meaning an open source binary running on your phone, filtering requests to Google's servers with absolutely minimal/random info).

Basically I have anonymized access to the play store, and any apps I install other than Google pay work, no issue. I believe even Google's secure features work. There's a reddit post about MitID: https://www.reddit.com/r/CalyxOS/comments/w2ordg/a_proven_way_to_use_calyxos_and_banking_apps_etc/

E: having read through the technical comments on graphene's forums, looks like play integrity prevents MitID from running. The service offers free code generators which hang on your keys though.

Maybe? It depends on what exactly the app checks for. Some apps don't work because they check if it's running on the original ROM. It's hit or miss.

If you can access what you need through the web, you can go that route instead.

how do they make it mandatory? what happens if you don't have a smartphone?

is it strictly mandatory, or is the alternative intentionally very inconvenient?

I'm asking because it is very weird to me. but also, in my country also in the EU, there's this misunderstanding that it is mandatory, while actually it can be replaced with any 2FA code generator app. and then it has a bunch of administrative features in one place for convenience

It's best to never use any apps or accounts for your business life on your personal device. I have two phones for this purpose.

Can you get by with web access? That's what I do and it's fine.

Unfortunately banking apps are only going to get harder to run on software uncertified by Google.

"Hello there." - Play Integrity API

PostmarketOS is cool, but as an actual phone replacement it is tough, at least last time I tried.

That looks far too polished with locked in specs for them to not have any prototype. I'd trust companies that have actually made a product that has a janky Linux implementation that's improving, than one that doesn't exist yet relying on crowdfunding.

Yes, but everything above it (including drivers) is custom-made and tightly controlled by Google.

Yeah, but the kernel is a low-level module that handles hardware, memory, and processes—it’s not what users interact with directly, so sharing the same kernel doesn’t make it all that similar as you’d think.

What makes Linux feel like ‘Linux’ to users is the stuff on top: the userland—bash, coreutils, package managers, X11/Wayland, etc. Android replaces almost all of that, so even though it uses the Linux kernel, it doesn’t feel like Linux.

Yes. IIRC it's based on latest LTS kernel with Google patches. So it's been "year of the Linux phone" for a while now.

It's unfortunate that the slop they put on top of it is such a privacy nightmare. PostmarketOS is trying to change that and supports Plasma, Gnome, etc. But it's early days yet and still rough around the edges from what I've been reading.

Not really.

Linux had reached idiot parity with windows at least. Idiot proof OS is a fable that cannot be reached.

It's mainly tech savy people who don't use it. Tons of people in companies use this shit. The number of people who use "ai" to take auto notes in meetings is insane. It's a massive security risk but they do it anyways thinking it won't be stored.

It's mostly lemmy. In real life people go from amused to indifferent. I have never met anyone as hostile as the lemmy consensus seems to be. If a feature is useful people will use it, be it AI or not AI. Some AI features are gimmicks and they largely get ignored, unless very intrusive (in which case the intrusivity, not the AI, is the problem).

Obligatory Lemmy is social media response

The majority of people eat at McDonalds. It doesn't make it a good idea on your finances or health. Sheep gonna baa.

If you for some reason think that megacorporations and big tech aren't monetizing the literal majority to the fullest extent of every single law they can break while getting away with it, you need to wake the fuck up. Big time. I don't know if this is some psyop from leddit or what but my doors stay closed, my android plays tablet mode with no sim. Thanks tho.

I've been trying to tell people for 15 years. It hasn't worked a single bit. It's frustrating that people think they have nothing to hide when their carelessness and lack of tech knowledge is ruining the future of the next generations. I just can't try to explain it to everyone. They don't link the relation at all. I thought maybe eventually, they would just get it, but here we still are...

it's mostly just talk. people will hate it and use it at the same time