loading . . . "you should already have a google account" On October 8, 2025, I sent an email some Members of European Parliament1. This was the first time I’d ever done something like this. The message was addressed to the European Parliament Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. They seemed like the right subset of Members to contact after reading a post on the F-Droid blog:
F-Droid and Google’s Developer Registration Decree
The post hit a little harder because of an incident a few days prior.
I have an Aranet4 Home sensor. This great little device requires an application if I want to access graphs and charts about CO2, temperature, humidity, and pressure (there is a Python client too, but it cannot update the firmware). It works just as advertised, and sometimes I take it to work with me.
Unfortunately, starting with version 3.8.1, the application developers added a permission, the _Google Play license check_ (`CHECK_LICENSE`). Prior to this change, when the application did not have this permission, I could use it without any issue.
(I’m just guessing that that is the problem, recent versions of the application do not work either.)
Why?
Because **I do not have a Google account**.
As soon as I launch the app, it takes me to the Google Play Store login screen.
I emailed Aranet asking for a workaround, because I don’t see why I would need a Google account to use the sensor that I purchased. They said:
> 2025-10-06T05:16:34Z ARANET Support [email protected]:
>
> Hello Bobby!
>
> Did you download the Aranet Home app from the google play store? That is the only place where we officially release the app for android, so you should already have a google account to download from there.
>
> Best regards,
> Aranet technical support
I should already have a Google account? _Should I?_ Since f-cking when _should_ I have a Google account? Because I have an Android phone?
I replied and stated that there are other safe ways to install applications (like the App Lounge on e/OS or the Aurora Store) and that this exposes more personal data, and it is a disregard for privacy. Because of this somewhat minor change, my Aranet4 Home **isn’t the same device that I purchased**.
They altered the agreement.
The coincidence of reading about changes to the Android platform after experiencing being locked out of future updates to a device I paid for because I don’t have a Google account made me boil.
Not long after sending my email to those members of parliament, Keep Android Open came into being (well, the website did at least). If you’re reading this, you probably know the deal already. As a reminder, though, this bad decision means that in the near future, Android phones will receive an update that will remove your agency to install the applications you want on your device. My edge-case scenario above (which I attribute to poor design) will happen to users for a variety of applications unless Google makes it possible to bypass the verification process.
Someone in your circle probably doesn’t know about this coming change, so it is important to share the information with them. Even if they don’t see what the big deal is, raising awareness is important. It could mean that even basic applications, such as a step counter, might share private health information with Google. And applications to control smart devices, like watches and CO2 detectors (he says loudly), would need to connect to Google in order to function (for “reasons”).
When you buy something, you should be able to use it without creating accounts and requesting permission from Google.
When purchasing a telephone, permission should not be required from a company that had nothing to do with the fabrication of the device to use certain applications. I can break it if I want to. Google is not doing this for safety and security. They are doing it to force control and power on an open ecosystem. It is corporate gatekeeping.
**Android needs to remain open.**
(And Aranet needs to reply to my email because they ghosted me.)
Note:
If you are using the Aurora Store and have an Aranet4 Home and you want to be able to continue updating the firmware, you can roll back to the last working version by choosing “Manual Download” from the kebab menu on the Aranet Home page and entering version code `199`.
* * *
1. In an act of self-plagiarism, I’ve “woven” bits of the email into this post. ↩
https://bobbyhiltz.com/posts/2026/03/google-account/
