Google has announced its intention to start checking the identity of all developers who distribute applications on Android, even for those who distribute their software outside the Play Store.
“Android will demand that all applications be recorded by verified developers to be installed by users on certified Android devices”, the company said. “This creates crucial responsibility, which makes much more difficult for malicious actors to quickly distribute another harmful application after having removed the first.”
To this end, the technology giant said that he intended to start sending invitations gradually from October 2025, before opening it to all developers in March 2026. The new requirements should come into force from a year, in September 2026, in Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand.
“At this stage, any application installed on an Android device certified in these regions must be recorded by a verified developer,” added Suzanne Frey, vice-president of product, confidence and growth for Android.
It should be noted that nothing will change a lot for developers who distribute applications via the Google Play Store, as they have probably already satisfied these verification requirements via the existing game console process. A separate type of Android developer console account is in preparation for student and amateur developers.
Google said the changes are designed to prevent malicious actors from identifying developers and using their brand image and their reputation for creating convincing false applications. The presence of these malicious applications is aggravated via third -party application markets from where users can highlight them.
The developer’s verification mandate is added to the already existing security measures that block the potentially dangerous applications in markets like Singapore, Thailand, Brazil and India.
In July 2023, the company also began to demand that all the new developer accounts register as an organization to provide a valid Duns number awarded by Dun & Bradstreet before submitting applications in order to strengthen user confidence.
The “new safety layer”, said Google, aims to protect users from bad players from bad players disseminating malware and scams, as well as providing a “coherent base and the common sense of responsibility for developers” through Android. He also said that the system preserves the choice of users while improving security for everyone.
Although the rules for distributing Android applications aim to tighten the safety of the ecosystem, they also arrive at a time when Google is Potentially look at the main Play Store reformsIncluding the distribution of competing application stores via Google Play and offering competitors access to its full applications catalog, after losing an antitrust trial brought by Epic Games in 2020.
