F-Droid Board of Directors nominations 2026

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Future of F-Droid & Android openness

  • Several commenters ask whether F-Droid will survive upcoming Google changes to Android and app distribution.
  • Consensus: it will continue to work on devices without Google Mobile Services and on custom ROMs as long as Android itself isn’t fully locked down or apps don’t universally blacklist non‑Google‑verified devices.
  • Some wonder if a KDE/GNOME/kernel-like community effort could eventually “take over” AOSP development and offer a more independent Android base.

Custom ROMs, GrapheneOS, and banking / work apps

  • Strong advocacy for moving off stock Android to custom ROMs, especially GrapheneOS, to retain control over devices.
  • Main blockers: banking apps, national e‑ID, and corporate email (e.g., Outlook).
  • Multiple users report that many European banking apps and Outlook work on GrapheneOS with sandboxed Google Play; curated compatibility lists are referenced.
  • Others push back: some banks or EU countries still allow SMS or hardware tokens, but in many places apps and biometrics are effectively mandatory for SCA/2FA.
  • Some suggest compromises like a separate phone just for banking, or using webmail/independent clients instead of the official Outlook app.

Security models, hardware limits, and baseband fears

  • GrapheneOS’s Pixel‑only support is criticized as too narrow; many users have or want cheaper, non‑Pixel phones.
  • Defenders argue most Android hardware (and vendor software) is too insecure or too poorly maintained to justify limited volunteer resources; the project aims for a high‑security reference OS, not “slight improvement” on everything.
  • Debate over whether “perfect is the enemy of good”: critics want something better than OEM ROMs even on weaker hardware; proponents say broad, low‑security support would dilute the project’s goals.
  • Additional thread on whether Qualcomm basebands can access main RAM and whether intelligence agencies have backdoors; several replies cite prior technical discussions claiming modern devices generally IOMMU‑isolate basebands, but full details remain contested.

Power of Google and regulation

  • Some argue the real solution is antitrust: horizontally splitting Google into competing entities.
  • Others doubt either US or EU political systems will meaningfully break up Google soon, though recent US cases against Google are mentioned.
  • A few suggest Europe might more realistically regulate market behavior or fund AOSP‑based alternatives rather than forcing an outright breakup.

F-Droid’s Bible/Quran NSFW incident

  • A substantial sub‑thread focuses on F-Droid’s brief decision to mark Bible and Quran apps as NSFW, hide them from search, and signal eventual removal, later reversed after backlash.
  • One former long‑time user says this destroyed their trust in F-Droid’s judgment and neutrality and caused them to switch to other app stores.
  • Explanations discussed:
    • Over‑cautious legal compliance with laws about protecting minors from “harmful” content: religious texts include graphic violence and sexual imagery.
    • Ideological bias against religion or viewing mainstream religions as cult‑like.
    • “Malicious compliance”/trolling: deliberately applying child‑protection logic to religious apps to highlight the absurdity of such laws.
  • Skeptics of the legal‑caution explanation note:
    • F-Droid is governed by Dutch/EU law, where such texts aren’t generally treated as illegal or obscene.
    • Social media clients (Reddit, Mastodon, etc.), which are prime targets of these laws and host far more explicit content, were not similarly marked.
    • The policy was reversed quickly after public criticism, suggesting either misjudgment or a failed stunt.
  • Some commenters argue static text apps are different from generic clients that merely can load NSFW content, but others point out that many Bible apps also download texts on demand, blurring that line.
  • Overall sentiment in this sub‑thread: the episode raises doubts about F-Droid’s governance and reliability as a defender of open app distribution.

Governance and structure

  • A few commenters question why a relatively small FOSS app store needs a “board of directors” at all, though the thread does not deeply explore alternatives.