[chilie]

I help maintain the phones/computers for several non-technical and/or elderly family members.

Their computers are a mess. No matter what pro-active measures I take, every time I get involved, they have a bunch of nonsense installed doing who-knows-what. Random apps, most of which are running all the time, slogging down the system. The younger folks have different game-stores, or other similar things, all running in the background. The computers are slower than mud.

Their phones are all fine. They may download crap, but I know it is almost impossible for it to mess things up outside of that individual app.

I'm not saying this to completely defend Apple - I honestly don't know which side of the App Store/sideloading debate I fall on. I'm just pointing out that there are huge benefits, particularly for the general population of non-techincal users, to Apple remaining as a gatekeeper (albeit obviously a quite imperfect one).

[impissedoff1]

Tons of malware infested apps get through both app stores.

https://www.pcmag.com/news/study-reveals-googles-play-store-...

https://www.zdnet.com/article/over-half-a-million-users-been...

https://www.tripwire.com/state-of-security/more-malware-infe...

https://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/malicious-apps-...

https://lifehacker.com/great-now-the-apple-app-store-has-mal...

Etc..there were some studies posted about this too

[lockhouse]

You’re being disingenuous here. Of course malware slips through the review process, but it definitely catches more than it misses. Additionally, it serves as a deterrent to malware authors to seek softer attack surfaces.

[impissedoff1]

Having more stores won't open up anything. A user will still have to install them. And I'm sure they would implement their own process. Fdroid for example, compiles everything going through there

[permo-w]

I think the best option really is for side-loading to be possible, but just not easy. this is how it work on Amazon Fire TV sticks. you have to go into settings, flick a switch buried a few layers deep, then download an unobvious app from the store, after which you can download whatever app you like from the internet, but only within that app. everyone wins. at least until Amazon decide this is losing them money, anyway

[jeroenhd]

Yeah! Whenever I visit my parents their Android phones are always full of adware and toolbars, their background is a gambling ad, and their bluetooth speaker insults the cat!

Except that's not what happens. My mom gets spammy magazine article notifications which I offered to help her get rid of, but she actually wants them for some reason.

[klipklop]

I don't want my computers restricted because your elderly family members cannot figure out how to use them.

[martimarkov]

Buy an Android phone then. We have one closed and one open platform

[klipklop]

Why should I buy something else because other people can’t handle computers without training wheels?

The befuddled kind grandmothers of the world can just not install/sideload alt stores.

The most common way the elderly get scammed is over voice telephone conversations. Would you suggest we disable the ability to speak over the phone to “protect” them as well?

[frankreyes]

I think my partner's phone is full of malware but now I'm too afraid to look xd