Re:Senators introduce bipartisan antitrust bill to promote a...
by heavyset_go on Wednesday August 11, 2021 @09:53PM
(#28150706)
> Amazon and Microsoft are also big. They do not decide what's on your phone.
I agree with your point, but just want to point out that Microsoft does similar things on Windows with Defender that Apple does on macOS with Gatekeeper, and both can be described as the companies deciding what does or doesn't get to run on your computers.
Both companies require you to buy certificates and remain in good standing with them if you want your software to run on Windows or macOS without a problem. Microsoft and Apple can revoke certificates whenever they want for any reason they want, and after doing so, Defender and Gatekeeper will prevent apps signed with those certificates from running on either OS.
macOS treats unsigned apps as if they're radioactive, and hides the ability to run them from the user. The switch to the M1 platform brought a new requirement that all apps must be signed as unsigned binaries won't run on M1 Macs. Windows Defender will also treat unsigned apps as if they're radioactive, and prevents users from running them initially.
If you want your apps to actually run on modern macOS or Windows systems without users thinking they're either broken or malicious, you need to pay for certificates and remain in good standing with both companies. Apple goes one step further and requires all apps to be Notarized, which involves uploading the app to Apple's server so it can analyze and approve it to run on macOS.
I agree with your point, but just want to point out that Microsoft does similar things on Windows with Defender that Apple does on macOS with Gatekeeper, and both can be described as the companies deciding what does or doesn't get to run on your computers.
Both companies require you to buy certificates and remain in good standing with them if you want your software to run on Windows or macOS without a problem. Microsoft and Apple can revoke certificates whenever they want for any reason they want, and after doing so, Defender and Gatekeeper will prevent apps signed with those certificates from running on either OS.
macOS treats unsigned apps as if they're radioactive, and hides the ability to run them from the user. The switch to the M1 platform brought a new requirement that all apps must be signed as unsigned binaries won't run on M1 Macs. Windows Defender will also treat unsigned apps as if they're radioactive, and prevents users from running them initially.
If you want your apps to actually run on modern macOS or Windows systems without users thinking they're either broken or malicious, you need to pay for certificates and remain in good standing with both companies. Apple goes one step further and requires all apps to be Notarized, which involves uploading the app to Apple's server so it can analyze and approve it to run on macOS.