Hello everyone, I recently wanted to switch bank accounts, and therefore sent the following email to all banks in the Netherlands. Maybe if you do this too with the banks in your own country, we can all create change in this area! The banks I spoke to indicated that this was the first time they heard it, so maybe if they get more messages, they’ll change their minds!
Rik
ps bank apps are the only apps that frequently pose a problem for /e/ users, because they use Google security certificates and do not allow installation without those certificates.
For banks you are currently banking with
Hello,
I bank with your bank, however, I am now considering switching to another bank. The reason for this is that your app is not available in the app store of the phone I use. I’m just using Android, but a new form of Android, where everything by Google has been taken out of the phone of to better protect the privacy of users (it is “ungoogled”). See www.e.foundation . All my normal apps are available in the app store (spotify, whatsapp, telegram, news apps, Uber, etcetc), except yours. Do you know why this is? If your app isn’t available there, I think I’ll switch to another bank, which I’d rather not do!
Kind regards,
–YOUR NAME–
Ps I understood from the makers of this new phone that many bank apps are not yet available in this app store for security reasons, that banks sometimes use Google certificates to ensure security. But actually, that creates a monopoly for Google phones! It means that better, more privacy-enabled phones like the one I use cannot use bank apps. Surely that cannot be the intention, to assist in a market monopoly like that! Moreover, this Android OS is much safer than Google! I switched to it because Google steals my data, but this OS does not!
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For banks that you are NOT currently banking with:
Hello,
I’m considering banking with you, but your app is not available in the app store of the phone I’m using. I’m just using Android, but a new form of Android, where everything by Google has been taken out of the phone of to better protect the privacy of users (it is “ungoogled”). See www.e.foundation . All my normal apps are available in the app store (spotify, whatsapp, telegram, news apps, Uber, etcetc), except yours. Do you know why this is? If your app isn’t available there, I won’t be able to open a bank account with you, because being able to do banking on my phone is important to me!
Kind regards,
–YOUR NAME–
Ps I understood from the makers of this new phone that many bank apps are not yet available in this app store for security reasons, that banks sometimes use Google certificates to ensure security. But actually, that creates a monopoly for Google phones! It means that better, more privacy-enabled phones like the one I use cannot use bank apps. Surely that cannot be the intention, to assist in a market monopoly like that! Moreover, this Android OS is much safer than Google! I switched to it because Google steals my data, but this OS does not!
–