Comment by other8026
13 hours ago
There is a huge list of issues with /e/OS. Let me just give you a few examples:
Android 17 introduced a local network permission. GrapheneOS ported to Android 17 months ago. LineageOS, which /e/OS is based on just recently started releasing Android 17 updates. /e/OS may not be on Android 17 yet, I haven't checked. So, imagine for months apps have had access to the local network. What can they do with that?
That's just one example of how being far behind on updates can affect privacy.
/e/OS is far less deGoogled than GrapheneOS.
/e/OS lacks features like Storage Scopes, Contacts Scopes, Secure Paste, and sensors permission.
The vast, vast, vast majority of Android devices aren't on Android 17 yet. The update has just started rolling out to 2026 flagships from non-google manufacturers.
So, yes, grapheneos piggybacking on google's support for a single device do give them Android 17 faster. But you're saying that as if lineageos, who supports a vast amount of devices, is being lazy/careless with security by pointing to something that only the Pixel has yet (and grapheneos by association).
The post wasn't about LineageOS. LineageOS rolls back privacy and security compared to AOSP in multiple substantial ways but /e/ rolls both back drastically more. /e/ lags far further behind on both major updates and backported patches than LineageOS, lags far behind on browser engine updates, barely updates the Linux kernel, drivers or firmware at all and adds many privacy invasive services itself. /e/ uses far more Google services than AOSP and gives those highly privileged access along with giving privileged access to Google apps.
The vast majority of Android devices have absolutely atrocious security. It's rapidly getting worse due to AI models accelerating vulnerability discovery and exploitation. It's a complete disaster where there are public local exploits for most Android devices available on GitHub and soon it will be remote exploits too.
Most Android devices being quite insecure doesn't justify products which are increasingly unsafe marketed as being private options. Not keeping up with the updates and relying on increasingly incomplete backports of High and Critical severity patches to older releases is one factor among many, not the whole picture at all.
AOSP hasn't had support for Pixels since the release of Android 16. Pixels are in fact much harder to support than many other devices due to needing to keep up with Android updates including the QPR1 and QPR3 updates which are Pixel exclusive and not pushed to AOSP anymore. LineageOS skipped supporting 10th gen Pixels until recently due to this.
GrapheneOS will keep up with Android updates for the upcoming Motorola flagship too and that's starting out on the Linux 6.18 branch. We'll be porting to new Linux kernel LTS branches ourselves soon long before the devices move themselves. We're in the process of moving to Linux 6.18 for Pixels and we'll port all the devices forward to new versions. That's necessary to avoid the ongoing privacy and security disaster caused by the increasingly incomplete backports of Linux kernel patches to the older LTS branches and Android's GKI LTS branches lagging far behind.