...for a Gmail account. Right.

No, for the key to being able to participate in modern society. Without a Google account, you can't use (standard) Android. Without either (standard) Android or iOS, you de facto can't use most banks, some public transit networks, and various other utility-level services.

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arcfour 4 days ago | parent [-]

You can have a Yahoo account, a Hotmail account, a ProtonMail account. You can go to your bank in person or without an app. I would be less surprised to learn that a bank does not have an app than I would be to learn they do not have a website.

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tgsovlerkhgsel 4 days ago | parent [-]

The web site often requires an app for authentication. Some (not all) banks offer alternatives, which often come at a cost (either financial or time) that would, once you add all of the costs up, be catastrophic for the majority of people, because it's never one thing that is affected with these major gatekeepers.

	▲	arcfour 4 days ago \| parent [-]
		They generally use SMS authentication. I have yet to see one that has a hard requirement for an app, let alone one that actually requires a Google account. Regardless: The fact that a specific tool is the easiest way to do something doesn't grant you a "right" to that specific tool. For example, you have a right to seek transportation; you don't have a right to a specific 2025 Toyota Camry provided by a private company.