You are right. I feel much safer now! /s
I really need to look into those other versions of Android or even Huawei. I have a feeling they might not quite work in Canada. Part of the reason I am incensed about this, is that right now there are all sorts of measures globally, under the guise of safety, that seem to be about something completely different.
I use Android because it lets me install whatever I want on my phone, which it does not seem to me, controversial. The phone is either mine or it is not. I don't want Google's protection. Particularly, if I can't refuse it.