> Maybe region locking is easy to get around if you’re technical, but in an emergency for most non-technical people, the outcome will be the same on Android as it is on Apple, no?
Unless something has change in the past few years since I needed to do this, you can get around it on iPhone by creating a new Apple ID for the new region and logging your phone into that account.
[added] probably not the first thing one thinks about if they are in a heighten anxiety/panic state though
Nowadays you might need a payment method with billing address in that region.
It depends on how you get into the signup flow - if you just try to sign up for the App Store it requires a payment method, but if you try to install a free app, it will have the option for not entering a payment method.
Shitty, anti-consumer dark pattern from Apple.