Related
OK... I know I have been full of questions and really I just posted another question in the general forum a moment ago but I am trying to stick to the specific forums for specific questions so don't get mad at me ._.
ANYWAY... Looking at the underlying processes and other apps I will never use how does one safely remove these? I have heard of "freezing" things so you can defrost them later just in case you decide otherwise.
Any thoughts? Would this require a root?
Zadeis said:
OK... I know I have been full of questions and really I just posted another question in the general forum a moment ago but I am trying to stick to the specific forums for specific questions so don't get mad at me ._.
ANYWAY... Looking at the underlying processes and other apps I will never use how does one safely remove these? I have heard of "freezing" things so you can defrost them later just in case you decide otherwise.
Any thoughts? Would this require a root?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You'll need to be rooted and Titanium Backup Pro will allow you to freeze apps.
StingerDog said:
You'll need to be rooted and Titanium Backup Pro will allow you to freeze apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah thank you. Now in terms of doing that isn't there a list somewhere that lists all the "safe" apps to freeze? I have found lists pertaining to other tablets but not specifically the Tab 7 plus yet. Unless I'm just blind and it's been right in front of me (which is very likely) xD
I have not seen such a list but I haven't looked for one either.
Ah OK. I think I had found one for the Galaxy Tab (which I am assuming is the 10.1) and another one (which I forget what it was) so I figured I would ask.
Thank you all for your input though!
what bloatware are in your gtab?
Well, I'm getting ready to go somewhere so I can't look but all share comes to mind since I will never use it. That and for some reason after rooting my Tab (did it last night and I am quite happy) the samsung screen saver thing came back! Even though I uninstalled it.
The thing is about 50 megabytes of showcase video of the very tablet I am using...
Zadeis said:
Well, I'm getting ready to go somewhere so I can't look but all share comes to mind since I will never use it. That and for some reason after rooting my Tab (did it last night and I am quite happy) the samsung screen saver thing came back! Even though I uninstalled it.
The thing is about 50 megabytes of showcase video of the very tablet I am using...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If for any reason you boot into recovery there is a "hidden" partition that will re-install all that crap. If you install garyd9's CWM recovery it will not do this.
I have uninstalled almost 50 programs on my gtab that I dont use. Its stripped down to a bare tab. I HATE unwanted un needed programs.
antiochasylum said:
I have uninstalled almost 50 programs on my gtab that I dont use.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
50? Can you list these apps?
I cleaned (froze with TB to be exact) and it's not even close to 10, but I am overly cautious so not to break the Tab. For example, I froze Polaris Office, AP Plus widget, etc.
Yes I will. Ill compare it tomorrow and post what I removed about to go to bed for now.
Sent from my ICS'd themed Galaxy Tab 7+
Is it OK to freeze these apps with Titanium Backup:
1). Apps
- Media Hub
- My files
- Samsung Apps
- Social Hub
- Talkback
- SNS related apps:
- Disclaimer
- Facebook
- Twitter
- LinkedIn
2). Built-in widgets, such as:
- AccuWeather.com (widget)
- AP Mobile (widget)
- Buddies now (widget)
- Digital Clock (widget)
- Dual Clock (widget)
- Yahoo! Finance
3). Built-in wallpapers (live or static)
- Aurora 2 (wallpaper
- Blue sea (wallpaper)
You can easily remove all apps that you don't need. You just need rooted device and root explorer or something similar. Then go to system/app and remove app you want.
gregy74 said:
You can easily remove all apps that you don't need. You just need rooted device and root explorer or something similar. Then go to system/app and remove app you want.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that didt work for me... im getting root error issues...
str8addicted said:
that didt work for me... im getting root error issues...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got an error too when I intially tried to use Root Explorer, i opened up superuser (didnt actually do anything accept check the settings), then tried again, and access was granted properly. I already had the latest binaries via busybox so I'm not sure what happened.
jblade1000 said:
I got an error too when I intially tried to use Root Explorer, i opened up superuser (didnt actually do anything accept check the settings), then tried again, and access was granted properly. I already had the latest binaries via busybox so I'm not sure what happened.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think this is an issue with SuperUser itself.
The problem is, I cannot set the Automatic Response to "Prompt". If I do use that, then ANY apps that requires root access will be automatically DENIED. The only solution is to set the Automatic Response to "Allow", which I don't want to.
I tested this with LBE Privacy apps. With "Prompt" set in SuperUser, after every reboot, 2 out of 3 times LBE failed to start. I had to open SuperUser and start LBE again and it works. When I set to "Allow", no more problem.
I consider(ed) rooting the device as soon as I get it. Still there are the risks.
I want to do it mainly cause of Titanium Backup. But now I read in the manual there actually is an app to backup app settings and data included.
And I leave the custom roms beside as we will get JB anyway and I do not plan to use another custom rom anyhow for the moment.
So I wonder, at this point why would you root? Are there any other reasons to root?
Titanium Backup is my main reason to root, although root file access is also a great plus (think Root Explorer, Total Commander), and GMD Gesture Control and a crapload of other programs only work their magic if they have root access).
Addfree, droidwall, setcpu, tasker are the apps for which I need root.
And the other thing is to delete the bloatware which I don't use like Asus Cloud.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
I guess its in the eye of the beholder, but I wouldn't call Asus' utilities bloatware. Isn't Asus Cloud Splashtop HD? That's some pretty swanky bloatware.
Short offtopic:
I'm not in possesion of one yet.
Can you backup your app data and settings with the integrated app to that integrated cloud?
Cause that would be pretty nice as another backup option.
I root so i can develop! life without rooting is boring, you feel like you're missing out on things
When I get mine, I'll be rooting it for adaway, droidwall, chroot, and the SIO schedualer (if I feel its necessarily).
I'd like to add Chainfire 3D to the list for its night mode screen filter, but given how it messes with drivers I wouldnt feel safe running it without having an unlocked bootloader.
Why do I root? Heh, I'd get banned for telling you.
Why? Control issues! ;>
and seroiusly - sio was the first reason for me, now I wouldn't consider it a life without AdAway
and it's always nice to have a Linux-like shell experience with BusyBox
all the other come in handy too, but some of the other reasons were already described ^^
---------- Post added at 11:50 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:47 PM ----------
Nebucatnetzer said:
Addfree, droidwall, setcpu, tasker are the apps for which I need root.
And the other thing is to delete the bloatware which I don't use like Asus Cloud.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So what SetCPU settings are you on right now on the Infinity?
Found another reason to root:
The external sdcard is mounted as some special folder called removable.
So most apps can not handle it.
In some you can't even get to that level where the folder resides.
So a symlink would help a lot.
But you must be rooted to do that.
I have one offside question , does rooting enable the ability to MOVE APPS TO SD? really need this , those 1Gb games start to add up.
I'm developer so I should be root. It's just reason
Sent from my ASUS Transformer Pad TF700T using xda app-developers app
so i will start off by saying i was disappointed when i got this device because i thought it had full access to the Google play store when only 5% or less apps work, none of which i want (Netflix, hulu, plex etc. not there) i was looking for this device to be both a media server/gaming device for some asphalt 8/real racing action. etc. so i am starting this thread to hope it attracts attention and we can get someone to help us root it because if we can accomplish that i heard of a program called market helper that would trick the market into thinking we are using an s4 or something.
erik10002 said:
so i will start off by saying i was disappointed when i got this device because i thought it had full access to the Google play store when only 5% or less apps work, none of which i want (Netflix, hulu, plex etc. not there) i was looking for this device to be both a media server/gaming device for some asphalt 8/real racing action. etc. so i am starting this thread to hope it attracts attention and we can get someone to help us root it because if we can accomplish that i heard of a program called market helper that would trick the market into thinking we are using an s4 or something.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for starting it. I am in the same situation. Just for the context, it has Exynos 5250 dual core processor @1.7ghz and a 1TB hard drive inside mounted with ext4 in /storage/emulated/0 (also /sdcard etc.).
I'm trying to root it since a week now without success. I tried to flash self-made boot.tar with boot.img inside using Odin 3.09, but it FAILS. Same goes for pre-rooted system.img. It seems that this bootlader has a lock and it's checking signature, since we can't sign it like Samsung, it refuses to flash. Heimdall 1.4.0 also fails with a message stating "failed to confirm end of file transfer sequence". I've tried some chinese websites root method, but it also did not work (Odin does not flash the root file).
I've downgraded from Oct 2013 firmware to an ealiest one that I could find : B9150ZSABME2_B9150OZSBME2_TGY from May 2013. With this, I ran Cydia Impactor on it and it was able to place /system/xbin/su into the system partition. However, it is not setuid root, thus when I run su, it just waits forever. I don't know how the exploit can place the binary there but not make it setuid root. Supersu.apk is also installed, but it does not launch normally and dies.
The Impactor is able to run a telnetd server as "system" user, but system user also can't setuid root the su binary. It can't mount system RW. Impactor can't launch a telnet server as root neither.
I've tried some other exploits that were found for S4 (pwn etc. ), DoomLord v17. It all failed. I also tried SRS One Click Root, and Chinese eroot, they also failed. I'm now out of ideas and appreciate if anyone would have any idea.
I am attaching partition layout. I can also send the kernel if necessary.
okay so this is what i have done so far, i know nothing about developing a root procedure but i am very impatient.
nova launcher installed (forced landscape in nova settings and now every app loads landscape like it should)
Blackmart (this is where i will be downloading all my apps from straight to the device)
got angry birds installed as a test app (worked perfectly)
did all this in a few minutes before i went to bed and will keep exploring tonight, hope this helps some people who own the device. next im going to try and install a FPS or racing game and see how that turns out.
Erik10002, I've also installed Nova, but then you lose the status bar as the notifications on Samsung firmware is a bit diferent (on upper left side with an indicator count). I'm not sure if it would be usable without status bar. (or am I mistaken? ie where the running program icons shall be seen as well as the clock, etc.).
It seems that our device has some kind of kernel protection or capability restriction to run setuid root su binary, according to Saurik himself. So I will try to further think how it can be overcome.
---------- Post added at 09:46 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:16 PM ----------
Erik10002, I've also installed Nova, but then you lose the status bar as the notifications on Samsung firmware is a bit diferent (on upper left side with an indicator count). I'm not sure if it would be usable without status bar. (or am I mistaken? ie where the running program icons shall be seen as well as the clock, etc.).
It seems that our device has some kind of kernel protection or capability restriction to run setuid root su binary, according to Saurik himself.
How do you enter download mode on this thing?
Two methods :
1) power off. Then press function button, hold it, then press power button. Led will be red. This is download mode
2) enable developer mode, usb debugging. Then connect it to your pc with its micro USB port and run adb reboot download
If you want recovery, adb reboot recovery
not a glimmer of hope for root on this device so far :crying:
Yes unfortunately nobody seems to be interested. I also gave up and using it stock now. Except the issue of not being able to write timestamps on internal files, it's OK. For timestamps issue, I just use an external USB and use internal ones for files where I don't care about creation modification times. (ie movies etc)
I want to try to open its case to see if hdd is replaceable and if I can externally set 777 permissions on files which may help me set timestamps. Any clue how this box can be opened?
Don't know how to open it up and yes it is a shame as I was looking for this to be an android multimedia powerhouse and Android game console and those dreams got crushed although I got real racing up and running (and it runs smoothly) and get all my apps/games through blackmart alpha I have been to lazy to get an android gaming controller and am currently just using the box as a backup for my Galaxy devices but will venture further eventually. Surprised this thread I started hasn't got more attention because when I type Samsung homesync root into Google this is the 2nd link on the page I think. I will keep praying, one day, one day!
Sent from my SM-N900W8 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
In fact it's still OK. I'm running SMB server and SSH server on it. They run on non standard ports but all my pc are Linux so it's not an issue.
I have Torrent for downloading, Xbmc for media, bittorent sync for syncing. Biggest annoyance is the timestamp issue that's bugging all phones and tablets with ext4 sdcards and that play store is a joke with nearly all apps not compatible while most of them run just fine. Why did Sammy do something like this is beyond my understanding.
So this device is not getting any attention from the devs? Hope it will be rooted one day. It has got way more potential than what it is now.
I think this device has powerful hardware specs but poor software, Wish someone find a way to root it so we can use it more effective
---------- Post added at 02:44 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:39 PM ----------
erik10002 said:
so i will start off by saying i was disappointed when i got this device because i thought it had full access to the Google play store when only 5% or less apps work, none of which i want (Netflix, hulu, plex etc. not there) i was looking for this device to be both a media server/gaming device for some asphalt 8/real racing action. etc. so i am starting this thread to hope it attracts attention and we can get someone to help us root it because if we can accomplish that i heard of a program called market helper that would trick the market into thinking we are using an s4 or something.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let's create an vote for this device so any dev find way to root it!
toan3000 said:
I think this device has powerful hardware specs but poor software, Wish someone find a way to root it so we can use it more effective
---------- Post added at 02:44 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:39 PM ----------
Let's create an vote for this device so any dev find way to root it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do believe that this device will not have great success.
The first point is that it is only devoted to Samsung devices. Why ? I have another android Phone and I cannot use this stuff...
If I have to spend 300 Euro for a device that requires other samsung device, this is a closed one like a MAC and I dislike it.
You can install homesync apk by side loading at least on some Android phones and tablets, as far as I read in some Websites. You could give it a try.
Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk
http://www.engadget.com/2013/12/17/samsung-homesync-media-hub-compatibility/
Yeah. Samsung has extended support to other Android devices for homesync app. Despite hearing so many negative reviews on this device, I shomehow enjoy using it. I'm using the device everyday for media consumption everyday without fail.
How does XBMC run on this thing? And does the Homesync Phone Remote Control work within XBMC? Thats the main reason I'm looking to get this device quite honestly.
Thanks a lot.
I saw the rooting method on a Chinese site. I'm thinking about buying this Homesync for HD Player and torrent download.
Zanr Zij said:
I saw the rooting method on a Chinese site. I'm thinking about buying this Homesync for HD Player and torrent download.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Which website?
Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk
tect said:
Which website?
Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here you go
http://www.2gcn.com/android/ROOT/20130908/5137.html
Zanr Zij said:
Here you go
http://www.2gcn.com/android/ROOT/20130908/5137.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not working on my homesync
This launcher app appeared in my update list (Idol 6045i, 5.5). Since it is not currently on my phone it is not really an update. Notice -there is no uninstall option.
Read a bunch of reviews - most were bad, very bad - and once it's on your phone you can't get rid of it so be warned!
It is pushed out by Alcatel.
catapp said:
This launcher app appeared in my update list (Idol 6045i, 5.5). Since it is not currently on my phone it is not really an update. Notice -there is no uninstall option.
Read a bunch of reviews - most were bad, very bad - and once it's on your phone you can't get rid of it so be warned!
It is pushed out by Alcatel.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My dad's pop4 plus got it too, and it's annoying as hell.
I hope somebody comes up with a way to remove it soon , or even better, a whole ROM fo the phone.
It brought lots of adware (bloatware) I tried to get rid of it but all settings of the desktop are now gone. I have to setup my settings again.
Form of malware
Same happened to my 3 family Alcatel phones this week. I didn't ask for this forced 'update', don't want it and it has totally destroyed my desktop, contacts and all shortcuts. I phoned Alcatel and complained that they don't offer an uninstall option and what they have done is, without permission, hijacked my phone.
They said they would look into it, but I am not convinced.
Will never get Alcatel again
I didn't install it on my phone and it disappeared from my update list quite awhile ago.
I don't allow automatic updates. That is crucial. I choose what updates to install.
Joy Launcher problem
I was able to swipe down from the top, I went into settings, to Apps, to Joy Launcher. I tried Force Stop & it didn't work. I then hit the 3 vertical buttons at upper right of screen. I then hit Uninstall Updates. This allowed me to get my screen back. It also returned my homescreen to factory settings. I had to add whatever icons I wanted to the homescreen. Note, I am not tech savvy but this gave me back my functional use of my cell phone.
Same here, I will never get Alcatel ever again because of this joy launcher crap
titaniummitch said:
I was able to swipe down from the top, I went into settings, to Apps, to Joy Launcher. I tried Force Stop & it didn't work. I then hit the 3 vertical buttons at upper right of screen. I then hit Uninstall Updates. This allowed me to get my screen back. It also returned my homescreen to factory settings. I had to add whatever icons I wanted to the homescreen. Note, I am not tech savvy but this gave me back my functional use of my cell phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Update: Joy Launcher returned. I repeated above actions & it again returned. On Joy Launcher I denied permissions and for a 3d time it took over my screen. I again repeated above actions and this time I was asked if I wanted to replace Joy Launcher with the factory settings. I clicked on yes and I again got my normal screen back. I don't know if Joy Launcher will return again, I'm waiting...
titaniummitch said:
Update: Joy Launcher returned. I repeated above actions & it again returned. On Joy Launcher I denied permissions and for a 3d time it took over my screen. I again repeated above actions and this time I was asked if I wanted to replace Joy Launcher with the factory settings. I clicked on yes and I again got my normal screen back. I don't know if Joy Launcher will return again, I'm waiting...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are we sure this is Alcatel pushing this launcher? Or perhaps this is bundled with some other type software that persistently re-activates it.
This used to be a common practice for dev's of one program, to get extra revenue by bundling it with their own.
I myself havent installed the most recent update as I feel no need to at this time. I'm currently trying to get rid of that silly "File Manager" that just all of a sudden decided it needed to run actively!
Moscow Desire said:
Are we sure this is Alcatel pushing this launcher? Or perhaps this is bundled with some other type software that persistently re-activates it.
This used to be a common practice for dev's of one program, to get extra revenue by bundling it with their own.
I myself havent installed the most recent update as I feel no need to at this time. I'm currently trying to get rid of that silly "File Manager" that just all of a sudden decided it needed to run actively!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for commenting. As I previously wrote, I'm not very tech savvy.
I don't factually know that it comes from .Alcatel but since 8/14 this keeps returning. I haven't downloaded any new apps. I cannot use the phone until I figure out how to delete the Joy Launcher message from my screen. I refuse to allow the program's permission requests. I wrote to Alcatel on 8/14 & they gave me a case #. They haven't yet addressed the complaint.
Today it returned again yet it wasn't listed as 1 of my apps. I went into apps - permissions & I denied all permissions. Joy Launcher had some permissions even though it didn't appear on my list of apps. After I denied permissions I restarted the phone & it was gone. The problem is that it keeps returning. I don't know how to stop this from being re-installed.
Sorry you are having trouble with the File Manager, I haven't yet experienced problems.
titaniummitch said:
Thank you for commenting. As I previously wrote, I'm not very tech savvy.
I don't factually know that it comes from .Alcatel but since 8/14 this keeps returning. I haven't downloaded any new apps. I cannot use the phone until I figure out how to delete the Joy Launcher message from my screen. I refuse to allow the program's permission requests. I wrote to Alcatel on 8/14 & they gave me a case #. They haven't yet addressed the complaint.
Today it returned again yet it wasn't listed as 1 of my apps. I went into apps - permissions & I denied all permissions. Joy Launcher had some permissions even though it didn't appear on my list of apps. After I denied permissions I restarted the phone & it was gone. The problem is that it keeps returning. I don't know how to stop this from being re-installed.
Sorry you are having trouble with the File Manager, I haven't yet experienced problems.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On another site 1 guy claims he installed another launcher then used all in one toolbox to disable at startup
http://download.cnet.com/Joy-Launcher/3000-20432_4-77527969.html
It does seem to be an alcatel app
titaniummitch said:
Thank you for commenting. As I previously wrote, I'm not very tech savvy.
I don't factually know that it comes from .Alcatel but since 8/14 this keeps returning. I haven't downloaded any new apps. I cannot use the phone until I figure out how to delete the Joy Launcher message from my screen. I refuse to allow the program's permission requests. I wrote to Alcatel on 8/14 & they gave me a case #. They haven't yet addressed the complaint.
Today it returned again yet it wasn't listed as 1 of my apps. I went into apps - permissions & I denied all permissions. Joy Launcher had some permissions even though it didn't appear on my list of apps. After I denied permissions I restarted the phone & it was gone. The problem is that it keeps returning. I don't know how to stop this from being re-installed.
Sorry you are having trouble with the File Manager, I haven't yet experienced problems.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem mate. Been dealing with OEM crap since the HTC Desire days.
They put this stuff on for several reasons.
1) To give the device a unique feel different from other manufacturers
2) They get money from the developers of said applications to help for a larger profit margin
3) (and the 1 I think is the winner) They let their spouses or partners chose an app "cuz it's cute"
In actuality it's #1 and 2.
If you are rooted, try this app out from the play store. It's what I use.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jumobile.manager.systemapp&hl=en
You can find all the apk's and "com.xxxxx.xxxxx" files. Ya should be able to locate that joy launcher easily. My guess it's re-installing from a couple locations.
As with that Alcatel File Manager, I use ES File Explorer or Root Explorer. I don't like the idea of a program running in memory like File Explorer does. U can tell cause it leaves icons on the notification bar. So I deleted it.
No Joy, (contiunued)
TheMadScientist said:
On another site 1 guy claims he installed another launcher then used all in one toolbox to disable at startup
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the suggestion, Mad Scientist, I'll look into the toolbox. It returned last night and I followed Moscow Desire's advice on preventing automatic updates. I had to search how to do prevent automatic updates, I didn't know I could disable them. I managed to accomplish disabling the auto updates. At some point the screen asked me "Do you want to replace with factory version" & I clicked on yes.
I hope I'm not violating protocol by going into lengthy detail. The inability to use my phone is frustrating. I'm writing about my attempts in case I succeed in regaining control of the phone & maybe my experience could be useful to somebody else. Thanks for the input & guidance.
---------- Post added at 03:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:54 PM ----------
I like your #3.
I appreciate your generous assistance. This app remover might be the answer. I'll wait and if my refusing auto updates (done last night) doesn't solve the problem then I'll download this app remover.
Moscow Desire said:
No problem mate. Been dealing with OEM crap since the HTC Desire days.
They put this stuff on for several reasons.
1) To give the device a unique feel different from other manufacturers
2) They get money from the developers of said applications to help for a larger profit margin
3) (and the 1 I think is the winner) They let their spouses or partners chose an app "cuz it's cute"
In actuality it's #1 and 2.
If you are rooted, try this app out from the play store. It's what I use.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jumobile.manager.systemapp&hl=en
You can find all the apk's and "com.xxxxx.xxxxx" files. Ya should be able to locate that joy launcher easily. My guess it's re-installing from a couple locations.
As with that Alcatel File Manager, I use ES File Explorer or Root Explorer. I don't like the idea of a program running in memory like File Explorer does. U can tell cause it leaves icons on the notification bar. So I deleted it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
titaniummitch said:
Thanks for the suggestion, Mad Scientist, I'll look into the toolbox. It returned last night and I followed Moscow Desire's advice on preventing automatic updates. I had to search how to do prevent automatic updates, I didn't know I could disable them. I managed to accomplish disabling the auto updates. At some point the screen asked me "Do you want to replace with factory version" & I clicked on yes.
I hope I'm not violating protocol by going into lengthy detail. The inability to use my phone is frustrating. I'm writing about my attempts in case I succeed in regaining control of the phone & maybe my experience could be useful to somebody else. Thanks for the input & guidance.
---------- Post added at 03:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:54 PM ----------
I like your #3.
I appreciate your generous assistance. This app remover might be the answer. I'll wait and if my refusing auto updates (done last night) doesn't solve the problem then I'll download this app remover.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not at all thats what we are here for. I'm trying to make mine better too just like you.
Hello All, I too was the victim of the rotten Joy Launcher. I think I have now stopped it and now we have a happy Alcatel cell phone.
I did a lot of things, but basically - sorry do not have the cell to hand.
I uninstalled Joy Launcher (from version 7.0 to version 5??) and clicked on Force Stop. Then I uninstalled Updates (from version 7.0 to version 5??) and clicked on Force Stop.
Within Play Store, I selected 'do not install when connected to Wireless' and 'manual install'.
There is one last 'manual install' option which I think is within settings.
The octopus is gone and Joy Launcher doesn't bug me anymore. Yippee!
Update it from Apkmirror site , you will find latest update ver 7.0.1.0.823 . It seems that play store removed it .
Response from Alcatel
As I mentioned in my earlier post I emailed Alcatel support. They did not respond so I wrote again, this was my email:
Subject:
Your malware - Joy Launcher
Message:
I have 3 pop4 Alcatel phones. You have forced an installation and update of 'Joy launcher' via Google Playstore.
It has totally removed all of my existing desktop, with its contacts, accounts and shortcuts, etc, which took months of usage and setting up. All is now wasted and lost.
I did not ask for this rubbish program. I do not want it. You have forced it on to me. You have deleted and corrupted my data without my permission.
I have made formal complaints to my network provider as I am most disappointed and angry with Alcatel and will certainly make my thoughts known, because this application is a form of malware.
=====================
I received a response today from Alcatel which was:
Dear customer,
Thank you for contacting us.
Regarding your issue, to deactivate Joy Launcher you need to connect to the internet ( wi-fi network) and a rollback that will remove the Octopus/Spider or any other such annoying features will set in.
What you will also need to do is to go to the settings and then to apps. There you will need to search for the joy launcher and then to click on it and if you see 3 vertical dots, please click on it and then unisntall updates(if not just disable it and uninstall it from the play store).
After you do this, please go to the play store and click on the 3 orizontal lines and settings-> auto-update and click on do not do auto-updates.
We also recommend to get a new launcher from the play store and set it as default in order to fix this.
Please consider rebooting your device if the change doesn't come through.
===
I though I ought to pass this 'fix' on in case it assists anyone. In any event, I will certainly not get an Alcatel phone again because of what they have done. I hate this type of intrusion with software/bloatware which constantly eats your data with spurious and dangerous ads and peaking at your data.
Good luck
Steve
The amount of bloatware (some of which is borderline malware) that has been silently installed since 6.0 is appalling. It renders the phone super sluggish.
If your phone is rooted you can uninstall most of it (at least Joy Launcher, File Manager and Weather) using a root system app remover.
Anything in the com.tct package namespace is a candidate for being eradicated.
How to root Alcatel Pop4 - 5051x
Yes, bloatware is verging on being criminal as the device has the memory stolen from it.
Thanks for informing me that rooting would allow me to get rid of unwanted stuff. The only problem is that I don't know how to do this. I have read different forums and followed numerous links but I have not found a step by step (idiots guide) to root my Alcatel pop4 (5051x) Android 6.0.1
If there is one specifically for that phone I would gratefull for assistance as I do not want to brick my device.
Thanks in advance
ps: I spent ages trying to prove I am not a robot and was about to give it up as a bad job. Is this normal or just me? For example when it asks for street signs does that include picture of the poles only holding the street signs above...? It just goes on and on. I suppose I need a guide to that now !
Hi,
I'm new to XDA. I think I'm in the right forum for my issue. My phone was infected with what I think is a type of auto rooting trojan. I was looking for info on an app I'm using called Duraspeed. I came across this website that started throwing popups at me saying my phone had tons of viruses, which was a lie. By the time I could break free from the drive by attacks, it was too late. I started getting sluggish performance on my phone and popup ads randomly. Even though it somehow gained root access, my phone is not rooted. Never was. Its still not! Because I checked with several apps off the playstore to confirm this. Long story short:
It put a file called "ads_popup-release.apk"
in my root folder /system/priv-app/
And modified a file called "8e710bb7.0"
in root folder /system/etc/security/cacerts/
or put (installed) the file there I'm not sure.
The file running on the phone as a system app is called "ad_surface"
I can only force stop and disable ad_surface without the ability to uninstall. I have to repeat this process every time I reboot. This stops the ads from popping up. Funny thing is, even though the force stop button in app settings is greyed meaning it was stopped and disabled, my OS Monitor app that shows running processes shows ad_surface is still running. Yet, it does stop the random popup ads by doing it this way. I've tried 360 AV, Avast, AVG, Malwarebytea, Kaspers, stubborn rootkit remover, a lot of antivirus programs but nothing detects it. I'm using Total Commander File Manager to view the device system partitions. I even copied the two trojan files to a folder on the user partition to see if any of the antivirus programs could check them there away from the root areas. But nothing. My guess is that I need to root my phone so I can gain access to the apk file and delete it. I haven't done a factory reset because I realize that apk file is in the recovery partition in order to reinstall itself. I've never rooted a phone before, but I have Kingroot installed. I downloaded it from XDA. I just don't have the guts to use it in fear of bricking. Do you think it would work with my phone? Does it abort the root procedure if it can't do it? Here are my phone specs:
Vortex Beat 8
Software build: 8_V1.5_20171011
Chipset: MT6580M Cortex-A7
CPU Architecture: ARMv7 Processor Rev 3(V71)
Cores: 4 1300MHz
Kernal Version: 3.18.19
Total Ram: 459MB
Internal ROM: 8GB (4GB for user)
That's about it. If there's anything anybody who could recommend how to go about this I would greatly appreciate the help. Thank you...
Go try factory resetting it, doesn't hurt to try.
If the "virus" is still there you can always re-flash the phones os. Here is the link to the stock ROM ---> http://www.needrom.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/BEAT-8_V1.06_20170413.rar
The below link is a tutorial on how to flash the phones ROM.
https://www.getdroidtips.com/stock-rom-vortex-beat-8/#How_to_Download_Stock_ROM_on_VORTEX_Beat_8
In mtkdroid tools, Have all the boxes unchecked, and make sure you only have "ANDRIOD" and "RECOVERY" checked marked. The other boxes are just about the phones information and properties. Theses shouldn't be checked because it might erase your imei/drivers or other stuff. After flashing the rom make sure you do a complete factory rest + cache. Erase whatever you have on ur sd cards or micro sd cards.
Just do this and call it a day
Good luck
Cool
Hi, thank you! I will try this. I will have to borrow someone's computer like my nephews. I did try Kingroot and OneClickRoot but they both failed. Perhaps due to a locked bootloader. Or the evil trojan that made itself super user blocking them. I did do a factory reset, but the trojan persist. My mistake was forgetting to turn off unknown sources in security settings. I think that's how it got in... I'll keep checking back on this thread in the meantime to see if someone knows a tool that can kill the trojan, but I doubt it. Cheers!
SecretSociety68 said:
Hi, thank you! I will try this. I will have to borrow someone's computer like my nephews. I did try Kingroot and OneClickRoot but they both failed. Perhaps due to a locked bootloader. Or the evil trojan that made itself super user blocking them. I did do a factory reset, but the trojan persist. My mistake was forgetting to turn off unknown sources in security settings. I think that's how it got in... I'll keep checking back on this thread in the meantime to see if someone knows a tool that can kill the trojan, but I doubt it. Cheers!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm having similar troubles I somehow believe I have an entire infected Network from Windows 10 to iOS and all the cell phones even two 3-g flip even the Smart car has been recognized I communicated with the virus / hacker Network I have no idea how to get rid of it I give his self super user privileges without quite rooting the phone and hides itself in system apps so it's virtually impossible to get rid of at least for me it is I have post here called wading deep Waters please do check it out
sassyfrassy said:
I'm having similar troubles I somehow believe I have an entire infected Network from Windows 10 to iOS and all the cell phones even two 3-g flip even the Smart car has been recognized I communicated with the virus / hacker Network I have no idea how to get rid of it I give his self super user privileges without quite rooting the phone and hides itself in system apps so it's virtually impossible to get rid of at least for me it is I have post here called wading deep Waters please do check it out
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It isn't unheard of for a router to get infected with a virus/malware, rare, but not exactly impossible. I've run across others here over the years that have discussed this issue. I don't remember any specifics, tools or methods to fix the issue though, but you can probably find info on removing malware from a router.
Sent from my LGL84VL using Tapatalk
Droidriven said:
It isn't unheard of for a router to get infected with a virus/malware, rare, but not exactly impossible. I've run across others here over the years that have discussed this issue. I don't remember any specifics, tools or methods to fix the issue though, but you can probably find info on removing malware from a router.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your prompt response I'm not positive that the router and modem are infected more or less they are overloaded from the amount of leeches in hitchhiker's I have from this awful network of hackers and code running through my TV's my cars for god sakes I read one of their lauder's I got in somehow and I could see that they were logging how many seconds it took me from getting out of the car to getting in my home that was just one scary example they could tell when my phone was in my pocket and if I was walking and how many people were with me this is just my cell phone not to mention my TV's the laptops I have no idea what to do
sassyfrassy said:
Thank you for your prompt response I'm not positive that the router and modem are infected more or less they are overloaded from the amount of leeches in hitchhiker's I have from this awful network of hackers and code running through my TV's my cars for god sakes I read one of their lauder's I got in somehow and I could see that they were logging how many seconds it took me from getting out of the car to getting in my home that was just one scary example they could tell when my phone was in my pocket and if I was walking and how many people were with me this is just my cell phone not to mention my TV's the laptops I have no idea what to do
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It sounds to me like their hold over you has more to do with your personal information than with your devices. With certain pieces of your info, they can gain access to any device that you sign into, login to or even just enter information in while using, even if it isn't yours.
If your network provider randomly cycles IP addresses among its users, it could be that the hacker has previously hijacked that IP address while another user was using it and his access carried over to you when the IP was assigned to you. If this is so, a new IP and changing all of your account info among all of the various accounts you have would cut him off, maybe?
I'm not the best at network security issues that go that deep. My network management/LAN Admin days were a very long time ago, too many things have changed.
Sent from my LGL84VL using Tapatalk
Droidriven said:
It sounds to me like their hold over you has more to do with your personal information than with your devices. With certain pieces of your info, they can gain access to any device that you sign into, login to or even just enter information in while using, even if it isn't yours.
If your network provider randomly cycles IP addresses among its users, it could be that the hacker has previously hijacked that IP address while another user was using it and his access carried over to you when the IP was assigned to you. If this is so, a new IP and changing all of your account info among all of the various accounts you have would cut him off, maybe?
I'm not the best at network security issues that go that deep. My network management/LAN Admin days were a very long time ago, too many things have changed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you I really appreciate you taking the time to think about my situation I have had no one to talk to about this for 2 months
sassyfrassy said:
Thank you I really appreciate you taking the time to think about my situation I have had no one to talk to about this for 2 months
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure how much help I'll be to you. I'm no expert in what you're dealing with. I'm just telling you some possibilities that I've seen others dealing with over the years.
Sent from my LGL84VL using Tapatalk
Droidriven said:
It sounds to me like their hold over you has more to do with your personal information than with your devices. With certain pieces of your info, they can gain access to any device that you sign into, login to or even just enter information in while using, even if it isn't yours.
If your network provider randomly cycles IP addresses among its users, it could be that the hacker has previously hijacked that IP address while another user was using it and his access carried over to you when the IP was assigned to you. If this is so, a new IP and changing all of your account info among all of the various accounts you have would cut him off, maybe?
I'm not the best at network security issues that go that deep. My network management/LAN Admin days were a very long time ago, too many things have changed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You hit the nail on the head! Told me "unfortunately we have met"
Sent from my LGE LGL158VL using XDA Labs
SecretSociety68 said:
It put a file called "ads_popup-release.apk"
in my root folder /system/priv-app/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
translation it installed itself to the privilege app section on your phone which does not delete with a reset (new rom does) this also gives the app more power
it can only be done with root so the app rooted your phone (at least temp) here is a app that removes it but it needs root
https://f-droid.org/en/packages/de.j4velin.systemappmover/
And a system priv app has AFAIK full power however as of Oreo thier is another file to give it permisions so says google https://source.android.com/devices/tech/config/perms-whitelist namely
/etc/permissions/privapp-permissions-OEM_NAME.xml
/etc/permissions/privapp-permissions-DEVICE_NAME.xml
check these files and see what you find
SecretSociety68 said:
And modified a file called "8e710bb7.0"
in root folder /system/etc/security/cacerts/
or put (installed) the file there I'm not sure.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
translation installed a CA certificate that enables them to have a SSL connection or with this certificate can spoof websites
of course this should be deleted but again you will need root (or new Rom)
SecretSociety68 said:
The file running on the phone as a system app is called "ad_surface"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The app has to be running with a linux GUID so you can check with that
the apps can not find root this can be because the program used root once to get a elevated status (temporary root) and then does not need it anymore
so you cannot find it. The question still remains how they did that but right now you need to get out.
Waiting for other response. Hehe.
I had this take control of multiple devices and 2 computers. 3 android phones and an apple iphone and 2 windows computers. I countless hours going through logs and data. On my android devices it even made a cloned version of TWRP so it would reinstall itself through recovery. I spent hours on the phone with samsung and apple senior advisors. I viewed the analytic data on the apple device over and over. Extremely werid things were running. Constantly writting system wwrites on a stock apple phone. It was able to transfer from device to device over wifi hotspot. It went on for over two months. I had a roku tv also become monitored. It was the craziest **** ive ever had happen to me. It litterally almost drove me insane and I thought I was going crazy. Ive never seen anything like it. Even google reaults were completely false and fake sites. I disnt know this happened to anyone else. Ive got countless logs and screenshots saved in case I ever needed to share the info. It even remotely sipped my desktop hard drives and had me connecring to a remote server on boot.
---------- Post added at 07:48 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:37 PM ----------
I could make a phone call and hear breathing in the background. Id make a call and touch tone sounds would go off after the first ring. I was getting constant interference through my phone. It connected all my devices to a home group I never created. I literally had to destroy the devices
---------- Post added at 08:15 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:48 PM ----------
Applied protocal - makes sense man, in juat glad I got it off my back. On the iphone, when yyou would install a new app from the "app store" it would run a wake up over 4000 times a second to wake up an unknown app in system files . im assuming this was to clone the app or change some code in it when it was installed. The app name was ??? In the analytic logs and it was an "event write system". This was some dirty stuff man. Is this something that is common right now? This exploit across so many devices? Id love to share some of these logs and screenshots if anyone is interested.
SecretSociety68 said:
Hi,
I'm new to XDA. I think I'm in the right forum for my issue. My phone was infected with what I think is a type of auto rooting trojan. I was looking for info on an app I'm using called Duraspeed. I came across this website that started throwing popups at me saying my phone had tons of viruses, which was a lie. By the time I could break free from the drive by attacks, it was too late. I started getting sluggish performance on my phone and popup ads randomly. Even though it somehow gained root access, my phone is not rooted. Never was. Its still not! Because I checked with several apps off the playstore to confirm this. Long story short:
It put a file called "ads_popup-release.apk"
in my root folder /system/priv-app/
And modified a file called "8e710bb7.0"
in root folder /system/etc/security/cacerts/
or put (installed) the file there I'm not sure.
The file running on the phone as a system app is called "ad_surface"
I can only force stop and disable ad_surface without the ability to uninstall. I have to repeat this process every time I reboot. This stops the ads from popping up. Funny thing is, even though the force stop button in app settings is greyed meaning it was stopped and disabled, my OS Monitor app that shows running processes shows ad_surface is still running. Yet, it does stop the random popup ads by doing it this way. I've tried 360 AV, Avast, AVG, Malwarebytea, Kaspers, stubborn rootkit remover, a lot of antivirus programs but nothing detects it. I'm using Total Commander File Manager to view the device system partitions. I even copied the two trojan files to a folder on the user partition to see if any of the antivirus programs could check them there away from the root areas. But nothing. My guess is that I need to root my phone so I can gain access to the apk file and delete it. I haven't done a factory reset because I realize that apk file is in the recovery partition in order to reinstall itself. I've never rooted a phone before, but I have Kingroot installed. I downloaded it from XDA. I just don't have the guts to use it in fear of bricking. Do you think it would work with my phone? Does it abort the root procedure if it can't do it? Here are my phone specs:
Vortex Beat 8
Software build: 8_V1.5_20171011
Chipset: MT6580M Cortex-A7
CPU Architecture: ARMv7 Processor Rev 3(V71)
Cores: 4 1300MHz
Kernal Version: 3.18.19
Total Ram: 459MB
Internal ROM: 8GB (4GB for user)
That's about it. If there's anything anybody who could recommend how to go about this I would greatly appreciate the help. Thank you...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Definitely malmare! Mine was called "Ad-Time", like a kid's show or something, but either way, very persistent and pervasive! I have 2 roms, (v 1.5 & 1.6), in img format, easy fastboot flash. Look at this phone wrong and it's rooted. Anybody interested, hit me up, I even got the couple-line script to install SuperSU /system (beat 8 doesn't like Magisk). A simple su.d script to enable permissive selinux, build.prop changes, and you have a $30 Nexus via MTK. I also ported TWRP 3.2.1(no bugs) & Philz, but TWRP is my comfort-zone.
Sent from my ZTE Sapphire 3G using XDA Labs
---------- Post added at 02:03 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:48 AM ----------
sameboat said:
I had this take control of multiple devices and 2 computers. 3 android phones and an apple iphone and 2 windows computers. I countless hours going through logs and data. On my android devices it even made a cloned version of TWRP so it would reinstall itself through recovery. I spent hours on the phone with samsung and apple senior advisors. I viewed the analytic data on the apple device over and over. Extremely werid things were running. Constantly writting system wwrites on a stock apple phone. It was able to transfer from device to device over wifi hotspot. It went on for over two months. I had a roku tv also become monitored. It was the craziest **** ive ever had happen to me. It litterally almost drove me insane and I thought I was going crazy. Ive never seen anything like it. Even google reaults were completely false and fake sites. I disnt know this happened to anyone else. Ive got countless logs and screenshots saved in case I ever needed to share the info. It even remotely sipped my desktop hard drives and had me connecring to a remote server on boot.
---------- Post added at 07:48 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:37 PM ----------
I could make a phone call and hear breathing in the background. Id make a call and touch tone sounds would go off after the first ring. I was getting constant interference through my phone. It connected all my devices to a home group I never created. I literally had to destroy the devices
---------- Post added at 08:15 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:48 PM ----------
Applied protocal - makes sense man, in juat glad I got it off my back. On the iphone, when yyou would install a new app from the "app store" it would run a wake up over 4000 times a second to wake up an unknown app in system files . im assuming this was to clone the app or change some code in it when it was installed. The app name was ??? In the analytic logs and it was an "event write system". This was some dirty stuff man. Is this something that is common right now? This exploit across so many devices? Id love to share some of these logs and screenshots if anyone is interested.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Typical Chinese ad/malware/surveillance. If you visit china, you turn over your devices for "inspection", so they can sideload some state-sponsored goodies. A lot of these Chinese roms have the ads baked-in, like mine. Whoever's listening and seeing my pics is gonna need therapy, because I filled the phone up with some STRANGE s*** Remove the apk, but there's several .xml's and .jar's that gotta go, too.
Sent from my ZTE Sapphire 3G using XDA Labs
What is the best way to counter this problem?
Dassote said:
What is the best way to counter this problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Root, and remove all traces of the " ad_* " app and even the duraspeed app if you want, but I didn't see anything untrustworthy about that. Duraspeed is in the default.prop (running booster), so it's in the kernel. Root uninstall just leaves you no way to control, kuz the PROCESS will go and go, unless you're willing to play with the kernel. Not for amateurs like myself My Beat 8 has been flashed or fastboot-booted more times than I can count. Good times.
Once your Chinese spyware is uninstalled, delete build.prop lines with "running booster", /system/lib's with it, and I think it was in the /system/bin, and /vendor/app had one. Clear them all, and you'll need to tweak the build.prop some more. debug.qemu.kernel=1, ro.secure_storage.support=0, ro.debuggable=1, then reboot AFTER you chmod 644 the build.prop! The "debug.qemu.kernel=1" was what made the rest stick. ADD those props, but don't change the existing ones (kernel). I just deleted the default values, replaced with "" . Fits the whole debug vibe. I should upload a copy of my final build.prop, cheap-a** phone runs like a champ.
Sent from my LG G Stylo using XDA Labs