Sorry if this question has been answered already, but I haven't found a recent (ie within a year) thread about this when I searched. I haven't rooted anything in years and I've just got a Galaxy Tab Pro and was looking into Rooting it. My friend who has an HTC One has also reached out to me asking me how to Root it.
When I started researching methods I kept running across articles that were stating that Rooting a device is now illegal? I've never heard of this before, is it true? Anyone have links to information that says otherwise?
No it's not but In most cases it will void your warranty. also most of the time you could always unroot your device. I used KingRoot to root my phone it's an app it was quick and simple.
Sent from my BLU STUDIO 7.0 II using XDA Free mobile app
It depends what you do with root. If you root it to "hack" or "snif" then you're doing a illegal thing. If you root it to costumise your Android then, you're not disturbing a privacy from another person or what else.
Hit the Thanks Button if I helped
You bought and own it. You can do what you like with it. Of course if it's a stolen phone and you're rooting it to mess with the IMEI, then that's another matter.
Does anyone have links to articles or information confirming this? Because all I can find are articles stating that it is illegal with the 2nd article below stating that "Tablets cannot be Rooted AT ALL" (*edit: apparently I can't post links yet)
godzillinois said:
Does anyone have links to articles or information confirming this? Because all I can find are articles stating that it is illegal with the 2nd article below stating that "Tablets cannot be Rooted AT ALL" (*edit: apparently I can't post links yet)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know what you have been reading, but it's wrong. Root is perfectly legal. My Nexus 7 and Nexus 9 are both rooted.
Where are you getting this information? That part of the internet should just go ahead and die.
well like I said, I can't post links yet because I'm still 'new' but if you just Google Root and Illegal a bunch of articles come up (some contradicting the others, which is why I was looking for a definitive answer from somewhere.)
godzillinois said:
well like I said, I can't post links yet because I'm still 'new' but if you just Google Root and Illegal a bunch of articles come up (some contradicting the others, which is why I was looking for a definitive answer from somewhere.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you don't quite get how search engines (google) works: you can google illegal and pineapples, and get a bunch of articles.
The only issue with rooting would be that it breaks/voids warranty in most cases, and if your device was obtained on contract i.e. still technically the property of your provider, then rooting might be against the terms of service - the consequence of which varying depending on the provider.
HypoTurtle said:
I think you don't quite get how search engines (google) works: you can google illegal and pineapples, and get a bunch of articles.
The only issue with rooting would be that it breaks/voids warranty in most cases, and if your device was obtained on contract i.e. still technically the property of your provider, then rooting might be against the terms of service - the consequence of which varying depending on the provider.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wasn't searching for it outright, I was actually searching for the pros and cons of rooting since my buddy was interested, and a couple of the articles I kept running into kept mentioning the illegality part. Since I can't post links I just suggested that one Google Root and Illegal since someone actually asked where I got my information. I figured it would be easier than explaining all this and then telling him to Google "Pros and Cons."
Obviously I know how a search engine works, no need for the passive aggressive comments - especially when you provide no other help than what was already said.
godzillinois said:
I wasn't searching for it outright, I was actually searching for the pros and cons of rooting since my buddy was interested, and a couple of the articles I kept running into kept mentioning the illegality part. Since I can't post links I just suggested that one Google Root and Illegal since someone actually asked where I got my information. I figured it would be easier than explaining all this and then telling him to Google "Pros and Cons."
Obviously I know how a search engine works, no need for the passive aggressive comments - especially when you provide no other help than what was already said.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, wasn't meaning to sound that way, but your question is rather vague as there isn't one universal global law system - although arguably there should be for digital matters.
To fully answer there are several parts to look at; primarily does it violate local laws - in some cases it can be argued that it breaks copyright law. Additionally you need to question on if the 'broken law' is inforcable - inmost cases it is not and the said laws were made in a pre-digital age and haven't been updated to account for the current world. As an example - setting the wrong age (or a fake profile) on FB is technically illegal as it's against the TOS which is a legal document; but the proseccution of these lawbreakers isn't feasible or inforcable.
Although as i stated previously - this can be slightly different if the device isn't wholely owned by the user i.e. the device cost was covered by the network provider and essentially loaned to the user until the contract is over.
Fair enough - sorry to jump on you, so I guess to be more specific I was looking into the legality of Rooting devices that are out of contract in the US/Illinois. My friend's phone is older than 2 years well past his contract, and I bought a refurbished Wifi-only Galaxy Tab Pro which seems is stuck on Kit Kat for now.
I'm mainly looking to Root to turn off my back button and gain write access to my external SD card (as well as remove bloat) but the Wifi-tether I was finding in articles seems intriguing. Although that seems like if anything that came from Rooting would be illegal that would be it (and bootlegging paid apps of course.)
godzillinois said:
Fair enough - sorry to jump on you, so I guess to be more specific I was looking into the legality of Rooting devices that are out of contract in the US/Illinois. My friend's phone is older than 2 years well past his contract, and I bought a refurbished Wifi-only Galaxy Tab Pro which seems is stuck on Kit Kat for now.
I'm mainly looking to Root to turn off my back button and gain write access to my external SD card (as well as remove bloat) but the Wifi-tether I was finding in articles seems intriguing. Although that seems like if anything that came from Rooting would be illegal that would be it (and bootlegging paid apps of course.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can easily bootleg paid apps without root, so don't think that rooting is opening up the phone to the "dark side" of Android.
Rooting devices is not illegal anywhere in the US. It does, however, void your warranty and if you were to trade in the device for credit towards a new one they will likely not take it and force you to pay the difference.
But if you own the device outright (not on contract or paid full price), it is yours and you can do anything you like with it. You can root it, you can smash it with a hammer, or you can bake it into a cake. The possibilities are endless.
Even if you don't "own it" outright yet (i.e. are on a 2 year contract or pay monthly installments) you can still modify the device in any way as long as you finish your contract/agreement.
As long as you don't use root access to do illegal things, it's perfectly fine. Root itself is harmless.
Related
Hey guys, long time lurker, first time post here.
I just got off the phone after a nightmare of random reboots and so on and so forth. VZW send me a text today saying an update to my phone was available. Thinking I'd find out if it was simply to disable mobile tether or not I called in. The tech was surprised, but said he did see the notes on my account that the message was sent.
He said it was NOT 2.3, but another maintenance release, approved today for push tomorrow. All of this can be dismissed, however he did say something quite interesting. He said he couldn't fully help me because my phone was rooted. Obviously I denied that, and he said look man, I know it is. I said how? He replied that he could see that I was running DASbamf 2.1, which I am. Explained that it was part of the new system for the 4g phones. Believe me or not, I just wanted to put it out there that VZW can apparently tell, his words were that more than likely, it's pulled from when the phone is activated. Has anyone else heard of either of these? This is also posted on droid forums, just putting that out these to avoid the duplicate talks.
I always thought they knew, just can't do much about it. However, if they start using that information to deny certain services, it would be a major problem.
We need one of the nifty Verizon employees that frequent here to comment on this.
that is interesting. In theory, they could use that to deny warranty claims.
or the devs could just change the listing and fake the rom info right?
Well, thats my thought / hope. He read right back to me saying I was running a custom rom. I got to talking with him and he admitted he was rooted as well, and additionally stated that as a whole VZW doesn't pursue the issue. it just tripped me out, that he read it out. He had a very "don't bull**** me" tone. haha
tricky verizon.... they are catchin on!
if their phones didn't come with so much bloatware i wouldn't feel the need to root.
The screen cap was from today, obviously. What do you guys think of that?
son0fthunder said:
The screen cap was from today, obviously. What do you guys think of that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i think you need to charge your phone
i think you should download that and drop it on xda early for all of us.
I agree,I believe a charge is in order
1.21 giggawatts Thunder™
nrfitchett4 said:
that is interesting. In theory, they could use that to deny warranty claims.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anyone dumb enough to return a rooted phone deserves to be denied.
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App
Haha, all warranty-implications aside, that's pretty cool that he could tell you what rom you were running.
Jcase has said before that they can tell, a big give away is you radio/baseband version. Do they care if you're rooted? Probably not unless your stealing services ,in which they are starting to act on and try to eliminate.
I root because I like to tinker with computers, I like the customization and speed that rooting gives us.
No flame please.
Sent from my ThunderBolt using XDA Premium App
son0fthunder said:
Hey guys, long time lurker, first time post here.
I just got off the phone after a nightmare of random reboots and so on and so forth. VZW send me a text today saying an update to my phone was available. Thinking I'd find out if it was simply to disable mobile tether or not I called in. The tech was surprised, but said he did see the notes on my account that the message was sent.
He said it was NOT 2.3, but another maintenance release, approved today for push tomorrow. All of this can be dismissed, however he did say something quite interesting. He said he couldn't fully help me because my phone was rooted. Obviously I denied that, and he said look man, I know it is. I said how? He replied that he could see that I was running DASbamf 2.1, which I am. Explained that it was part of the new system for the 4g phones. Believe me or not, I just wanted to put it out there that VZW can apparently tell, his words were that more than likely, it's pulled from when the phone is activated. Has anyone else heard of either of these? This is also posted on droid forums, just putting that out these to avoid the duplicate talks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi. I just bought a Thunderbolt after having problems with Sprint. I was told the same thing and when I mentioned it in the forum from a thread I posted, I was called a liar, among other things. I was told, as you can see from my post, that they also know every site you visit and whether you are paying for the Mobile Hot Spot. Sorry to hear your story, but glad that it validates what I was told from Sprint.
Schedonnardus said:
i think you need to charge your phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was a great reply!! Hilarious!
Sent from my ThunderBolt using XDA App
I do it to get rid of crapware
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App
Well I'll just jump on over to Sprint if they terminate my contract! The developer support is the reason I have an Android phone. I'm sure the devs could come up with something to block this though.
Honestly... I think terminating contracts over rooted phones would be one of the dumbest moves a cellular company could make.
It takes a certain technical know-how to root a phone, even with "easy root" phones such as the Google Nexus series. These technical people are also the people that are likely to be in positions of IT buying power in major organizations. If one of these people were to loose service over the rooting their personal phone, they may make the case to organizational management to move the organizational fleet of phones away from that carrier. In turn, the termination of one contract leads to the eventual termination of an entire fleet of phones. This "Mutually Assured Destruction" scenario prevents the cellular carriers from taking any large scale averse action against rooted phones. Furthermore, these technical people frequently talk to each other through rapid dissemination means (i.e. these forums). This sets up another scenario where the cancellation of one person's service may lead to the loss of many current and future subscribers.
These two factors leads to an environment where rooting is tolerated but not encouraged by the carriers. Carriers do not want to encourage rooting because it allows people to get rid of money making applications (i.e. City ID). However, they can not take averse action against rooted phones as that would launch the "mutually assured destruction" scenario discussed above. Carriers have turned to the method of locking down the phones as much as possible to prevent casual rooting of the devices. However, once a device is rooted, it is out of the carrier's control.
I fell asleep shortly after this thread was posted, I will however post updated pics once phone is charged.
I was playing around with disabling startup apps (to make ooodles more free RAM) after rooting my device, which is still locked mainly so I could retain the warrantee, and was searching for info on what CMClient and DMClient were and what they did, to see if I could safely and functionally disable them or not, and I ran across this post below on XDA. It states the title of this thread, ie: that Asus can void your warrantee for being rooted when you are still locked and cites the case of an XDA member who had it happen to him.
Asus Big Brother is watching your every move folks! If you've registered your device with Asus and you are rooted and didn't disable these apps they already know you are rooted and can/will void your warrantee based on being rooted alone even if you are still locked! This isn't some old thread, this was posted 08/12. Beware!!
***********************************************************************************
PS-If you are rooted you can disable CMClient and DMClient with apps like System Tuner and ROM Toolbox. But these are also the apps that make it possible to locate, shout, and wipe your remote device in case of theft but are being used by Asus in other ways for their and not our benefit. Kinda a double-edge sword.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1833442
***********************************************************************************
Also, if this is true as it appears to be [Edit: unsubstantiated], why do most of the rooting posts here on XDA claim that only unlocking voids the warrantee, and since rooting is "100% reversible", it does not. Who validates such statements?? XDA should do something about this to avoid misleading the masses who come here seeking a source for quality and valid information about their devices. I feel VERY misled by XDA after learning this. [Edit: Red underline bold removed]
Comments?
elfaure said:
Who validates such statements?? XDA should do something about this to avoid misleading the masses who come here seeking a source for quality and valid information about their devices. I feel VERY misled by XDA after learning this.
Comments?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Whom do you intend to impress with red underlined bold text? Forum posts are not official XDA statements. This is a community. You should not blindly believe what you read. Not only on this forum.
What would you suggest XDA to do to ensure only correct information is provided? How did you validate the story of the one user who allegedly got his warranty rejected for rooting? Did you count how many users were rooted and got a warranty repair without issues?
Warning: This post contains false information, including this sentence.
There's nothing like a good panic attack someone else suffers. Never had I heard about rooting affecting your warranty, and as _that has alreay stated, there have been LOTS of owners having had no issues at all RMA'ing their rooted devices.
Things to take home:
1) ANYONE can post ANYTHING on the web. ANYTHING. I am confronted professionally by this kind of biased false information on a pretty much (work-)daily basis.
2) Look up a nice introductory work on statistics - it will serve you well the rest of your life. I gleefully quote Samuel L. Clemens (better known under his writer's pseudonym, Mark Twain): "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics."
Look, more panic-induced rubbish. What is this, the Daily Mail?
Rooting doesn't void warranty as far as I know, considering pretty much everyone here is rooted (myself not included), and quite a lot of them have had to RMA and had no issue.
Unlocking voids warranty, yes. The same way opening up any device does (which is pretty much what unlocking does in a digital sense.).
There is, however, a law in process (or has it already been pushed through?) that renders rooting illegal in the USA. About as illegal as removing the simlock used to be, and we all did that anyway, too.
Sent from my ASUS Transformer Pad TF700T using Tapatalk 2
This is probably a random nip picking from Asus support, someone at Asus decided to pick on rooting, but again this is a very small and isolated incident case if it did happen. My suggestion is to play it safe, by make sure you flash your device back to factory stock (remove root), before send it back for RMA. Problem solved!!
ShadowLea said:
There is, however, a law in process (or has it already been pushed through?) that renders rooting illegal in the USA.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Incorrect. The law that just took effect makes it illegal to unlock (jailbreak) a phone or tablet to use on a different carrier while you're under contract. It is not illegal to unlock or root a device for any other purpose.
_that said:
Whom do you intend to impress with red underlined bold text? Forum posts are not official XDA statements. This is a community. You should not blindly believe what you read. Not only on this forum.
What would you suggest XDA to do to ensure only correct information is provided? How did you validate the story of the one user who allegedly got his warranty rejected for rooting? Did you count how many users were rooted and got a warranty repair without issues?
Warning: This post contains false information, including this sentence.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How many damn posts do I need before I can edit a post without having to wait two (2) minutes?
0. Thanks for all your feedback and constructive/destructive criticism. Exactly what I was looking for. Many different perspectives and new info on this topic. Great to find out this is seemingly an isolated incident if indeed it actually occurred at all.
1. Not looking to impress or offend anyone, simply directing your attention to the bolded items. As users scroll thru posts I want to draw their short attention span to the highlighted items so they don't miss the theme of the post and don't scroll past to the next post without mentally filing the highlighted items and to prompt them to comment if they have opinion or information. Seems to have worked well.
2. Point well taken. I know XDA can't police all threads and I did not validate the one users story. And I agree I should have posted this as more of a question than a statement. All I am seeking is the truth about this issue. I don't "blindly believe everything I read" in fact quite the contrary, hence the reason for this post. Your feedback was useful in determining that this post is not generally true for the majority of rooted members. I am very happy to learn this and I will revise my original post accordingly.
3. Good to know that many rooted users have RMA'd without issue. I now rest much easier with root. And in my opinion it should NOT void my warrantee as I am still prevented from damaging the device (can't flash custom ROMS, kernels, overclock or alter bootloader with just root; need to unlocked bootloader for these features which does understandably void warrantee)
buhohitr said:
This is probably a random nip picking from Asus support, someone at Asus decided to pick on rooting, but again this is a very small and isolated incident case if it did happen. My suggestion is to play it safe, by make sure you flash your device back to factory stock (remove root), before send it back for RMA. Problem solved!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great to hear and thanks for your feeback!
MartyHulskemper said:
There's nothing like a good panic attack someone else suffers. Never had I heard about rooting affecting your warranty
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nor had I. That is why I was shocked to run across the link in this post.
What's legal and illegal when it comes to hacking android (in USA)? I want to unlock the bootloader on my Verizon gs3. Is that illegal?
If you can point me to some definitive or authoritative resources, I would appreciate that. I have been googling this topic for a couple weeks, and as far as I can tell, it's currently legal to unlock your phone for use on another wireless carrier, but it is technically illegal to root or unlock bootloaders (by hacking). But what doesn't fit with that are the bounties I see offered for these activities, so I'm very uncertain either way.
bump
Its legal to do anything to your own device.
You can unlock the bootloader, root the phone, install custom firmwares, or break it to pieces with a hammer as long as it's yours...
Worst case scenario you can always start a new life in Mexico
ishaang said:
Worst case scenario you can always start a new life in Mexico
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That just made my day.
ishaang said:
Its legal to do anything to your own device.
You can unlock the bootloader, root the phone, install custom firmwares, or break it to pieces with a hammer as long as it's yours...
Worst case scenario you can always start a new life in Mexico
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you allowed to post the info of how to do it?
squebler said:
What's legal and illegal when it comes to hacking android (in USA)? I want to unlock the bootloader on my Verizon gs3. Is that illegal?
If you can point me to some definitive or authoritative resources, I would appreciate that. I have been googling this topic for a couple weeks, and as far as I can tell, it's currently legal to unlock your phone for use on another wireless carrier, but it is technically illegal to root or unlock bootloaders (by hacking). But what doesn't fit with that are the bounties I see offered for these activities, so I'm very uncertain either way.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The real issue is with the contract you sign with your carrier. As long as you are in the subsidised portion of your contract (generally 2yrs), the phone technically still belongs to them, not you.
Are they going to look for you to make an issue of it, no. If you need to make a warranty claim though, and they find out it's modified, they have the right to not honor the warranty if they choose (happens occasionally, but not widespread).
I mod my phones all the time, but I do it without any expectation of help from vzw if I break something and can't fix it.
Jmo, hope that helps
squebler said:
What's legal and illegal when it comes to hacking android (in USA)? I want to unlock the bootloader on my Verizon gs3. Is that illegal?
If you can point me to some definitive or authoritative resources, I would appreciate that. I have been googling this topic for a couple weeks, and as far as I can tell, it's currently legal to unlock your phone for use on another wireless carrier, but it is technically illegal to root or unlock bootloaders (by hacking). But what doesn't fit with that are the bounties I see offered for these activities, so I'm very uncertain either way.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In my opinion, as long as you have warranty, don't root your phone because it will void the warranty.
Its legal, but can void your warranty with the manufacturer or if you have bought your phone through a carrier they may have a clause in the agreement related to this.
Sony as a manufacturer is cool with you unlocking your bootloader, and they offer the instructions and code on their own website officially, here -http://developer.sonymobile.com/unlockbootloader/unlock-yourboot-loader/
So that's an example of it being legal.
Very helpful info, thanks! Now I think I'll switch to Sony instead of Samsung.
No problem, and good idea!
I've been a Sony user for a very long time, and generally their devices have never failed to deliver. On top of that they are very developer friendly and support the open source community a lot. This has been referenced in XDA also, many times. Besides that I do feel the build quality of Sony products is superior, and in phones their hardware specs and stock UI is also pretty decent.
oh it's good:highfive:
ite's legal to do anything on your phones of course (like unlock bootloader),
but if you want to test(hack) on other's phones, make sure you get their permission ^^
edit by logix Please dont advertise here.
News flash, that prince in Nigeria that needs your money isn't actually a prince and you won't get his fortune for helping him.
Lots of shady companies on that address... On the first Google page alone it lists 8 different companies all located in Suite 102 of the Blake building in Belize City, amongst which were an insurance company, IT company, Holdings company for Asia, and a bank.
I can smell the seediness from here, and I'm halfway across the planet...
Finally people got the truth. Many have told me to use one click root in many forums. Well I didn't use it until last month when I tried to use it on my Karbonn tafone a37. It didn't root my device and I luckily got a refund but after the next reboot I had a brick in my hand.
Well since I was going throw it it didn't matter.
Good job @allanlevene for warning others.
Never go for oneclickroot kind of apps.. Always use the traditional way..
Sent from my Mi 3W using xda Forums PRO
Android Service Co's
Need clarification on the "traditional way"?
I infer this implies using the means for unlocking, rooting, etc. found on XDA?
Or, are there solid legitimate companies anyone would recommend that are an alternative to the services offered by oneclickroot?
ne_stew said:
Need clarification on the "traditional way"?
I infer this implies using the means for unlocking, rooting, etc. found on XDA?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
TowelRoot, CF Autoroot, pre-rooted ROMS, etc. Basically, yes; Most methods found on XDA.
Thanks for the reply, been searching XDA... stuck w Verizon (CDMA)...
The app stopped working a long time ago, I think it used to work on 2.3.x and 4.0.x...currently, the software is still available for download, and it scans the device and checks it against their database, and returns a result which tells you whether the device is manually rootable (traditional way) or not. And then you can purchase their service, and have a remote root done over Team Viewer. Pretty useful for those who may not be as savvy as some of us to do bootloader unlocking, flashing of recoveries etc on their own.
Thanks for the info. I didn't plan to use them but will be sure not to even try it should the need come up.
I was able to root my IMan i5800C (android 4.4.2) with KingRoot which IS basically one click method. You install the app like any other app and then you click root my phone. And bam! you have a rooted phone. Cool no?
Wow, i didn't know that is the real case from them.
Thanks for sharing appreciate it.
I was duped into this last night. Once I found out it was a live service and not the guy that has been building oneclickroot scripts on xda forever I demanded a refund. We need this issue to go on the front page of xda to get the word out and shut down that scam.
You wouldn't believe the theiving nightmare ONE CLICK ROOT have and are putting me through!!! Paid for two phones, said no warranty, got charged $20 x2 anyway. To make it worse they don't even honor the warranty!! I had an lg k20 rooted and eventually I turned it off. When I turned it back on it would only load to pcs carrier screen, couple other things. The warranty I got the day before doesn't cover that. It says in writing that it does!!! They lie out the side of their face at you and RIP you off for as much as they can get! I HAVE PAID FOR TWO ROOTS AND TWO WARRANTIES I DIDNT WANT. I HAVE A SOFT BRICKED PHONE TO SHOW FOR IT!!!! I'm contacting the FTC , I suggest you do too!!
---------- Post added at 03:34 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:29 AM ----------
Exactly what zero cool said. These guys should be arrested! Total crooks would take from their own mother. If the warranty I involuntary paid for doesn't cover rebooting my phone, what does it cover? NOTHING AT ALL!!
Tell your friends, stay away from ONECLICKROOT!!!
Stay away from that ripoff....
Root problems
I've tried all these methods across several different phones, NONE WORK! i only need a basic root just to run an app that requires root. I've ruined more phones than i care to count. Is there a simple apk that i can run to root my phone without all this nonsense and garbage? By the way why does this site advertise the likes of one click root if they suck so bad?
I too fell into their trap. Paid through PayPal. Download kept cycling back to a new purchase option. Called phone number on receipt not even them . emailed them not in service. Filed payment dispute with PayPal they were great.
Avoid a scam
Please help, I am unsure what to do now that I received my Umidigi S2 Pro unlocked phone that I purchased from GearBest and waited a month to receive-- booted it up and ran malwarebytes on it only to learn it has two adware programs built into the system. Norton did not find anything except a KRACK (some sort of Key reboot wifi vulnerability???) risk (not sure if it is on the phone or just an alert for my home wifi?). I thought I was getting a nice smartphone at a good price, but now I am very worried if I can trust such a phone from china-- would it be safe to set up the phone for online banking, for email with my email username and password? Should I just sell the phone on ebay and go back to using my ASUS phone that I bought in the USA where I live? The Umidigi is such a nice looking phone, but if it is a security risk I certainly will not use it, I would then sell it and take the loss and learn the lesson, ugh.
Quicktouch apparently contains the following adware as detected by Malwarebytes: Android/Adware.Xinyinhe.CJ
TouchPal 2017 apparently contains the following adware as detected by Malwarebytes: Android/Adware.Cootek
^^^They are both system apps so they are not so easily removed.
Thoughts, advice?
Midiman55 said:
Please help, I am unsure what to do now that I received my Umidigi S2 Pro unlocked phone that I purchased from GearBest and waited a month to receive-- booted it up and ran malwarebytes on it only to learn it has two adware programs built into the system...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your best bet is to post this question within one of the following threads that is specific to your question.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1846277
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1620179
Good Luck!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I DO NOT PROVIDE SUPPORT VIA PM UNLESS ASKED/REQUESTED BY MYSELF.
PLEASE KEEP IT IN THE THREADS WHERE EVERYONE CAN SHARE
I also have a similar issue,
Have checked the threads recommended and they are totally irrelevant to the question asked, so here goes:
I bought a new Umidigi phone from an online store, now turns out it seems to be rooted, should I just throw it away or is there any resoanable explanation to why it is like that. Is there anything I can do to be able to use this phone with safety.
Thanks
Shmool said:
I also have a similar issue,
Have checked the threads recommended and they are totally irrelevant to the question asked, so here goes:
I bought a new Umidigi phone from an online store, now turns out it seems to be rooted, should I just throw it away or is there any resoanable explanation to why it is like that. Is there anything I can do to be able to use this phone with safety.
Thanks
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Did a root checking or antivirus app say it's rooted? I knew these phones have adware & questionable issues around personal data, but didn't think they come rooted. Though maybe some third party with access to phone rooted it, was it sealed when you got it? ( Could also have been installed in factory by unauthorised person or at instructions of Chinese government (though probably only if you or your company is a high value target))
Don't waste your money.
I have Umidigi S2 Pro.
It has very low quality.
The touch screen is very hard to use.
Cheap plastic material with very poor build quality.
The battery real capacity is not 5000mah. The battery is not detectable by battery software. Perhaps only 3000mah
The camera is so blurry. You just get fuzzy pictures.
Too many applications crashed instead of 6GB RAM.
The worst thing it come without any guarantee.
It' nothing but wasting my valuable money.
Can you imagine the fallout for a company, trying to compete in the International Marketplace if just ONE of their products was found to be phishing? In fact it would be commercial suicide in their own countries too.
I have a Umidigi A3, bought for a third of the price of my similar spec Samsung, and I also found that certain apps stated the phone was rooted, but root checkers and superuser software all found this not to be the case. I always rooted my early phones to play around under the hood, but lately certain establishment apps would refuse to work stating security issues with root so I haven't rooted my last couple of phones.. I have had no such problems with my A3. My establishment apps check and wave my little A3 through with a smile. False positive? I'd say likely. The cost of the license to use the latest Google Android OS kind of negates the reasoning behind 'the phish' . I believe the tweaks needed to customise the OS to Umidigi products is what causes these false posies.
And the build quality is superb!! For the price I paid, it may be akin to a Mini in the vast world of mobile communications, but it's deck out with the shiny walnut dashboard and plush seats of a Mini Rolls Royce. Time will tell about it's reliability but so far I don't think I'll ever pay hundreds of pounds for a mobile phone again.
My whole take on this Chinese security question is this.
1st, Google is a bigger (biggest) privacy risk. They can access your phone anytime without you knowing (if they wanted to). But yet no one thinks twice about trusting them, plus most people allow them to save all their passwords and info. But yet it's no concern to most.
2nd, A lot of other phone companies have their internal chips produced in China. And if the Chinese really wanted to spy, it's gonna be built into the hardware.(backdoor) Heck the US government was doing this. Everyone forget?
A lot of these proprietary chips even have access to your internet so they can download their proprietary drivers in the background without your knowledge.
There is no true security. The backbone of the internet was built to share information not secure it. Security starts with you. Everytime you choose to have private information at a convenience, you sacrifice security.
And as far as post 1 which I know is a year old, but for anyone that stumbles across this. The adware that was detected was probably all from TouchPal keyboard. That app is so junk, it even installs apps on your phone. It's always preinstalled on provider phones and such.
Google shouldn't allow these apps to be approved and these companies need to be held accountable for allowing these practices.
Good luck and safe browsing!
aaron74 said:
...Security starts with you. Everytime you choose to have private information at a convenience, you sacrifice security.
...
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Absolutely concur. Thanks very much for the very true statement. And I think especially that what I partially quoted above can't be stressed enough.
Maybe this falls into the same context?
thanks for your reply
IronRoo said:
Did a root checking or antivirus app say it's rooted? I knew these phones have adware & questionable issues around personal data, but didn't think they come rooted. Though maybe some third party with access to phone rooted it, was it sealed when you got it? ( Could also have been installed in factory by unauthorised person or at instructions of Chinese government)
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HHi, thanks for replying. The bitcoin wallet app said it was rooted, so yeah. But there were other strange things, like the draw lines security lock already is set so that I can't change it or use it. I bought it on aliexpress "new". It came it its' package and everything in it only it had been opened. It was stuck at costumes for a while so it seemed as if they opened it and play with it a bit there, but then after I saw the rooted thing everything us looking phisy.
Honesty, regardless, having this device made me understand once and for all where all the money goes to with those top dollar phones and why it is so worth it. Cause yeah, you kind of have everything... But it all sucks. Screen sucks, camera sucks. Multitasking sucks. Battery sucks. Radiation feel sucks, and seems pretty sure security sucks. So yeah, you kind of have efrything, but the low quality is felt. Daily.
Chinese brand phones cannot be trusted. It's best to buy Japanese or American ones, at least they're more secure in terms of malware and Trojans.