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[Q] Is it possible to remove adware without removing the app

This is probably a stupid question but...
I've been trying for the past 3 days to download this app from the Google play store, but it says it's incompatible with my device (Xperia SP).
I've used Market Helper and it didn't work.
I've tried editing my build.prop and it bricked my phone (lol) I recovered it but lost all my contacts
Anyway, I've resorted to sideloading it. The problem is, since I've installed it I'm getting push ad notifications and popups on my home screen, browser etc.
So, is there anything I can download to stop the adware or somehow remove the adware without uninstalling said app?
Thanks

Mumups said:
This is probably a stupid question but...
I've been trying for the past 3 days to download this app from the Google play store, but it says it's incompatible with my device (Xperia SP).
I've used Market Helper and it didn't work.
I've tried editing my build.prop and it bricked my phone (lol) I recovered it but lost all my contacts
Anyway, I've resorted to sideloading it. The problem is, since I've installed it I'm getting push ad notifications and popups on my home screen, browser etc.
So, is there anything I can download to stop the adware or somehow remove the adware without uninstalling said app?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Could be an issue with Android version.The last time that got updated was June 11, 2014.
Mumups said:
So, is there anything I can download to stop the adware or somehow remove the adware without uninstalling said app?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That makes no sense.What do you mean by removing that without uninstalling ? Your statement is self contradictory.
If you are rooted you can freeze that app using Titanium Backup.
Why don't you try AdAway ?

optimusodd said:
Could be an issue with Android version.The last time that got updated was June 11, 2014.
That makes no sense.What do you mean by removing that without uninstalling ? Your statement is self contradictory.
If you are rooted you can freeze that app using Titanium Backup.
Why don't you try AdAway ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I mean I want to keep the app but I also want to stop it from putting ads on my phone and notification bar as well.
I just downloaded AdAway and turned off notifications from that app in the settings so hopefully that will work.
Thanks a lot

Mumups said:
Hi, I mean I want to keep the app but I also want to stop it from putting ads on my phone and notification bar as well.
I just downloaded AdAway and turned off notifications from that app in the settings so hopefully that will work.
Thanks a lot
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are welcome.AdWare is supposed to block and remove ads and notifications on your phone.If you are still getting ads or the app itself is putting ads and notifications then it's not serving the purpose either it's not working or malfunctioning (broken codes).
Is that an Ad-supported app ?If it is,then that's not an issue.AdAway will block those ads.

[GUIDE] My Android Tools(Pro) - one of my fav apps

I'm surprised no one has reviewed this app but I'll give it a shot. *edit- attached pics keep going away each time I edit this post. Take a look at the attachments for screenshots.
My Android Tools (free version)
My Android Tools(Pro)
This is an app I stumbled across by chance or mentions in random forum posts and maybe those who've played with it do only a few things such as disable startup items but it's a lot more powerful than that in regards to blocking in-app ads and trackers.
Now, blocking stuff is a multi-prong approach.
You have Adaway for removing the DNS requests for both apps and browser traffic. MAP targets in-app stuff- not browser traffic. That's why you'd do something like Adaway + MinMinGuard/Adblocker XPosed modules. They actually target blocking the code in the app.
something like XPrivacy for sending random info instead of what an app wants from you
And a bunch of apps and XPosed modules to do things like block receivers or in-app ads.
I've whittled it down to Adaway + *Youtube Adaway + *CrappaLinks + My Android Tools(Pro)
*XPosed Modules
from now on I'm calling My Android Tools MAP
First, make a backup of your ROM
Next, make a backup in the About screen in MAP. The optional thing is if you want MAP to open after every app install/upgrade for review of new and updated apps.
*screenshot
The 3 things we'll look at are Services, Broadcast Receivers and Activities.
Services- things that run whenever
Broadcast Receivers - things that respond to system events (boot, connectivity changes, timezone changes, packages added, etc)
Activities - ads and junk that pop up on your screen. Developers add 3rd party sdk's to show pop-ups and stuff. This is how XPosed Modules such as MinMinGuard and Adblocker work
ContentProvider - still haven't figured out if I find stuff here yet. Maybe in Google Play Services it might have some analytics provider but it's basically things that share things with other apps.
*screenshot
Under Services I mainly look at Analytics and Campaign Tracking svcs. It's up to you but these do offer legit tracking analytics to developers.
Google to see what they do
*screenshot
Broadcast Receivers a few apps that do look at a limited selection of these like XPosed module ReceiverStop
mainly I look at 2 of them:
android.intent.action.BOOT_COMPLETED
com.android.vending.INSTALL_REFERRER
*screenshot
Finally, Activities
This is how MinMinguard and the like block things. We're going to block more because MinMinGuard just has a hardcoded list (see above link to its source code. That's what frustrated me about MinMinGuard. If I'm going to block this stuff I'd rather not have a hardcoded list as ad blocking should be equal opportunity if a user is going that route.)
under here it's really about getting familiar with names of ad networks. Here's a hint
I just downloaded a random app to find one with a bunch of fun things.
*screenshot

Great guide, thank you.

royeiror said:
Great guide, thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yw, thanks for the nudge to put it together
Also, note disabling some activities core to an app can cause loss of functionality, force closes, icon removed from the app drawer, etc. That's why I toggle showing the long description of things (that <> button) so I know which are main pieces.
Unity is a library for game development so most of it is actually the app if you see that one a lot.
Sometimes I use the search to look for ad, analytic, track, campaign

Official worst app I've seen for ad activities : agar.io
It's one of the Google recommended apps of 2015 and I was able to find and block 35 ad network activities.
I can't imagine what it's like to actually play the app and what info about you gets collected

@jawz101 : There is an older thread where is shared this app along with an guide which stuff to disable: [SHARE] [APP] MyAndroidTools + Guide to disable some Play Services processes Add it to OP...

@Force I'm wary of disabling too many Google Play Services. I mainly look at the analytics and ads stuff but even then I wonder what repercussions any of it has on battery life. Say, if an app calls for a specific function and it's no longer able to retrieve the information would it cause a force close or get hung in some loop and chew up CPU? I dunno.

Anyone having FCs with the latest version?? It doesn't seem to open at all.. I have a note 4 N910C, on 5.1.1 COJ5, rooted, xposed.

i have been using this for many roms and it saves loads of ram and helps your phone/tablet boot up quicker,i read somewhere that it dont work with xposed or mm both are wrong because i use it on AICP MM ROM and have Xposed installed for XinternalSD and have had no problems at all.

I do submit any crashes if they happen and have emailed the dev in the past when crashes happened. I used to get app crashes until several months ago when trying to backup the current config or when clicking the Content Providers menu option but no longer. Sometimes I completely wiped my device to get it to stop crashing. Since it's been updated these past few months those problems don't occur.
You may want to try reinstalling the app, clearing its data, rebooting, etc to see if something fixed your app crash. Make sure your device I is rooted and the My Android Tools app does indeed have root privileges. Given the nature of the app it may take some error submissions and logcats sent to the dev.

Good to see that somebody reviewed and created a thread for this great app.
Just one question here (if someone could help out) - unlike other apps, Skype seems to be way too stubborn. By mistake I once turned off the connectivity change broadcast receiver. Now, no matter what I do I cannot toggle this receiver back on. WHY? I tried pretty much everything. Rebooting, enabling the receiver from within SD Maid pro, tried making a backup of MAT and then editing this backup manually to remove the tweak for skype but it all failed. With other apps I can toggle their receiver, activities and everything however I see fit and the toggles remain put. With Skype, however, it's a fail. Any help?

Let x

Great tutorial.
As you seem to be very clever with MyAndroidTools, do you have any idea how to spot the services to disable with MyAndroidTools, in order to kill UC news inside the 11.4.5.1005 UC browser last release :
For more or less one week, UC browser has become unusable for Android nowadays with forcing every user with b******* news, foxnews search engine, star magazine search engine, googlenews search engine, yahoo search engine, uc browser search engine, 9app, music player and many more.
Do you think MyAndroidTools could be able to strangle this overwhelming flow of stupidity ?
If yes, there are so much possible items among Services (run whenever), ...
What could be a method to spot the tap and turn it off?
thx

is there any FOSS alternative?

Can't locate in the Play store?
Has the app been removed from the play store? If so is there any chance you could make the file available here? This has been a favorite app of mine for quite sometime. Would hate to see it fade into oblivion.

Guys this was a one-stop app for me...can somebody make the apk here??

Sivabalan said:
Guys this was a one-stop app for me...can somebody make the apk here??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know if I would be violating any XDA rules or not. For sure this app is no longer available on the Play store and the developer unfortunately didn't respond to my email. If I can be assured that I'm not violating any XDA rules, I'll gladly share. PS, I love this app I use it for so many things

Bobbaloo said:
I don't know if I would be violating any XDA rules or not. For sure this app is no longer available on the Play store and the developer unfortunately didn't respond to my email. If I can be assured that I'm not violating any XDA rules, I'll gladly share. PS, I love this app I use it for so many things
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Buddy it's available in apk mirror portal.

App was removed from Play Store how to get the Pro now?
I bought it but if it's in my library its a pita to search a misplaced tap and you back to the top of the list

How I can get this app? It's no longer in the AppStore. I bought the Pro Version.

Bobbaloo said:
I don't know if I would be violating any XDA rules or not. For sure this app is no longer available on the Play store and the developer unfortunately didn't respond to my email. If I can be assured that I'm not violating any XDA rules, I'll gladly share. PS, I love this app I use it for so many things
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bought it on google play and suddenly it disappeared. I contacted the creator and he wrote me he violated some rules (?) of google play and they cutted off his account, but he send me the full apk. But I don't know if I can share it here and if he wants to share the full version. Anyway it's still possible to find it on some websites (apkmirror and something else).
I'm satisfied with it, expecially after I lost money buying autorun manager pro (the developer is not releasing new version, he said he's not interested in it anymore).
Anyway, if someone has any alternative to suggest to My Android Tools Pro it would be good.

Question about rooting Note 10 Unlocked

Will rooting the device help with disabling ads in apps? Ex: Instacrap(instagram)

umx said:
Will rooting the device help with disabling ads in apps? Ex: Instacrap(instagram)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
root wont do that by itself, but root will allow you to sideload apps that will block ads on many/most apps. You can also defeat a great many ads with the built in VPN

For paid option You can use Nord vpn (not google play version though!) or for free option you can use some free adblock DNS like adguard dns to get rid of most of advertisements but, for apps like YouTube or Instagram because, the way they preview ads are different than other apps there is no option other than using their patched app which could be not as safe as their original app but, those options I said usually block most of ads in any browsers or other apps that use normal way of showing in-app advertising.

Play store

Hello,
My play store keep changing from do not update apps to auto update on wifi.
I have several app that i keep on old version.
How can i block playstore from changing this setting automatically
Thanks for help guys

Playstore is a bloody pain.
Set to auto update to wifi only and disable wifi.
Use ApkExport to copy your apps so you have them.

exactly a real pain... always switching the setting on after set up all stuff.
looking for a solution or a workaround to disable this or disable my apps from auto update

Rovyo said:
exactly a real pain... always switching the setting on after set up all stuff.
looking for a solution or a workaround to disable this or disable my apps from auto update
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Disable Playstore or Google Play Services (Playstore is dependent on it).
Both constantly running in the background... needed or not.
You will need Google Play Services though for Gmail and other apps occasionally during the day.
Use a firewall to block it.
Use a package disabler.
I use both...

oh thanks will do that on play store. Any good app freezer you recommend ?

For phones other than Samsung this might work:
"Owner App" version from
Home - Package Disabler
The only NON-root solution that let’s you disable any unwanted packages that come pre-installed / installed with your phone / tablet.
www.packagedisabler.com
Karma Firewall from Playstore

thanks
im rooted with Lsposed, will use greenfy

Rovyo said:
thanks
im rooted with Lsposed, will use greenfy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not rooted which is why I use this solution.
You have more options.

blackhawk said:
I'm not rooted which is why I use this solution.
You have more options.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I figure out that the play store get default settings after each restart. So something must reset it configuration ... I need to find whom

Rovyo said:
I figure out that the play store get default settings after each restart. So something must reset it configuration ... I need to find whom
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure what's causing that. I can package disable Playstore, firewall block it and it's settings are the same after it's enabled again.
If it's data on the phone is getting cleared on reboot that could do it... 3rd party cleaner or power management.
I don't use Playstore much and all my apps/updates are backed up for reload.
In part because you can't get older versions on Playstore (if the app doesn't disappear entirely) and because Playstore downloads are a slow, tedious pain that use up too much time when reloading.
Don't want Google's junk in my face...

Question Ads/Sponsored Content in Google Feed on Pixel Phone ? Any way to block it ?

Hi there, it's been a long time since i used my last Pixel (it was 2XL),
what i notice right away after using my P7Pro for few days is that Google Feed on this phone is showing a lot of ads/sponsored content,
i used host based adblock along with adguard private DNS on this phone, same setup like my other phone (Aquos R6)
but to my surprise, while it managed to block the ads/sponsored contents on my Aquos, it failed to do so on my Pixel.
Do google actually do same thing with apple on macOS ? setting up certain IP/URL/Connection in OS level, bypassing our DNS/VPN/Host ?
Because i dont remember ever seeing thia much of an ads in my Google Feed. And, as comparison, i dont see the same ads from my Aquos which signed into same google account.
Do you have any idea how to reduce it ? or block it ?
And, no, choosing "Show less" or "Block this ads" by pressing ... button on the Feed doesn't work.

otonieru said:
Hi there, it's been a long time since i used my last Pixel (it was 2XL),
what i notice right away after using my P7Pro for few days is that Google Feed on this phone is showing a lot of ads/sponsored content,
i used host based adblock along with adguard private DNS on this phone, same setup like my other phone (Aquos R6)
but to my surprise, while it managed to block the ads/sponsored contents on my Aquos, it failed to do so on my Pixel.
Do google actually do same thing with apple on macOS ? setting up certain IP/URL/Connection in OS level, bypassing our DNS/VPN/Host ?
Because i dont remember ever seeing thia much of an ads in my Google Feed. And, as comparison, i dont see the same ads from my Aquos which signed into same google account.
Do you have any idea how to reduce it ? or block it ?
And, no, choosing "Show less" or "Block this ads" by pressing ... button on the Feed doesn't work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't use Google Feeds it's an open door for some pubs
I prefer to use Flym which manages my RSS feeds and I don't have ads.
I also use AdAway and the Magisk Systemless Hosts-Unified module.

Adguard app, no adds unless you missed some filters/updates. Works great on Facebook too.

As others mentioned, you need a way to block/filter traffic on your entire device. There are apps that use a VPN to filter traffic without root, though there is always the root method of editing your hosts file which has been around for a good while which will always also work.
There is also one other option which is to use a DNS server which some companies provide as a paid service, the benefit there is you can choose to put the filter in your modem to have it filter down to all of the devices on your network, though personally I would never go for this option as iot is far too easy to block something you didn't want to, and a hassle to unblock it.

I installed a Play Store App, DNS66, and this seems to block ADs system wide including YouTube Music Ads - now it plays like a regular music player without the garbage ads every other song.

Thank you for all replies,
as mentioned i already using two adblock methods, root based and DNS based, and for other apps, the ads all gone, system widely,
only Google Discover still showing it,
but it SOLVED now, after turning off Ads Personalisation in My Ads setting in Google app, somehow all the ads now gone. Probably there's cache somewhere in my system which prevent the adblock to work 100% on Discover.

otonieru said:
Thank you for all replies,
as mentioned i already using two adblock methods, root based and DNS based, and for other apps, the ads all gone, system widely,
only Google Discover still showing it,
but it SOLVED now, after turning off Ads Personalisation in My Ads setting in Google app, somehow all the ads now gone. Probably there's cache somewhere in my system which prevent the adblock to work 100% on Discover.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This worked perfectly for me on both my Pixel phones. Thank you so much!