Database Users

Google free rom????

Hello.
I am interested in a highly secure Rom for the evo. I would like it to be free of Google or anyother corporately monitored system. real opensource experience free of all this monitoring and tracking and data minning. Maybe with a nice user friendly firewall for all connections. how about built in 512 bit encryption. For private txt messaging.
Let's hear from the community on this.

I may be wrong but... Evo is an Android phone... Android = Google. I don't think you'll have much luck getting a Google free Android phone.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

You know these are google/android forums right? I don't think it will be possible at all....

Do you want an aluminum foil hat with that ROM?
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App

Dude that will never happen. Thats all i have to say

Umm don't listen to anyone who previously posted. You could easily use CyanogenMod with out Google apps to do this. You would be missing the market and any standard app that has the word Google before it like Google maps, but I guess now you could use the Amazon market anyway.
Sent from my ThunderBolt using XDA Premium App

Actually i had a Samsung intercept that originally had Google android rom and ended up with a non-google phone in the end...... Accidentally flashed a radio from differnet phone and after no signs of Google ..... Or signs of really anything but made a great paper weight!
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

u921333 said:
Actually i had a Samsung intercept that originally had Google android rom and ended up with a non-google phone in the end...... Accidentally flashed a radio from differnet phone and after no signs of Google ..... Or signs of really anything but made a great paper weight!
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i dont think you understand what he means... im not a troll . but he said he doesnt want it to have google ,also for it to keep everything private... also look at my new signature LMFAO

sorry quoted wrong guy but yeah if he is lucky and doesnt brick.

how would this be possible ? dont you need a google account to even use the phone ? could probably be wrong.

josh995 said:
I may be wrong but... Evo is an Android phone... Android = Google. I don't think you'll have much luck getting a Google free Android phone.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You think wrong.
knowledge561 said:
You know these are google/android forums right? I don't think it will be possible at all....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You think wrong too.
tgruendler said:
Do you want an aluminum foil hat with that ROM?
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will it match your dunce cap?
davidc23 said:
Dude that will never happen. Thats all i have to say
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are giving wrong info, that's all I have to say.
jvward said:
Umm don't listen to anyone who previously posted. You could easily use CyanogenMod with out Google apps to do this. You would be missing the market and any standard app that has the word Google before it like Google maps, but I guess now you could use the Amazon market anyway.
Sent from my ThunderBolt using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Finally someone smart in this thread.
Any ASOP ROM which doesn't include GAPPS like cyanogyn mod or deck's ASOP rom will do this (minus the sms encryption) as long as you don't flash the GAPPS add ons or enable my location.
I really hate when people act like experts, but don't know what their talking about.

I don't think you're going to find this for the EVO, although I imagine there's a phone out there somewhere that you can accomplish this with.

datajosh said:
I don't think you're going to find this for the EVO, although I imagine there's a phone out there somewhere that you can accomplish this with.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wrong again, check my post immediately above yours.

mjs1231 said:
Hello.
I am interested in a highly secure Rom for the evo. I would like it to be free of Google or anyother corporately monitored system. real opensource experience free of all this monitoring and tracking and data minning. Maybe with a nice user friendly firewall for all connections. how about built in 512 bit encryption. For private txt messaging.
Let's hear from the community on this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you say free of google what do u mean?? Evo runs android, android is created by Google. There is no way you could have android without Google. If you mean Google apps, as someone else said just run cyanogenmod without GAPPS. You wont be able to do much, won't even be able to load apps that aren't preinstalled.

indagroove said:
You think wrong.
You think wrong too.
Will it match your dunce cap?
You are giving wrong info, that's all I have to say.
Finally someone smart in this thread.
Any ASOP ROM which doesn't include GAPPS like cyanogyn mod or deck's ASOP rom will do this (minus the sms encryption) as long as you don't flash the GAPPS add ons or enable my location.
I really hate when people act like experts, but don't know what their talking about.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It wouldn't be anymore secure than the current version of Android being ran (which he mentioned and is apparently worried about).. but as far as all the 'monitoring and tracking' and what not, I mean, sure. But what would be the point? Seems like a pretty half assed Android experience.
There is only so much that can be done without the use of, say, GApps ... might get the job done but would essentially kill the idea of even owning said phone.
Get Yo'Self a Jitterbug

bwcorvus said:
When you say free of google what do u mean?? Evo runs android, android is created by Google. There is no way you could have android without Google. If you mean Google apps, as someone else said just run cyanogenmod without GAPPS. You wont be able to do much, won't even be able to load apps that aren't preinstalled.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Obviously the OS is made by Google, but I don't think that's what he meant. I think he means a rom which won't constantly sync with google's servers.
Also, you CAN sideload apps without market or GAPPS installed, the trick is just to find the .apk files somewhere other than google market, but most are on either amazon market or Edit, so again another WRONG piece of info given out here.

conqu1stador said:
It wouldn't be anymore secure than the current version of Android being ran (which he mentioned).. but as far as all the 'monitoring and tracking' and what not, I mean, sure. But what would be the point? Seems like a pretty half assed Android experience.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Although I wouldn't do it myself, I can see the point. You would have way better battery life without the constant syncing. Also takes much less ram. Not everyone cares about sync with gmail, contacts, and calendar. Some just want a nice smooth OS. It would be more secure, because everything wouldn't go through google's servers.

mjs1231 said:
Hello.
I am interested in a highly secure Rom for the evo. I would like it to be free of Google or anyother corporately monitored system. real opensource experience free of all this monitoring and tracking and data minning. Maybe with a nice user friendly firewall for all connections. how about built in 512 bit encryption. For private txt messaging.
Let's hear from the community on this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seriously? This is like asking for the competitor iPhone and not wanting Apple to make it. If you didn't want a Google phone then why did you buy a phone with software developed by Google? Please don't tell me you Yahoo'd your phone. That would just be an Epic Fail!

mdean1981 said:
Seriously? This is like asking for the competitor iPhone and not wanting Apple to make it. If you didn't want a Google phone then why did you buy a phone with software developed by Google? Please don't tell me you Yahoo'd your phone. That would just be an Epic Fail!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually it's more like having an iphone and not paying for mobile me. But in this case it's a better situation because you wouldn't have to register with google to get the apps (get them somewhere else as I suggested previously), like you would have to with apple.

indagroove said:
Although I wouldn't do it myself, I can see the point. You would have way better battery life without the constant syncing. Also takes much less ram. Not everyone cares about sync with gmail, contacts, and calendar. Some just want a nice smooth OS. It would be more secure, because everything wouldn't go through google's servers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I get the 'tracking' and what not ... but no one is really 'tracking' you. Recorded, maybe. But what does that even really matter in the end?
I get that you want to point out that it can be done, and others were wrong, but it was a silly question none the less.
And, sure, of course - less RAM. And no syncing? Could always disable. But freeing up RAM and what not? Running a smooth experience? It's not going to be that much smoother than should you elect to NOT use proprietary apps. It's not going to be a 'night and day' thing.
I'm more or less curious what the OP wants to do with his phone. Yeah, getting apps from other avenues is always a possibility ... sure. But getting apps from outside of the Market isn't going to offer less system stability, or smoothness, as opposed to getting them from the market.
Sure, I suppose it could be done ... but what are you trying to do? And, as said, it's only as secure as the latest version of Android ... which is constantly facing security issues.
It was sort of a silly post. Gotta admit that much.

Ummm does this worry anyone else?

I've been up late tonight, and just so happened to stumble across this article over at AndroidPolice. Figured it might interest some people here since it includes our phone.
http://www.androidpolice.com/2011/1...e-numbers-gps-sms-emails-addresses-much-more/
Here's the thing, though. They recommend uninstalling the offending apk immediately, which I tried.....Unfortunately that gives me repeated force closes over and over and over while the system tries to run it, to the point where I had to restore to a backup. So what do we do about this?
UPDATE: You can remove HTCloggers.apk...all you have to do is restart afterwards.

Evo4gLI said:
I've been up late tonight, and just so happened to stumble across this article over at AndroidPolice. Figured it might interest some people here since it includes our phone.
http://www.androidpolice.com/2011/1...e-numbers-gps-sms-emails-addresses-much-more/
Here's the thing, though. They recommend uninstalling the offending apk immediately, which I tried.....Unfortunately that gives me repeated force closes over and over and over while the system tries to run it, to the point where I had to restore to a backup. So what do we do about this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes and no.
Yes because so many users run Sense.
No because I run AOSP.
Frankly, I wonder how many other serious flaws there are.
I can name several apps that want their hands on permissions they have no business in [Facebook for one]

Its like 1984 for sure. There's an article in the new section here at xda that talks about some of the other vulnerabilities as well.
Sent from my PC36100 using xda premium

Thanks for sharing. Another reason why we root our phones
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App

Many devs remove these programs and such to remove ciq. I can't find the thread right now, but it reads just about everything. It's so deeply imbedded into the framework.
It reads every button you press on your keyboard.
Every text you send and receive.
Every app you use and download.
The pages you browse on using the internet browser.
It even goes as far to read any spot on your screen that you touch.
This is spyware to the extreme. Sprint and HTC will say its not "spyware" and say its used only for marketing to determine how phones are being used to further develop for the current trends in smartphones. It's very possible they could steal personal info with this. Is it currently happening? Uhh...probably not, but there will still be a lot of paranoia about it.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

Sounds like a really good reason to stay with AOSP to me...

very True Haha
Sent from my GT-I5800 using XDA App

Some of us haven't forgotten the XCP rootkit that was on some Sony BMG titles in 2005... hope HTC doesnt suffer a similar demise like Sony eventually has of late.

This has been removed from MikG.

This is exactly why I'm AOSP. (that and sub-100MB ROM files)

I read the article too- (I have an Androidpolice/Android Central) feed in my Pulse reader....
I already knew CIQ and such were slimy embedded spyware...but the Treve app- spotted stuff I hadnt deleted already... Sprint sent me a "letter" about bandwidth usage and We-KNOW-what-Your-Doing" ----
I'm not amused by HTC/Sprint's collusion... leaving our bottoms out there in the cold for anyone to do whatever with.....
I bet even money my phones been cloned... sometimes I can't use it for calls .. recently -and I'd not had a single missed call or problem in a year.
I'm not a happy camper.. worried about my credit card #'s and really really am annoyed by HTC sliming us this way...
to the tune- that it'll be an icey cold day in hell before I'd consider buying another HTC phone for anyone in my family- (my family has 3 Evo 4g)...
We are not amused.....

HipKat said:
Sounds like a really good reason to stay with AOSP to me...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AMEN

it appears to me that this file has already been removed from MikFroyo. At least, I can't find it...

BTW, you can just remove it using TIbackup, but you'll have to restart to get rid of the repeated force closes. Simple fix, and I've done the same for CarrierIQ as well.

It was removed from sprint lovers rom as well... I couldnt find it at least

I removed HtcLoggers.apk from mine and after rebooting (force close loop) it seems to be working fine. However, is there an old log file still on the phone that can be read by some Spyware app that needs to be removed or does all this data need to come from the logger app itself? If there still is a log, I'm sure it has enough info to still steal my ESN and other stuff.

Wow! Glad I run custom ROMS

Do I need antivirus software for my Galaxy Note?

New to smartphones, I was just wondering do I need an antivirus for my Galaxy Note? And if the answer is yes, what do you guys recommend?

All you need to know about this subject is right here.
Regards,
Dave

foxmeister said:
All you need to know about this subject is right here.
Regards,
Dave
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's exactly the article I read that made me ask the question
Since it came from google, the manufacturer of android, I think they would try to protect the integrity of their product, so I am not sure....

Checkout these articles: http://www.neowin.net/news/free-android-anti-virus-products-virtually-useless - http://www.neowin.net/news/wp7-avg-antivirus-app-is-possibly-spyware
I personally feel Google trying to do their down things does allow malware to get in once a while and need to improve Android security. I am more worried with the privacy issue (Carrier IQ). I still feel there is a level of openness with Android, its not entire open source, but at least you can see something unlike some competing mobile os.
Personally I use AdFree (which does more than block ads since it block malware sites from loading, it basically adds IP blocklist to your /etc/hosts file, which you can also do manually) and LBE Privacy Guard (which seems to be a great concept allowing to deny permissions of apps, my only concern of it is being closed source, there is a big thread about it).

having an antivirus is useful. a few months ago my motorola atrix was having a bug where the screen would only light up when i first turned it on. if i locked it and then tried to unlock it, the screen would work, but the backlight wouldnt work.
i grabbed dr. web light, not expecting it to really do anything. ended up finding malware, and after removing the malware, screen backlight started working properly again.
on a phone like the galaxy note, theres more than enough processing power to run a background virus scanner without running out of puff, so i say, why not?

The answer to this question is really quite simple, it depends on this:
Do you carefully watch the permissions of apps you are about to install?
If your answer is: "yes, I carefully watch the permissions and don't install apps such as tetris which wants access to sms" then you can quite safely go without any anti malware software.
If your answer on the other hand is: "no, I just install interesting apps and quickly click through the permission page to start the download" then yes, you might benefit of software to protect your device.
The beauty of Android is that whatever app you are about to install INCLUDING malware states clearly what part of your device it is going to access. If people don't bother reading the permissions then a big part of fault is on them also. However this isn't really too well explained, especially for new users, so I assume a majority of users don't really understand WHY the permissions are shown before downloading an app. This is something Google could improve on in my opinion.
And lastly, the fact that apps coming to Apples app store are screened doesn't make it any more secure than Android. It just has people making the choices FOR you. If something well hidden is slipped past them, not a single user will know about the threat. Just as one app developer showed in public a few weeks ago and as a result got his developer status cancelled by Apple.
edit
Also a small note here. A virus is something that multiplies and spreads (weather it's bacteria or code doesn't matter). The malicious apps in the market are malware and spyware and because of this the word antivirus for Android isn't really correct. They don't stop viruses, they stop malicious apps.
edit 2
here's the link to the story of that Apple developer:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/andygre...per-program-for-proof-of-concept-exploit-app/
this just proves that app store isn't any more secure than Android market. It just has people who take a look at apps before they are approved, and as you can read, they are far from perfect.

How many of you guys use Antivirus?
Who here does not feel the need?
Does Google recommend it like Windows does for PC? (already read the article from one Google guy saying Antivirus companies are playing on our fears, but he is only one guy)
And to those who have used antivirus software, which software did you use on your Note specifically and has it slowed down your Note or increased the battery consumption?

knowsnophones said:
How many of you guys use Antivirus?
Who here does not feel the need?
Does Google recommend it like Windows does for PC? (already read the article from one Google guy saying Antivirus companies are playing on our fears, but he is only one guy)
And to those who have used antivirus software, which software did you use on your Note specifically and has it slowed down your Note or increased the battery consumption?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You already have a couple fairly comprehensive answers to your first post but I'll answer these questions too:
I do not use any antivirus and I do not feel the need to
Aside from that article, I haven't seen a single mention from Google about needing any antivirus at all.
The so called antivirus programs that are made for Android right now suck. They don't stop enough malware to be worth the money or effort, here's a few source links for evidence: http://www.extremetech.com/computin...rus-apps-are-useless-heres-what-to-do-instead and http://www.informationweek.com/byte/news/231902823
Just by using common sense you will be fine with no antivirus app. If you really want an antivirus app, then go get it. It will be close to useless and it won't stop all threats anyway so you will still have to use common sense to be protected anyway.

I installed avast. it is free and no it doesn't slow down my note.

friedje said:
I installed avast. it is free and no it doesn't slow down my note.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got the AVG pro, might not really need it since I´m kind of anal about what I install on the GNOTE... But better safe than sorry...
+1 doesn´t slow things down.

akselic said:
You already have a couple fairly comprehensive answers to your first post but I'll answer these questions too:
I do not use any antivirus and I do not feel the need to
Aside from that article, I haven't seen a single mention from Google about needing any antivirus at all.
The so called antivirus programs that are made for Android right now suck. They don't stop enough malware to be worth the money or effort, here's a few source links for evidence: http://www.extremetech.com/computin...rus-apps-are-useless-heres-what-to-do-instead and http://www.informationweek.com/byte/news/231902823
Just by using common sense you will be fine with no antivirus app. If you really want an antivirus app, then go get it. It will be close to useless and it won't stop all threats anyway so you will still have to use common sense to be protected anyway.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just because YOU feel superior to most other users, doesn't mean that they have the knowledge or enough 'common sense' to understand the permissions some apps ask for. The fact that an antivirus is not 100% safe doesn't mean it is 100% useless.... If it stops just one threath it already made sense..
There are lots of good FREE antivirus programs so where is the reason NOT to install one ???
There are also ppl that don't take medics, because if they or their children die from FLU that was Gods will.......
Maybe you should consider that not all users of a smartphone are IT-gods like you

friedje said:
I installed avast. it is free and no it doesn't slow down my note.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ville7805 said:
I got the AVG pro, might not really need it since I´m kind of anal about what I install on the GNOTE... But better safe than sorry...
+1 doesn´t slow things down.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have both installed, no slowdown issues and was running LBE too, may switch to droidwall or turn LBE back on. Worth noting the AVG pro is free if you qualify for the Samsung Hub exclusives.
Dave

I am using Lookout anti-virus ever since my first Android more than a year ago. It's never given me a hic-cup even when scanning.
Also, anyone knows an App which lists which App has what permission in a list form?
Thanks!
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk

Does a free antitrust do as good a job as a paid one
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium

ChimpNippl3s said:
Does a free antitrust do as good a job as a paid one
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For now they all do a rather lousy job, the free and the paid ones.
But the paid ones seem to score a bit better.
I installed LBE aswell, but you need root for it to work well.
Same goes for avast, it prefers having root access.
I use avg on my galaxy tab, works without any issues.

friedje said:
Just because YOU feel superior to most other users, doesn't mean that they have the knowledge or enough 'common sense' to understand the permissions some apps ask for. The fact that an antivirus is not 100% safe doesn't mean it is 100% useless.... If it stops just one threath it already made sense..
There are lots of good FREE antivirus programs so where is the reason NOT to install one ???
There are also ppl that don't take medics, because if they or their children die from FLU that was Gods will.......
Maybe you should consider that not all users of a smartphone are IT-gods like you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No need to over react mate. I'm no IT-god, or a nerd or anything like an "advanced" user. The only common sense that I was referring to is something that everyone has. If you can read what the apps do, then you can read the permissions before installing them. There is no need to be an expert.
If you are installing a single player offline game that asks permissions for sms, phone calls and contacts and it isn't blacklisted by those antivirus apps yet, then it won't be detected and you can only blame yourself when you get a 600$ phone bill because the app has sent messages to premium numbers. It's not rocket science, just common sence.
If the tests conclude that 90% of androids antivirus programs manage 10-20% of malicious apps and you still want one, then go ahead and get one. No need to get offended when people are trying to give advice.

Remote Wipe Stolen a500

Hey guys and gals,
Tonight my a500 was stolen. I work in sales and use it to look things on the net for customers (like price comparisons, etc) and use it for the website and lots of other business-type things (as well as lots of personal pics etc).
But, unfortunately when my back was turned, someone swiped it...!!!! argh:angry:
I had the newest release of jellybean on it from the forums here on xda, but had no remote wipe app installed (never even crossed my mind to do it). Therefore, I'm wondering if the is any remote wipe abilities in jellybean or if there was an app by chance that i had installed that would have this feature hidden (like onavo or norton utilities... reading now).
If anyone can help that would be amazing! Changed all my passwords, etc. So, I should be fine there. thanks guys
k

kylereid said:
Hey guys and gals,
Tonight my a500 was stolen. I work in sales and use it to look things on the net for customers (like price comparisons, etc) and use it for the website and lots of other business-type things (as well as lots of personal pics etc).
But, unfortunately when my back was turned, someone swiped it...!!!! argh:angry:
I had the newest release of jellybean on it from the forums here on xda, but had no remote wipe app installed (never even crossed my mind to do it). Therefore, I'm wondering if the is any remote wipe abilities in jellybean or if there was an app by chance that i had installed that would have this feature hidden (like onavo or norton utilities... reading now).
If anyone can help that would be amazing! Changed all my passwords, etc. So, I should be fine there. thanks guys
k
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry mate. Not a lot you can do about it at this time.
Just cherish the thought of what's going to happen when he decides jb is too buggy, and tries to install a different rom. :laugh:
I suppose a new user will be posting all kinds of questions here at xda in the near future!
Still sorry to hear it got pinched. I know the feeling.
MD

thanks man. thought i was buggered lol. I left a facebook update that i hope shows up on the notifications in the tablet and make the culprit feel guilty. maybe it'll show up in the morning at work... fingers crossed. made me look at getting a wipe app for the old phone now, went with seekdroid. seems legit. any other suggestions?

kylereid said:
thanks man. thought i was buggered lol. I left a facebook update that i hope shows up on the notifications in the tablet and make the culprit feel guilty. maybe it'll show up in the morning at work... fingers crossed. made me look at getting a wipe app for the old phone now, went with seekdroid. seems legit. any other suggestions?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I don't have a lot of faith in those types of apps. They usually only work if an idiot steals it. Over here, pinching phones and tabs is big business, and usually done by pro's. They're quick to dump the device to another agent, who runs a stock full rom on it, clones the IMEI number from a good device , then dumps it to one of the umpteen million fly by night resellers. They (moscow govt) talked about cracking down on multiple PH number/IMEI combinations, then quickly realized over half the devices in Russia would stop working! Including their own!
Best thing to do, never let it out of your sight. Get a new device, like I did my phone, and the pain goes away.
But then again, maybe your culprit is a true idiot, and will post fotos to your facebook account!!!!!
MD

WAS YOU SIGNED INTO GOOGLE maps? latitude?
if so go to google.maps and click location history u can now see where your a500 is!!!!
good luck and hope you kick his ass:good:
i have "prey" software installed on all my devices for such problem

Did you try that Plan B yet or is that just over advertised junk?
Moscow Desire said:
Well, I don't have a lot of faith in those types of apps. They usually only work if an idiot steals it. Over here, pinching phones and tabs is big business, and usually done by pro's. They're quick to dump the device to another agent, who runs a stock full rom on it, clones the IMEI number from a good device , then dumps it to one of the umpteen million fly by night resellers. They (moscow govt) talked about cracking down on multiple PH number/IMEI combinations, then quickly realized over half the devices in Russia would stop working! Including their own!
Best thing to do, never let it out of your sight. Get a new device, like I did my phone, and the pain goes away.
But then again, maybe your culprit is a true idiot, and will post fotos to your facebook account!!!!!
MD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The last person to steal one of my phones was a true idiot. This happened at my school and good thing I'm done with school. I was in class and had my phone charging and I had it out because I trusted most everyone in the room and would known who would have taken it.
So he asked if it was my phone and about a minute later he leaves the room. I noticed it was gone and others around me saw him take it. (Not obvious at all)
So I had the Vipre Mobile Security beta installed so I immediately logged into the web interface to activate GPS tracking and set off the alarm. Except when I logged in the service hadn't communicated when the app/phone in over a month so it was useless.
Over the period of the next 24 hours he had used the phone to take photos, delete everything on my sdcard, spam my YouTube feed with countless videos, and make voice calls to their own friends and family. So I looked on my carrier's account management and found all these numbers. Between the school staff and police it was possible to track the calls back to his identity. I got my phone back the next day...without the case and screen protector, sucks that they kept that.
So the lesson is make sure you have good, working anti theft solutions with cascading failsafes.
The next app I installed after ditching Vipre was Avast. This was a good solution with some flaws. Avast was one of the first Play Store security apps to utilize root access. Because of root in addition to setting as a device administrator it was also installed as a system service and app. This made it persistent and harder to remove.
The issue with avast was since the app was in /system and not /data it would have to be completely reconfigured after flashing each nightly update. Sometimes I'd forget and then it wouldn't work. It claimed to support the CM backup script except it was designed for CM7 and CM9 uses a different type of backup.
The other issue with avast was there was no web interface. You could only send commands through SMS.
Since I got my Nexus I bought Cerberus anti theft its perfect. It has system app support. Instead of a user setup it apparently registers the device ID or SIM or something and loads the user account from the cloud server. So all I do is add the apk to the CM backup list and it auto configures when installed. I can use SMS control or the website. I can monitor and control pretty much the entire phone and it takes a front camera photo on invalid pass code.
I check weekly to ensure its still running and it hasn't failed once.
As a failsafe I also have the first screen splash modded to my contact info in case of loss. Its encrypted so if anything maybe only a boot loader update could remove it.
chismay said:
WAS YOU SIGNED INTO GOOGLE maps? latitude?
if so go to google.maps and click location history u can now see where your a500 is!!!!
good luck and hope you kick his ass:good:
i have "prey" software installed on all my devices for such problem
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think that only works if you accept all the tracking disclaimers to enable location history and not many people have history turned on.
I guess the lesson is you can't let your guard down for even a second. One time I let a friend sync their iPod touch on my computer since they didn't have a PC and they ended up snatching my classic monochrome iPod. I'm still upset to this day since they didn't take my old iPod touch instead. That just proves the first gen iPod touch is so bad people won't even steal it.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

KemikalElite said:
I think that only works if you accept all the tracking disclaimers to enable location history and not many people have history turned on.
I guess the lesson is you can't let your guard down for even a second. One time I let a friend sync their iPod touch on my computer since they didn't have a PC and they ended up snatching my classic monochrome iPod. I'm still upset to this day since they didn't take my old iPod touch instead. That just proves the first gen iPod touch is so bad people won't even steal it.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oh yea def' just thought for pot-luck ,
it is a pitty when you let someone come into your house as a friendly gesture only to find them stealing from you,... ive had my fair share and also a fair share of miss-understandings thereafter because of a newly aquired paranoia..... but i think its 100% justified.

If you download the lookout app and install it, if you ever lose your tablet, on the lookout website you can see where it is, (if GPS was enabled when lost) you can also do a remote wipe, and a remote siren, make it put off an alarm remotely.
Its a good app to have just in case, but doesn't help if the app was not installed before being lost or stolen.
Sent from my A500 using xda app-developers app

lifeofcoding said:
If you download the lookout app and install it, if you ever lose your tablet, on the lookout website you can see where it is, (if GPS was enabled when lost) you can also do a remote wipe, and a remote siren, make it put off an alarm remotely.
Its a good app to have just in case, but doesn't help if the app was not installed before being lost or stolen.
Sent from my A500 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah sound like the prey app too , i can also send a popup message to the tab screen, be near the location displayed on the map and then activate a "S-SCARING" siren lol
also one good thing is prey uses the location services through wifi as well as gps, tells you the address of the current and last wifi hotspots logged into
so if it says currently "wii hotspot mcdonalds fast food , thief street. lol go to the mcdonalds and set off the alarms,...clearly see your tablet...and a jackass who need a beating. :highfive::highfive::highfive::highfive:

chismay said:
WAS YOU SIGNED INTO GOOGLE maps? latitude?
if so go to google.maps and click location history u can now see where your a500 is!!!!
good luck and hope you kick his ass:good:
i have "prey" software installed on all my devices for such problem
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hey man, great idea! no luck...
and thanks guys for al of the advice! still no luck with the tab i think the worst part of it is was that i was really getting to love it. like the development here, especially with jb!, is fantastic. and i was a kickstarter supporter for chameleon and now seeing the new updates really puts salt on the wound. lol. in the next month i'll need another tablet, so im debating on finding another 2nd hand one for the price of a nexus 7, or just getting the 7. only thing is though, is the size....
thanks again.

I'm assuming you've looked into "Plan B" on the Android market, right? It automatically installs from the market on your tablet, and broadcasts location immediately on install. Not sure how accurate or helpful it is, but if you haven't tried it yet... you probably should.
The other option is to put out some Wanted To Buy ads...

gfinockio said:
I'm assuming you've looked into "Plan B" on the Android market, right? It automatically installs from the market on your tablet, and broadcasts location immediately on install. Not sure how accurate or helpful it is, but if you haven't tried it yet... you probably should.
The other option is to put out some Wanted To Buy ads...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i already changed the passwords, i wasn't aware of Plan B. great idea though! i tried it anyways lol.
and yeah ive been scouring kijiji and craigslist like a fiend

Official Facebook App

I know a lot of people complain about the official Facebook app, slowing down their phone. I just wanted to inform people that that is not the case for me. Simply because I don't have an account or the app.
Onto more relevant stuff: Under the Hood: Dalvik patch for Facebook for Android and Koush does a quick explanation. For those that have the time and curiosity, read the comments on Koush's post. Very enlightening.

Quite an interesting read. Thanks for the links pons.
The slowness is also a reason I switched to the app tinfoil.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

I tried atrium, it was supposedly the top alternative in an article I read but was an immediate failure because it couldn't find a friend.
I would certainly like to know exactly what purpose the face book app has taking up 17mb on my precious dinc fresh off the market. I've seen it swell in excess of 40 mb with heavy use. Get outta here! It seems completely absurd and a bit arrogant of the Facebook corporation to clog up everyone's devices and hide god knows what kind of unpublished ill will in the code.
I wish someone would reverse engineer or whatever so we know why it is so big.
Sent from my ADR6300 using xda app-developers app

zombolt said:
I tried atrium, it was supposedly the top alternative in an article I read but was an immediate failure because it couldn't find a friend.
I would certainly like to know exactly what purpose the face book app has taking up 17mb on my precious dinc fresh off the market. I've seen it swell in excess of 40 mb with heavy use. Get outta here! It seems completely absurd and a bit arrogant of the Facebook corporation to clog up everyone's devices and hide god knows what kind of unpublished ill will in the code.
I wish someone would reverse engineer or whatever so we know why it is so big.
Sent from my ADR6300 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly, I uninstalled it and now I use greenify to free up ram. I'm still looking for a viable upgrade to the DInc. :/
DNA is locked, s4 doesnt have much development going on, s3 is old hardware, htc one has no menu button, removable battery, OR sdcard...I wish verizon would have gotten the nexus 4. :crying: