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This actually applies to most HTC handsets, heck, maybe most phones, but this is the Dream forum and I wanted to talk about the Dream (since I own one). I actually had realized this the day I first rooted my phone, but it had been on the back of my mind until today when I ported MCR 2.6 for the Dream and saw the laughable WaveSecure app. I then thought about posting this general warning for Dream users and hopefully we can brainstorm and bring this big security hole to an end.
WaveSecure is an app that runs as a high priority process in your phone and it can do silly things such as disallow the usage of the device or access to the data on it by placing a locking screen on your phone. To enable your phone back, you enter a pin. Does that sound familiar? Ofcourse, your phone already has a lockscreen. The app also has a few backup and restore features, but nothing that hasn't been done before. Probably the only worthwhile feature is the ability to lock your phone remotely (but then the lockscreen was already active anyway).
Our rooted phones are different than stock ones, though. If you lose your phone and a knowledgeable person gets a hold of it, all they have to do is reset the phone, hold Home and Red, and voila, they have access to ALL your personal data inside your phone. I'm not only talking about the SDCard here, because accessing that data is so stupidly simple, but your phone writes enormous amounts of personal data to /data. There you can find account logins for all your installed apps, contacts info, you can find browser cache info and if you do your banking on your phone's Browser and have cookies set, well, they're all there. I've looked through several of the files in /data and most things there are dumped in human readable format, so a crook wouldn't even have to try very hard. I found my home's wifi hidden SSID AND 22 character lenght alphanumerical WAP2 encryption key in a file, and both were labeled as such .
One solution I see is easy, modify recovery to give you an option to prompt for password on start. But there's still the fact that, with the device on, we can still adb remount and then adb pull /data, so the adb binary would also have to be re-written for this purpose.
There's still yet another problem, though. Fastboot... Most of us are running a flavor of an Engineering SPL (either Death SPL or Hard SPL), and even if we block /recovery and /system, a crook can still fastboot flash boot and fastboot flash system and with a minimal booting image (no android runtime, only enough in /bin to boot a linux system) he can still get adb pull /data access.
That's where I'm at a loss, though. How do we patch SPL to prevent unauthorized usage? Are there any other security gaps I might have missed?
Comment, discuss, develop.
I'm confused. Wiping clears out the /data partition. Where are you getting all this data from post-wipe?
And that's exactly why I carry my important data safely with me. Wipe clears out the /data partition as much as "Emptying the Recycle Bin" erases deleted data in Windows.... meaning, it's still there. Although flash memory is better at deleting data, it can still be easily recovered, but then again, how are you supposed to wipe if you don't have the phone with you. I didn't see anything about remote wipe. Also, any person with two neurons firing would think right away about removing the battery and SIM before attempting anything.
Also, so let's say a wipe did clear /data entirely and you were able to remotely wipe EVERY SINGLE TIME the phone was lost or stolen (I once went a week without realizing I had lost my phone, paying that kind of bill and talking to Customer Service for hours on end is no fun), it still doesn't mean that the security gaps are not there. I still think they should be fixed, even if to foil people not interested in the data at all but on using the phone for their own. Don't you hate it when people find phones on the street, and instead of trying to return it they take it to their nearest mom & pop phone shop and have it unlocked, etc?
Oh, I see what you meant XD. Edited my post.
I've noticed this too, but the safest way to secure it is to have android encrypt the files as they are put on the data partition. Even then, that data is still unsecure. We should file an issue with the google code page for android and have them worry about it
Well, this has actually been considered...
For 'droid 1.6: From the home screen, Menu --> Settings --> Security --> "Use secure credentials". It is, of course, up to the application to make use of secure credentials. This is something that you should question the developers of secure applications about.
Other times, you may note that applications like "Password safe" will password protect and encrypt their data sets.
So it is definitely up to you to ensure that the applications that you use are written with security in mind.
Now for your home wifi password... does that really matter that much? They have to actually be IN (or very near to) your home to make use of it.
B-man007 said:
I've noticed this too, but the safest way to secure it is to have android encrypt the files as they are put on the data partition. Even then, that data is still unsecure. We should file an issue with the google code page for android and have them worry about it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No device can be more secure than being encrypted (assuming use of strong encryption). There is most definitely NO WAY EXCEPT encryption to secure your data.
I guarantee that EVEN WITH a no-root recovery partition and a no-fastboot bootloader that enforces system image signatures, that the data on the device *CAN STILL* be read off it.
It is definitely impossible to secure these devices against being read through something like jtag. And if it is read through jtag, the only thing that can possibly protect your data is encryption.
is it possible to do a complete wipe of the device? i know its not permanent but i figure if i quit banking online after i wipe the phone then i am no longer succeptible to that form of theft
I bet this is making some people that sold their rooted G1's nervous right now lol
this is the same issue blackberry users have, , even with a remote wipe ,there was concern that data can still be retrieved. That's also why the secret service is so concerned about the president having and using one daily, if its ever lost or stolen, ,,well you know, ,,
So rooted or not android is not the only platform with this issue. .
I would like to address this
"Don't you hate it when people find phones on the street, and instead of trying to return it they take it to their nearest mom & pop phone shop and have it unlocked, etc?"
Did you know if you called any cellphone carrier that you have and told them your phone was lost/stolen they will put the IMEI or ESN on the lost/stolen list, and then it can no longer be active on their network and from what I hear any other networks.
card13 said:
I would like to address this
"Don't you hate it when people find phones on the street, and instead of trying to return it they take it to their nearest mom & pop phone shop and have it unlocked, etc?"
Did you know if you called any cellphone carrier that you have and told them your phone was lost/stolen they will put the IMEI or ESN on the lost/stolen list, and then it can no longer be active on their network and from what I hear any other networks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depends on where you are, here in Canada, if it gets blacklisted by Rogers, it will still work on Fido (which happens to be owned by rogers).
There is also the possibility of rewriting the IMEI. Not exactly a major difficulty.
I have an idea. Since that, if someone gets hold of your phone physically, there's no way that he/she will be restricted from accessing the data, unless it's encrypted properly.
Therefore, to enhance the security, the data (or at least, /data) should be encrypted all time. I'm not familiar with Linux so I have no idea if it's doable or not, but that's a start.
That way, even if someone gets hold of your phone, and flash/hack/cheat all kinds of things, fastboot, recovery, adb... He/she will still be unable to access your data.
To do this, the bootloader (or the init script?) needs to implement a way to unlock the data.
To further increase the security, remote shutdown and wipe should be implemented as well.
Remote lock will NOT work because, while a phone is locked, it means it's running, and the data is already unencrypted at that point, and while I don't have much knowledge in hacking. I think a serious-enough person can hack the phone and get the data.
Of course, this still doesn't solve the problem that, if you, or your family member, is being held at gunpoint.
Just my 2 cents.
1) No changes to bootloader. Bootloader is not relevant to encrypted /data. The changes would be to add in the appropriate encryption scheme to the kernel. Also, to mount the /data partition using the selected encryption method, and to prompt at the appropriate time (mount time) for password. This would be DURING BOOT.
2) The reason you don't want to do this is that d/encryption eats CPU and memory.
bug666 said:
I have an idea. Since that, if someone gets hold of your phone physically, there's no way that he/she will be restricted from accessing the data, unless it's encrypted properly.
Therefore, to enhance the security, the data (or at least, /data) should be encrypted all time. I'm not familiar with Linux so I have no idea if it's doable or not, but that's a start.
That way, even if someone gets hold of your phone, and flash/hack/cheat all kinds of things, fastboot, recovery, adb... He/she will still be unable to access your data.
To do this, the bootloader (or the init script?) needs to implement a way to unlock the data.
To further increase the security, remote shutdown and wipe should be implemented as well.
Remote lock will NOT work because, while a phone is locked, it means it's running, and the data is already unencrypted at that point, and while I don't have much knowledge in hacking. I think a serious-enough person can hack the phone and get the data.
Of course, this still doesn't solve the problem that, if you, or your family member, is being held at gunpoint.
Just my 2 cents.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
lbcoder said:
1) No changes to bootloader. Bootloader is not relevant to encrypted /data. The changes would be to add in the appropriate encryption scheme to the kernel. Also, to mount the /data partition using the selected encryption method, and to prompt at the appropriate time (mount time) for password. This would be DURING BOOT.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So that's the init scripts?
lbcoder said:
2) The reason you don't want to do this is that d/encryption eats CPU and memory.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And battery, may I add?
To what extent is the question, I don't think it's a must-have feature for everybody, but think some may be willing to put up with the trade off...?
bug666 said:
So that's the init scripts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mainly kernel, but yes, some adjustment would have to be made to the init.
And battery, may I add?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Certainly. Anything that eats CPU eats batter.
To what extent is the question, I don't think it's a must-have feature for everybody, but think some may be willing to put up with the trade off...?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A better implementation would be to encrypt *some* data, i.e. application home directories, but specifically NOT the ~/lib directory. Because really, do you CARE if your APK's or dalvik cache are encrypted or not? This would minimize the performance impact (to negligible) while providing the desired data security.
Also, encryption on a per-application basis would allow this to be done withOUT having to pause bootup to ask for a password... it could be done more intelligently on first-access-attempt.
Anybody tried using Walkie Vault (http://www.walkie-vault.com/)...? Can it encrypt the data/home folder...?
A system-wide usable encryption system that different apps may make use of is a good idea, but is it on Android's agenda yet...?
It hasn't quite entered the collective consciousness that the connected smartphone, as configured today and if logged into online services, is the ultimate personal identity device. Unlike other personal effects we keep on us at all times (id cards, keys), a Google login gives a thief potentially a treasure trove of data to exploit without requiring any further identification to the phone other than the lock screen (assuming the user has set one). Once it becomes a big enough issue we may see solutions such as:
- Built in biometric identification (fingerprint scan, iris scan) replaces lock screen.
- OS framework requires apps storing sensitive user data to store into encrypted databases, authenticated from above biometric keys.
- Carriers, digital identity providers (e.g. Google, MSN) providing remote wipe as free standard services and accessible over the phone, not just a web page.
No computer is 100% secure.
Biometrics are often easy to fool.
3 of the fingerprint scanners I have encountered were easily by-passed with a pencil, and a rubber glove. Not to say they are all like that, but some are super simple to get around. Myth busters bypassed one with a photo copier and a sharpie. My buddy bought one super cheap, and put it on his wife's computer to make her feel safer. We bypassed it by breathing on it. (it was super cheap)
The current "Lock" on the G1 is like that super cheap biometric scanner. Your fingers leave behind oils. Oils are what leave the marks on the screen. Breathe hot air on the screen and you can see the pattern of the lock sequence. Some lock.
Note to self: remember to wipe off screen everytime you unlock phone.
I think that the best way around this is to remove all the data from the phone in the first place. For several years now I have been telling my friends that google's ultimate goal will be server side data storage that you log into to use.
The world of cell phones is headed this direction as well.
Google voice, Google Chrome, Google Docs, Cloud....all operate under the idea that you connect to the data, manipulate it, save it, then (ideally) your device forgets it was there.
If you want to stop cell phone theft, you have to hard code the phone to accept only one set of data, and any attempt to change that data in a way not prescribed by the phone will result in the destruction of the data and the usability of the phone. Not real cost effective for a device that lasts on the average of 18 months.
Another option is to make a daily use phone. Only good for 24 hours. Then you have to get a new one. Make them cheap, and disposable.
Common users would freak out over having to back up the data all the time, or you would need a uplink storage location like...oh say Google voice, Google Chrome, Google Docs, Cloud.
The average consumer has no clue what that thing in their hand is capable of doing, storing, or tracking. The techno geek is the problem and much like ROM's, what stops a Techno geek today, won't necessarily stop him tomorrow.
In the mean time, wave secure at least offers you the satisfaction of telling you when someone has put a different sim in your phone.
And it will scare the crap out of someone when they pull out the sim card. it is very loud!
But I agree the android system needs a better lock.
Maybe a mod could be prepared to separate /data into a cryptfs system, only trouble is that to make it secure a start/unlock password would need to be entered.
has anyone done this yet? I noticed it in the settings, but it said it can take up to 1 hour... just wondered if it was worth while.
if you have done it, does it slow anything down, and how long did it take you to run?
Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk
iamdarren said:
has anyone done this yet? I noticed it in the settings, but it said it can take up to 1 hour... just wondered if it was worth while.
if you have done it, does it slow anything down, and how long did it take you to run?
Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried but it appears to not work. You have to be plugged in and fully charged (seems to work from 90% ish), and you have to have unlock PIN set. But once you have selected and confirmed encryption, the screen blanks except for a green line drawing of an Android logo, and then after a minute or so the screen blanks out and then you wait...and wait....and wait...and wait. I gave up after 4 hours.
If at any point you switch screen on, you get the PIN prompt: enter PIN, and you're presented with the blank screen with green line diagram of android logo. I've left it like this for several hours. In the end I reset, and got my device back - but still unencrypted. I've also tried without ever trying to log in until at least 4 hours have elapsed, in case the login attempt disturbed the encryption.
I have logged a defect with Asus for this and a couple of other things, and this morning got a response back saying that "We're still looking into this", which seems to suggest that they agree it is a problem.
Cool in gonna try now, at 95percent battery.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
That didn't seem to do anything.... I saw the green android with cog body, maybe I need to give it more time. I will set out before i go bed.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
I'm wondering how the encryption is handled, is it software or hardware enabled. I have seen with PC's that use software encryption that there is a performance hit and if the encryption is handled by hardware, like a hardware enabled HDD encryption, there is little to no performance hit. The PC I tested the software encryption on took forever to boot vs the hardware enabled one.
Havoc6266 said:
I'm wondering how the encryption is handled, is it software or hardware enabled. I have seen with PC's that use software encryption that there is a performance hit and if the encryption is handled by hardware, like a hardware enabled HDD encryption, there is little to no performance hit. The PC I tested the software encryption on took forever to boot vs the hardware enabled one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You must have used some strange encryption application or had an old computer.
Try truecrypt - on modern (2 core) computer there is practically no performance hit whatsoever (decrypting and even encrypting on the fly is faster than hard drives - on SSD it could be too slow though). The same goes for standard encryption used by Ubuntu (it's very probable that Android tablets use the same method).
Truecrypt (and probably most other full-disk encryptions too) work like that:
- all the data on hard drive is encrypted (edit: it's encrypted all the time, never, ever is decrypted data written to disk),
- when system reads data - it's decrypted before being send to applications,
- when system writes data - it's encrypted before it's saved to the disk.
Also - Tegra2 should have a part handling encryption and decryption so it could be at least partially hardware encryption.
Your right, it has been a while since I have used encryption due to a bad experience early on. I'll give Truecyrpt a try. The software I used before was Safeguard Easy.
iamdarren said:
That didn't seem to do anything.... I saw the green android with cog body, maybe I need to give it more time. I will set out before i go bed.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I left mine overnight, and it still was not encrypted. I had even done a factory reset beforehand to minimize the amount of data to encrypt.
I'm pretty sure this doesn't work. I'll post as soon as I get a reply from Asus.
It did not work, maybe this feature isn't ready yet?
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
As a feature, it's not ready for prime time. I have it working on the xoom, but every reset it erases my timezone and sets it to GMT. Also, it uses the same PIN as your lock screen, so if you have a numeric pin for easy access, anyone who sees it now knows your encryption password as well. It really should be two different passwords. I intend this weekend to reset my machine and remove the encryption, because it doesn't serve the purpose it was supposed to serve.
Bump. Any info from Asus? I started it at ~7pm. It's midnight, and on the last few power-ups I get nothing except the green android logo after I enter the PIN. So it seems it's still not doing anything? Gonna reset now I guess.
Same problem here with a Transformer TF-101 Build number HRI66.TW_epad-8.2.3.8-20110423
See nothing but a android robot after enter the PIN. 7 hrs later I manually shutdown the machine.
Same here on the Modaco ROM.
Left it on the android pic for 9 hours... it didn't lock the screen or anything, and at the end, the accelerometer still worked when I rotated the screen, but I had to power off and on to get it back.
What does the encryption do, anyway? Does it stop you being able to load files on from the PC? Does it ask for the password when you plug it into the PC?
So no one has been able to get encryption working? I was just going to test this out and saw this thread. Thanks.
I've seen someone talking about some minor issues when running with encryption, so someone got it working.
That MIGHT have been on xoom, but I think it was the transformer.
Just thought I would share my experience with the encryption feature in Honeycomb since some people can't get it working:
At first I couldn't get it working like some people on this thread, I too was stuck on the green wireframe Android for hours on end until I discovered I could still exit back to the homescreen by pressing the home key on the keyboard dock. This happened on both the stock Asus 3.1 ROM and v1.4 of the PRIME! ROM (installed via nvflash).
I then updated recently to v1.5 of PRIME! via CWM and I can report that I was able to encrypt my Transformer after this update. It displayed the green Android wireframe logo for a few seconds, then rebooted and went into the encryption progress page. I had not really done much with the ROM other than change a few small settings and add my Google account, so the encryption was complete in less than an hour. I think the 'hour or more' estimate Google gives within the encryption description text is probably more accurate if you've installed a few more apps afterwards, but of course your timing will vary.
Furthermore I think that the encryption is likely only partial, because I was then able to flash one of the zip files from this thread via CWM without any issues or prompts. Otherwise I'm sure it would've thrown some kind of error such as not being able to mount the system partition or something of that ilk.
Finally (lol ) I also found this page on the Android source website outlining the details of the encyption implementation in Android Honeycomb for anyone interested. There is a mention somewhere of the 128-bit flavour of the AES algorithm being used to encrypt the master key.
Hope this helps anyone trying to get encryption working on their Transformer .
yet another absolutely useless feature, besides bricking the thing for whoever tries to steal it. keeps your data safe.. even from yourself.
i noticed a problem when inserting a microsd (into the pad itself) that it would not be able to boot as long as this is inserted. i am guessing this is because it tries to decrypt the microsd (that is not encrypted) and therefore is stuck in boot.
This is another aspect one should expect if this was a pre-release software. I am extremely disappointed with this product so far, mostly because of the software. most of (not any of the cameras) the hardware (including the keyboard) is pretty good
I did it 2 days ago, and it worked flawless. It tooks about an hour. I use it since and I have no problems at all.
The only thing is that I have to insert the SD card again each time I power on the transformer. Any idea how to change rhat?
fjoesne said:
yet another absolutely useless feature, besides bricking the thing for whoever tries to steal it. keeps your data safe.. even from yourself.
i noticed a problem when inserting a microsd (into the pad itself) that it would not be able to boot as long as this is inserted. i am guessing this is because it tries to decrypt the microsd (that is not encrypted) and therefore is stuck in boot.
This is another aspect one should expect if this was a pre-release software. I am extremely disappointed with this product so far, mostly because of the software. most of (not any of the cameras) the hardware (including the keyboard) is pretty good
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You likely have ASUS to blame for this, as my understanding is that the Thinkpad tablet deals properly (from the spec anyway) with SD cards attached to the device even to the point it can additionally encrypt them. Again we are all early adopters, Honeycomb was sort of an experiment for Google, and Ice Cream Sandwich is the real next version of the andoid platform.
And encryption is hardly a useless feature, it means Google is finally trying to consider enterprise usage of their products which is very important to the further growth of the platform.
I am certainly no James Bond but my company policy is that we encrypt and password the phones we are using for BYO
Since doing this the battery is awful (I am running 2 exhchange accounts)
Also very laggy when unlocking my phone using a 6 didgit pin
Anybody else getting this?
Because the device has to un-encrypt and re-encrypt every time essentially.
Maybe try resetting to factory and trying again? Could be some bad code
Sent from my LG-P999 using xda app-developers app
infrared90 said:
Because the device has to un-encrypt and re-encrypt every time essentially.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Surely once the handset is on the encryption process is over and the phone is decrypted and just like any other N4 until it is turned off again.
So I guess the question is... is the encryption done at "power down" or "lock screen"? I would guess it is lock screen as having to power down in order to secure the phone seems a little silly.
Not a solution to your problem, but an alternative:
My company has the same policy on encryption too, and I didn't want to encrypt my device because I wanted to run CM10 and use a custom recovery. So I went for Touchdown HD instead of Google's Built-in Exchange client. It runs in a sandbox and doesn't affect the rest of the device, so still meets all my company's security requirements. Touchdown used to be a bit lacking in the GUI department, but recent versions are working towards a standard Android 4 look and feel. You can trial it fully-featured for 30 days.
I have a stock 32 gb wifi only Nexus 7.
I was in Vegas last week to get married, placed the Nexus 7 in the room safe and when I came back, it was gone. Strange part was the thief left several thousands of dollars in wedding rings, pearl necklace, etc in the safe. All they took was my Nexus 7.
I discovered it missing scant minutes before we had to meet the limo to take us to get married. So we got married and when we returned to the hotel I reported it.
Security came up to the room after we did a report in their offices and searched the room thoroughly at my request. I opened the safe and we emptied it, security searched the safe and all around it with a flashlight, it was not in the room.
My wife and I left with security after the room search, security went back to work (I suppose), we went to dinner.
A few hours later we returned and I noticed the closet doors had been disturbed. The maid had been to the room MUCH earlier in the day. So I opened the safe and lo and behold, my Nexus 7 had "found it's way home".
I can think of no good reasons why someone would steal a Nexus 7 then return it. I can certainly think of a few bad reasons why they would do such a thing.
So I left it in airplane mode for the remainder of the trip, just used it to read a book on the Kindle app.
Of course I took a LOT of security measures with my banks, etc.
Since this has happened I returned home and encrypted the tablet. There are two levels of passwords you have to go through now when it boots just to get to the "desktop".
I also installed AVG after the theft and did a complete scan, I made sure to tell AVG to scan EVERYTHING.
The scans came up clean.
ALL my passwords where I bank, etc have been changed. I always use passwords of 15+ characters and when I can I also mix in special characters such as [email protected]#$, etc. Often banks won't allow those though. Curious.
So, I do use this tablet to login to my bank accounts sometimes.
Do you feel I'm safe to do so again?
Should I do a complete wipe of the tablet?
I do have the correct version of Android and the correct build number that I downloaded. They are for the wifi only Nexus 7 and they match what's on the tablet now.
If you feel I should do a complete wipe, where can I find a tutorial? ... and will my apps including the paid ones automagically reinstall?
You shouldn't have touched the tablet at all, but called the police to take evidence, such as fingerprints and an analysis of whatever might have changed.
Now that aside, using a probably Compromised device any further is not the smartest thing either. It does not matter if you change the password of anything, if you then enter the password through the compromised device, since there you are giving away the new password again.
Wipe the device, reset it to factory and restore from a pre-vegas backup. Then change all accounts again.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using xda premium
Maybe its someone you know or room service. BTW the reason they returned it because they realized its not an iPad mini. Next time you need to spend more money on hip devices of you want it stolen.
You might want to wipe the device not just factory reset which is not wiping, since it will retain the system partition. I don't know how to write zeros to the partition and doing it wrong probably perm brick the device too, but someone else might know. But you can be more thorough by using fastboot to flash the factory image which will format all the partitions, then encrypt afterward. Just use the sticky thread in this section on hour to factory reset and use the fastboot links in my signature.
Also I don't use antivirus on Android, but last time I heard Microsoft once pulled AVG from their app store because it doesn't do anything but run adsware. Not saying that it's useless, but there are other good ones to look at: http://www.av-test.org/en/tests/mobile-devices/android/jan-2013/ I heard good things about Zoner as well. Just throwing a few suggestions out there, use which ever you prefer.
This is also a good time for you to check out the app Cerberus for theft prevention, but it required sending hidden text message so I guess you will need a 3G version to receive SMS, but still recommended for phones.
Also make sure to turn off USB debugging when not using it.
Sent from XDA app
Hi,
I am thinking about encrypting my Nexus 4. I am already using encryption on all my computers but I never tried it on my smartphone, so there are three questions I hope you will answer:
1)
How is battery life affected? Well, fortunately the battery of the Nexus 4 is quite good and I hope encryption won't waste too much.
2)
How is speed affected? My Desktop CPU has AES-NI and there's a SSD, so you don't even recognize system encryption. How is it doing on the Nexus 4? I'm just doing the usual smartphone stuff, means E-Mail, messaging, phoning, checking News &Weather and sometimes playing Doodle Jump. My research on the Internet about encryption performance on Android didn't bring up things I can really rely on so I hope someone here can tell me his experiences.
3)
Which algorithm is used exactly? I know it's dm_crypt and I'm using it on my other computers, too, but on my PC I can choose which algorithm I want and on Android it's given as far as I know.
Regards,
becha
You can't use patter lock to unlock your screen, which is a pian for me right now.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
1. Barely noticeable
2. Same as 1
3. Not sure
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
1) I doesn't notice any real impact on battery life. Used the N4 several months before encrypting it.
2) Booting the phone is slowed down, and not only because you have to enter the key for accessing the encrypted drive. But opening apps and doing backup, etc. isn't slowed down. I guess I wouldn't even notice an encrypted devices and so did no one until now, while using my phone.
I was also doubtful before, because in my experience, on a laptop back in the days (5 years ago), the battery drain and performance impact was just to big. But on the other side, I do a lot more disk based tasks on my laptop, than I do on my phone.
in short, after I lost my last phone, I really wanted to give it a try and I didn't regret it until now.
Hoping to hear good answers to question 3.
@HB_Mosh
Well, that's not too bad for me because I don't use Unlock Patterns.
@Vanhoud @memleak
Thanks for sharing your experiences, I'll give encryption a shot.
becha said:
@HB_Mosh
Well, that's not too bad for me because I don't use Unlock Patterns.
@Vanhoud @memleak
Thanks for sharing your experiences, I'll give encryption a shot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
can you please tell us your experiences, i was thinking about it, i guess you can CWM, encrypt then restore backup if you want to revert without starting all over
Yesterday I encrypted my Nexus 4, it took around an half an hour. Until now (well, one day...) I didn't discover any problems apart from the fact, that my Nexus 4 did a simple restart for the first time when trying to encrypt it. Everything went fine when trying the second time. The phone itself runs fluent, so up to now I didn't see any performance problems.
Now I can't backup my ROM - any suggestions? Perhaps Recovery can mount to an external USB storage or something? What a pain! You can't un-encrypt either, and there's no way to mount encrypted storage in Recovery I wanted to backup before installing privacy protection in case it borked my phone.
Another encryption question...
Don't mean to hijack this thread, but can anyone tell me if OTA updates will still work on a stock, unrooted N4 that's been encrypted?
Can't find a definitive answer - some have had success on other devices and others haven't.
I don't see why turning on stock encryption on a stock unmodified device would make any difference?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
DroidBois said:
I don't see why turning on stock encryption on a stock unmodified device would make any difference?
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I wasn't sure why / if this would make a difference either but as I said, I can't find a definitive answer. Some people say that you need to factory reset in order to remove the encryption before you can apply an OTA update, but others say different.
I'd be interested to know if the OTA would work after simply asking you for your encryption PIN on reboot, or if the encryption would prevent the OTA being applied because of the encrypted storage. Does anyone have any experience of this?
DroidBois said:
Now I can't backup my ROM - any suggestions? Perhaps Recovery can mount to an external USB storage or something? What a pain! You can't un-encrypt either, and there's no way to mount encrypted storage in Recovery I wanted to backup before installing privacy protection in case it borked my phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have to use TWRP Recovery, which is able to mount your encrypted internal storage.
No way.. I thought I'd tried every option I could think of in TWRP but I'll take a closer look.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
If you start TWRP, it should automatically ask for your passphrase to read the encrypted internal storage. Latest version of TWRP works for me, older ones had bugs regarding to encrypted devices.