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Help Trusted Apps

K

Kieran

Lurker
I'm coming into my final year at uni and I am wanting to create and app which forensically copies the whole system.

To do this I will load the app onto a USB stick and install the app from there.

My issue is the "install unknown apps" setting which by default is set to not allow this.

What makes an app trusted?

Is there a way I can get my app trusted?

Is there a way I can bypass this security issue?

Thanks
 
You mean "...not trusted.", right?

Not sure that "trust" is the right word here since even apps from the Play Store (or the Amazon App Store) could potentially be sketchy (depending on your definition of sketchy, of course :)), but you stand a better chance of getting a "good" app from those sources since Google and Amazon both scan apps when they're uploaded and other users kind of test them out before you.

Installing a app from outside of this process requires that you enable "Unknown sources" from the Security section of the Settings app.

It's unlikely that you can find a way to subvert this unless you are working with a rooted device (and your app has been granted root powers).

Hope that helps and welcome to our AndroidForums :).
 
^this. But don't you need to allow untrusted to install the Amazon App store as it isn't on Google Play? And then allow untrusted for any apps from there? Although Amazon should be trusted, as, like you say, they scan etc. But as it's not from Google they can't verify?
 
SavageRobot said:
^this. But don't you need to allow untrusted to install the Amazon App store as it isn't on Google Play? And then allow untrusted for any apps from there? Although Amazon should be trusted, as, like you say, they scan etc. But as it's not from Google they can't verify?
Click to expand...

Yep! A little chicken and egg thing there with installing the Amazon App Store ;).

I don't think you're actually too at-risk keeping install from unknown sources checked since you have to take explicit action to install an app (i.e., from a file browser, etc.) -- unless you are rooted, in which case the package manager could be invoked by a rooted app to install an app (but I believe that's akin to using adb install which I don't believe doesn't require having unknown sources checked).

However, that being said, leaving Settings -> Security -> Unknown sources unchecked / disabled is still a good practice.
 
I'm not completely sure what the OP's problem is though. He wants to install using USB OTG, which means he has physical access to the device and the device is unlocked (so you can use a file browser to install it). And he knows about the setting, and hence can just untick it. So as I say, I'm not sure where the problem is.

Of course if the device was locked and he wanted this app to install automatically when you plug the flash drive on that would be a different matter. But then even if that were possible it would obviously be deeply irresponsible to post instructions for doing that on the web ;). And if it existed I'd hope Google would close such a security hole as soon as they became aware of it.
 
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Yea I think he was just asking how to make an app that wouldn't need to have unknown sources checked, which I think would only be to have it accepted on the play store. At least I think that's what he was after.
 
OK I have an issue currently where I need this exact thing to happen....I have a rooted phone which when I installed the new ROM a few things did not work one of them being settings.....I downloaded the files to reinstall and try to make it an the phone work but can't install them because of a setting I can't change..... any idea where this is in the system files that maybe it could be changed that way....a little off his topic
 
coach_leo said:
OK I have an issue currently where I need this exact thing to happen....I have a rooted phone which when I installed the new ROM a few things did not work one of them being settings.....I downloaded the files to reinstall and try to make it an the phone work but can't install them because of a setting I can't change..... any idea where this is in the system files that maybe it could be changed that way....a little off his topic
Click to expand...

So you need the Settings -> Unknown sources option to work but it won't because your Settings app doesn't work?

You must have a custom recovery installed in order to flash a new ROM, so you could (or should be able to) re-flash, correct?

Can you clarify a little here--i.e., what device, what file, etc.?
 
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