Related
Hey everyone,
I already had a topic on this matter but I will start afresh since i had exams and now im free to fix my damn phone.
Initially I had ICS and I wanted to upgrade to JB, I normally format everything after I go back to stock and root it, but this time I decided to format it BEFORE going back to original, and I did it not in the settings menu but in CMW!!! I dont know what I pressed there, but I think I also pressed partitioning, final result was bricked phone.
For hours I tried to restore it to at least be able to turn it on, but even now the firmware installation doesnt go as smoothly anymore, I think I messed up my partitions, I will need help with that.
THE MAIN PROBLEM NOW. Is that I got my IMEI deleted, and all other system codes too.
Before I did any of this I made a backup with nandroid, and it has saved my efs folder which apparently is supposed to carry the IMEI
However, when I restore the back up, the IMEI does not reappear!
I tried:
GSII Repair
HC-kTool
I tried restoring the backed up EFS folder with CMW but it did not do anything at all
Please give me other solutions I am desperate, I am forced to use Nokia N73 its a nightmare in all aspects =[
great I scanned (verified) my backup with nandroid for MD5 thing and it says PASS on everything but on efs.ext4.tar, it says FAIL
please help, how could I mess up even my back up =[[
I guess you didn't read up on the memory bug issue when using stock ICS and wiping with the stock kernel. You may be SOL, my friend.:crying:
Miami_Son said:
I guess you didn't read up on the memory bug issue when using stock ICS and wiping with the stock kernel. You may be SOL, my friend.:crying:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I didnt use stock ICS, I used stock gingerbread, but before i had a chance to install the gingerbread i went into CMW and deleted everything, which was really dumb of me to do but its done now.. i backed it up it works fine now, just doesnt recognize sim cause the IMEI is not there
You've tried using Odin to go back to stock?
Yes, I would go to stock first, format, root, then install new software, but this time i ****ed up everything decided to mess with CMW
Weird thing though is that I made a backup of my EFS before I messed it all up, but now when I "verify MD5" it with nandroid it says "FAILED" on EFS and "PASS" on everything else, then I noticed when I restore my phone with backup in CMW it also says that it is verifying with MD5, what I think is I somehow messed up my backup too, or it didnt back up properly, or my EFS was messed up long before I backed it up but it still kept working somehow
I think I need to somehow fix my original backed up EFS manually and then try restoring it again.. any ideas? I got the IMEI converting software for galaxy S3 from a friend on forum but i havent tried anything because im not sure whether there simply dumping the code will work for GS2.
igorukusa said:
I didnt use stock ICS, I used stock gingerbread, but before i had a chance to install the gingerbread i went into CMW and deleted everything, which was really dumb of me to do but its done now.. i backed it up it works fine now, just doesnt recognize sim cause the IMEI is not there
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I read this "Initially I had ICS and I wanted to upgrade to JB" and assumed you were on stock ICS.
no Im sorry for the misunderstanding, originally I had gingerbred, then rooted ics, i never had official ics, i think i might have messed up my partitions too, but there is no fix for that anywhere, only warnings
Someone (champ1919) has recomented i use this method
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=881162
It involved using Hex editor and editing few lines in the nv_data.bac
unfortunately that file needs no editing as everything in it seems to be correct,
so this is not whats causing me get null/null
I need more suggestions :/
If you had rooted ICS and did a wipe you could still have the memory bug issue. Have you read up on that to see if it could be your problem?
Miami_Son said:
If you had rooted ICS and did a wipe you could still have the memory bug issue. Have you read up on that to see if it could be your problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No I haven't :/ theres so much to read its inhumane.. I think i messed up my partitions for good, what actually frustrates me about android is that It does this retarded partitions that makes no sense, it leaves 2GB for the system, the rest it calls "sdcard" when you install something it actually installs on that 2GB partition, WHYYYYYYYY???? then there is an option of transfering the program to "sdcard" which is probably the remaining phone memory, whether i am right or wrong, the system memory gets clogged up so badly for no reason that the phone starts glitching like crazy, i have never had that problem with iPhone, if this continues I will switch back to iPhone 5S when it comes out, im too tired of this crap
igorukusa said:
No I haven't :/ theres so much to read its inhumane.. I think i messed up my partitions for good, what actually frustrates me about android is that It does this retarded partitions that makes no sense, it leaves 2GB for the system, the rest it calls "sdcard" when you install something it actually installs on that 2GB partition, WHYYYYYYYY???? then there is an option of transfering the program to "sdcard" which is probably the remaining phone memory, whether i am right or wrong, the system memory gets clogged up so badly for no reason that the phone starts glitching like crazy, i have never had that problem with iPhone, if this continues I will switch back to iPhone 5S when it comes out, im too tired of this crap
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Android isn't for everyone. It requires a lot more time and dedication to learn if u really want to customize things to your liking. Once you've been doing it a while and have read up on most things though it becomes a lot easier. I do agree the initial learning curve is steeper than with iPhone, but I guess that's the whole idea behind android. Being able to do things your way how you like them. Good luck, happy flashing.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1596842
Dug it up from the international I9100 forum. Some people are able to repair theirs. Of course apply I777 stock Roms and not any they provide in there.
Odin to rooted stock ics 4.0.3 then start from step 3. Assuming you have your network signal intact. Worth a shot. Let me know how it goes.
igorukusa said:
No I haven't :/ theres so much to read its inhumane.. I think i messed up my partitions for good, what actually frustrates me about android is that It does this retarded partitions that makes no sense, it leaves 2GB for the system, the rest it calls "sdcard" when you install something it actually installs on that 2GB partition, WHYYYYYYYY???? then there is an option of transfering the program to "sdcard" which is probably the remaining phone memory, whether i am right or wrong, the system memory gets clogged up so badly for no reason that the phone starts glitching like crazy, i have never had that problem with iPhone, if this continues I will switch back to iPhone 5S when it comes out, im too tired of this crap
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it is a security thing. You don't need to execute movies, music, or books which should take up the majority of space. So they move those to a place you can't execute things on. And the programs must be put in the executable space which is much smaller. The logic is fine, but it isn't very adaptable (harder to change partition sizes than to just flag a file as read-only, which means it is harder to put a virus in there and execute it too). Unfortunately security features often makes things harder or more likely to fail.
iPhone vs Android is like Mac vs Linux. The first generally just works if you are happy with the Apple way, and costs a lot more for the hardware. The second lets you customize more, and can be harder to use. But you can work around issues with enough effort.
OneOfMany07 said:
I think it is a security thing. You don't need to execute movies, music, or books which should take up the majority of space. So they move those to a place you can't execute things on. And the programs must be put in the executable space which is much smaller. The logic is fine, but it isn't very adaptable (harder to change partition sizes than to just flag a file as read-only, which means it is harder to put a virus in there and execute it too). Unfortunately security features often makes things harder or more likely to fail.
iPhone vs Android is like Mac vs Linux. The first generally just works if you are happy with the Apple way, and costs a lot more for the hardware. The second lets you customize more, and can be harder to use. But you can work around issues with enough effort.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
its ridiculously retarded, its affecting your experience, chance of getting hacked is 1:100 if you live in a city, and constantly sit on public wifi hotspot, and even then there are tooks that have nothing to do with your operating system to hack you, im telling you this is bullcrap im so tired of it that its up my throat
j510 said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1596842
Dug it up from the international I9100 forum. Some people are able to repair theirs. Of course apply I777 stock Roms and not any they provide in there.
Odin to rooted stock ics 4.0.3 then start from step 3. Assuming you have your network signal intact. Worth a shot. Let me know how it goes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hey my friend thank you for the link, i did what he said in the tutorial, but unfortunately its just the EFS repair, in my case i completely ****ed up my efs, i dont think its even recognized by the system anymore, i need to manually punch in the IMEI, theres a tutorial for SGS3, but none for SGS2 which is another thing thats frustrating, every phone has its own solution to a problem, maybe the solution would work but i cant put my phone in the DIAG mode I WDONT KNOW HOW TO DO THAT AND THERE IS NO TUTORIAL FOR THIS MODEL OF THE PHONE
605 iesaedn
Unfortunately I can't help you... I'm in a similar boat. Trying to find out how to rebuild/restore the EFS and NV info on a phone I got to switch over to my plan.
I've had all kinds of OS on it so far and nothing works. Need to put in the IMEI, the APN, etc... can't...
Like you... I find all of the I9100 stuff... but not much for the i777
Good luck and please post if you find a fix.
DM
For You Slow People who never do any research!!!
I just wanted to make it clear to fellow U.S. users. It is not illegal to swap a imei from one phone to another phone that are both in your legal possession in the United States. The last few years Congress has proposed legislation to prohibit this activity, but it always dies in committee. It was recentyly proposed again on April 25th of this year and sent to committee where it will most likely be tabled there again. See this link for the newly proposed legislation:
govtrack.us/congress/bills/113/hr1730/text[/url]
The Cloning laws in the United States only apply to cloning sim cards or esn numbers. Because cloning sim cards and/or esn's can lead to subscriber fraud. Which means you can actually steal someone's service without paying for it while the true owner of the sim or esn is stuck with paying for your usage. With IMEI numbers that is not possible due to the fact that is controlled by the sim card in gsm devices, not the IMEI. And as a matter of law and fact, you can clone your own sim or esn from a device in your legal possession because in that situation there is no intent to commit fraud which the cloning laws aim to prevent.
I challenge any of you "slow" people to find a law in the U.S. that prohibits swapping IMEI numbers. And, after you come back empty handed, ask yourself this question. Why does congress year after year try to propose laws to prohibit IMEI swapping if it is already illegal???
First, sorry for my bad English. Hope I make myself clear enough for you to understand me.
Second, to the moderators: feel free to move this topic if I posted it on the wrong session. But as you will see reading the following, I believe that the issue I will describe is directly related with the Neatrom - correct me if I'm wrong, but I have reasons to believe that.
So, here it goes:
I have a Samsung Galaxy S2 (i9100), running XXLSJ Neatrom Lite v4.0, and this kernell: 3.0.31-Siyah-s2-v6.0b4+
In december 2012, I bought a MicroSD card (model Sandisk Ultra 32Gb class 10) to install in my i9100, and it rocks.
But 4 weeks ago, when I was playing some games on the phone, I ignored the first battery low warning messages, and kept playing to a point that the phone simply turned off. Completely. I recharged the battery and, after powering the phone on again, it showed a message saying something like "blank sdcard" or something. I had many pictures and important movies on that card, so I decided to not format it; instead, I searched for a way to fix it.
I tried to access the files from my computer - on Windows, no success; on Ubuntu, no success; on Mint, no success. Windows and Linux showed the icon representing the sdcard, but when I tried to open it under Windows, it showed a message saying "this disk is not formated. Do you want to format it?". Linux didn't show any message, and didn't opne a single window to show its content. Nothing. Nada.
Then, my cousin (a geek genius) took my card to test it on his own notebook. He made some long research on the net, and installed a software called TestDisk (http://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/TestDisk - linux version) to try to recover the partition (or the MBR, I don't know exactly the tech name of this stuff...). He even entered on the software the number of cylinders, sectors and all that stuff to try to achieve sometuing... But after almost two hours reading tutorials, and trying hard to bring that card back to life with no success, he finally gave up, telling me to RMA the sdcard.
Then, I took the card from his hands, and put it aside, giving up too. Half an hour later, accepting the fact that my files was gone forever, I decided to try to format the card on my phone, to see if it would work after being formated. So, I put the card on the phone again, and powered the phone on... And, for my surprise, the card was back to life! For no reason, it decided to work again! With all the movies, all the pictures, all the games, everything was there, untouched!!!!
So, it worked great in the last 4 weeks, fast and nice - recording long HD movies, taking hundreds of pictures, installing huge data games, etc. It worked fine - until two days ago.
Because, two days ago, I was playing again, and again I ignored the low battery warnings, and it happened again! In the middle of the game, the battery ran out, and the phone turned off. Guess what? Yeah, after recharging it and turning it on again, there came that same message, telling me that my sdcard was blank! Again, no success trying to access it from Windows or Linux. And no geek cousin nearby...
(Of course, I had a backup of my files, created just after that first "death").
so, I sent an e-mail to my cousin, asking him about the software he used, and how it used it. He told me about that testdisk software. I downloaded the Windows version of the software, and give a try - no success. The program didn't recognize the drive letter of my "blank" sdcard, because the filesystem was simply not listed by the program. So, I went to the site, and I read that, under Linux, it was possible to force Testdisk to try to repair filesystems that was not shown in the list, by using a command line telling the software to look for the device through this mounting point (a folder inside /dev/). Linux stuff, I wont go any deep on this here.
So, I decided to restart my notebook, to boot on Linux to try that method. Guess what again? Suddenly, Windows recognized the sdcard again! I just ran the TestDisk utility, with no success - no command was used, I just ran the program, and since it didn't recognize the card, I closed the program. Nothing was done.
But, given the fact that the card was dead twice in the exact circumstantes (battery wearing completely off), and given the fact that the card came back to life after a simple run of the software TestDisk, I refuse to believe that it was a simple coincidence; I am not a geek, not a linux or android expert, nor a hardware wizzard, but my little experience tells me that it is possible that the android system locked the SDcard filesystem in a way that, after a sudden energy cut, it needed some sort of "logical shock" (made by TestDisk, even without any changes or command being called by the user, thats me).
I believe that this issue is part NeatRom's (or maybe kernell's) fault, because in stock roms, the system would close the app and close all sdcard access before turning the phone off to prevent issues like this one.
Again, I must repeat: I am not a technician, not an expert, so chances are I am wrong - very wrong. But I believe that my suspicions makes some sense, and woths to be investigated - or cleared out. And, of course, chances are that the card is deffective - and I already called RMA service from Sandisk. And I made another backup right now. But, I insist: everything is working: no movie corrupted, not a single file is corrupted... So, I still have a doubt here: was this issue cause by a deffective card, or was it cause by the sudden turn-offs?
Before you ask: no, I didn't test playing to the end of battery using another sdcard. By the way, I will never play to this point anymore. And yes, the card is still working!
Sorry for the VERY LONG POST. But I think that this testimonial may be of some value to the rom and kernell developpers.
I can honestly say i have never heard of a Rom or Kernel damaging a memory card, could be yours just developed a fault??
Galaxy s2 said:
I can honestly say i have never heard of a Rom or Kernel damaging a memory card, could be yours just developed a fault??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not the rom itself, but possibly some "features" of this or any other rom related to how it handles battery. I will try to make myself as clear as possible...
I know that in stock roms it is not possible to shoot photographs using flash when battery level is under 15% - this is to prevent sudden turn-off of the phone. And I know that some roms uses some tweaks that allows the user to take pictures using flash under this 15%. This is a thing that most users can think is an improvement - but we know that it is dangerous to use battery in a not-so-controled way. The history I told on the first post is a prove of it!
So, my suspictions is that, in some way, some rom configurations (or kernell configurations) may be allowing the user to play a high-power-demanding game or app to the end of battery charge - when, instead, it should close all the apps after the first warning, and before shutting down the phone. In other words, some roms let the decision up to the user - and if the user is (like me) distracted with some game, and forgot or bypass the first warning, he becomes a victim of this own distraction, wearing all the juice without thinking about closing the apk and shuting down the phone in the correct manner.
So, the question is: are there some rom tweaks that could POSSIBLY be the reason for this kind of issue?
Hope I made myself clear now, despite my horrible "engrich"...
I was wondering if anyone has found a way to develop any kind of protection for our phone that does more than apps that are installed once booted up? Let me explain. There are quite a few different apps that protect and find your phone and they can be protected from being uninstalled or turned off so that a thief cannot disable the protection. But there is one glaring weakness. I have yet to find any kind of protection that keeps a person from getting around all of these current apps by simply removing the battery and rebooting into Recovery and flashing to a different ROM or firmware. By doing this they are able to delete everything on the phone and they basically have a brand new phone in hand. We need a way to protect against a person being able to simply take out the battery and reboot and flash a new firmware. The protection needs to be built into the Recovery and Download modes or protect the phone before they reach Recovery or Download modes. If we can't find a way to protect prior to reaching these modes then a thief who knows anything about changing firmwares or recoveries can simply replace what is on the phone and successfully have bypassed all the protection that we invested in with these apps that are on the Play Store or at other places.
So does anyone know of any way that we can get this kind of protection? I have never seen anything that can do this. Is it even possible to build this kind of protection? If anyone knows anything, I would love to hear it. Thanks.
I heard there are apps that can be flashed to the phone and are running in the background that notify you with an sms if the sim card is changed, but they can be easily removed by wiping the cache/factory reset and/or installing a new rom.
However every GSM device as a unique IMEI code so that if your phone gets stolen you can go to your service provider or the police they can search for the code and have a basic idea of where it is. Even if you don't know the code i'm sure your service provider keeps logs of it.
gaka01 said:
I heard there are apps that can be flashed to the phone and are running in the background that notify you with an sms if the sim card is changed, but they can be easily removed by wiping the cache/factory reset and/or installing a new rom.
However every GSM device as a unique IMEI code so that if your phone gets stolen you can go to your service provider or the police they can search for the code and have a basic idea of where it is. Even if you don't know the code i'm sure your service provider keeps logs of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I was aware of using the IMEI. But judging from the success that people have of stealing phones and never getting caught, I just assumed that for one reason or another this method just wasn't a very reliable way of getting your phone back.
Well a friend of mine found an old nokia phone in a park near where i live. She needed a 2nd phone and decided to use it. However after 2 or 3 weeks a police officer went to her home and they accused her of theft.
Anyway if you don't trust the authorities your my best guess is flashing one of those background running apps. Do a research i'm not realy familiar with them.
gaka01 said:
Well a friend of mine found an old nokia phone in a park near where i live. She needed a 2nd phone and decided to use it. However after 2 or 3 weeks a police officer went to her home and they accused her of theft.
Anyway if you don't trust the authorities your my best guess is flashing one of those background running apps. Do a research i'm not realy familiar with them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It appears that relying on the IMEI is going to be the only way for true protection. The background running apps don't work if you note in my OP. All you have to do to get around them is to remove the battery and boot straight into Recovery and flash a different ROM or firmware. That will erase everything on the phone including any apps installed, even if they do run in the background. They can't run in the background if they aren't there.
Hi all,
I'm new to this site and am kinda desperate.... I have trouble with my SGH-i717... whenever sim card is in, the device keeps rebooting.... I tried changing the whole sim card reader and no effect on the problem.... Device is now rooted (did it with odin) still no effect... I also tried sim card in other device and it works fine.... Running out of idea here and I'm kinda noob with this... Phone juste came out of warranty by the way and still stuck with 1 and a half year on my damm contract.. So I'll have to buy new phone or pay a 400$ penality for breaking contratc... dammit !!!!
:crying::crying::crying::crying:
Also, the phone has to be kept plugged in (to computer or wall plug) otherwise it keeps rebooting even when sim card is not in...
take a look at this thread if you haven't tried searching. I know you are new and probably looking for any fix. you cant panic here. your going to have to search and read.
in the thread I posted, or any thread, pay attention to the stats of some of the folks posting. you may pay attention to some of the more experienced folks.
I don't know some of the specifics as you did not mention. many factors come into play. you will see talk of what carrier..... it is important
what rom are you currently running or have installed?
how clean is your process of flashing?
how experience are you?
some in the thread are talking about modem......as one posted, "changing your modem is not going to fix problem", he is correct.
I have ran into many problems, only saw SIM message show when I had no SIM in phone. always the failsafe solution has been returning to stock and start over.
you would not be the first person to rush off and think, "im flashing my phone, look at me, im cool". doesn't work like that.
I have always been the more cautious one. I read and make sure I understand. I have all my files in place. heck, I have evan rehearsed the process.
sound stupid???
maybe so, but I have yet to have a problem I couldn't figure out.
could be a "fix permissions" issue
could be a "format system" issue
some developers have specific instruction for flashing their rom, any deviation could cause a myriad of problems.
again, look at experience levels of some of the posters.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2260171
keep us informed as people are reading, but you haven't given any specifics. you have told us what your problem is and what you need fixed, but didn't tell us how you got there.
need that if you want help
I have a A52 5g and a tab S7+ wifi, that are both remotely controled and monitored, and serve as gateway to my home network and basicaly every device connected to it. I noticed it at first and mew NOTHING related to this, didnt even know what open source was. Since then i have come to understand that, somehow, my phone seems to run a custom version of android, my guess is, built from AOSP and designed to disguise itself as oem samsung ui, but in background enables remote access and total takeover of every function. I have discovered, using total commander, that storage has been partitioned in 2 separate locations, and that one folder in there is called root system file, and filled with data/apk/installkits/etc.. this has me asking for help in 2 specific questions:
Am i holding a rooted device or is there another possibility that creates this situation? I was convinced its rooted untill i read here that root prevents from using samsung pass, secure folder etc.. and those seem to work on mine(or is it a version of those apps?) If its indeed rooted, will it wype everything if i flash it with the stock rom? And should i trust a small cell repair store to do that or learn how to do it myself?
2: i have bought 3 brand new phones since august, and made sure not to use my usual accounts, no use backups, not even set it up near my home wifi, and it almost instantly started self installing harmful software in background. I see no other way for it to link itself to be owned by me at initial setup, but for the sim card, new of course, but with my usual phone number and service transfered to it. Is that enough to make a breach and compromise a new device? If so, what would be different after fpashing the stock rom, if everything reinstalls itself? Do i need to change my number? Change cellular service provider even? I know its an unusual request but im a fast learner, i have compiled lots of technical info on specific apps, ip's, servers, build id numbers etc.. that i know would make more sense to anyone more qualified than me, and i am about ready to try and wype/flash the thing myself, i just would feel better with a little help since i have gone this far pretty much alone, since no service provider or manifacturer actualy feels like this is their problem to solve....
Here you can download firmware for your phone and flash with Odin, which you can also download at the bottom of the page, there are instructions on how to do it also.
Make sure to download correct firmware for exact device you have. There are few different A52 5G models.. SM-A526B, SM-A526U, SM-A5260, SM-A526U1, SM-A526W.
You will lose all data after flashing new firmware. After this your phone will be like brand new from Samsung..
If your device is rooted then that means your warranty is void and manufacturers and carriers are under no obligation to help you.
I'm trying to understand your situation but its so conflicting I don't know where to begin.
For example, you say your device runs a custom AOSP with a Samsung UI. Thats exactly how it actually works. Samsung take the AOSP, customise it with their own functionality, then overlay their own skin as the UI. Theres absolutely nothing unusual about that.
I'm conflicted as to whether your rooted or not. If the manufacturer or carrier has physically seen the device and won't repair it then that would suggest your definitely rooted. If you spoke to them virtually and told them your rooted then they will use it as an excuse whether you're truly rooted or not. The partitions you mention could be the internal storage and an sd card which can be seen non-rooted. I dont know what you mean when you mention a "root system file". Is it an actual folder called "root" or is the app you're using just telling you that you've reached the "root" of the filesystem? I can't quite work out what you mean. You also say Knox-powered apps still work which just adds to the confusion.
You stated you have had 3 new devices and they all self-installed harmful software. To get one device compromised is possible. To get three compromised means your either a high profile government target (which I doubt because they wouldn't be so sloppy as this) or your doing something to compromise your own devices such as continuously visiting dodgy websites.
Flashing will fix things but so would having a new device. The only common denominator is you so either you're doing something wrong or you truly are a government target in which case I wish you good luck!
First let me appologise for the long silence, i cut off most online activity for a while and just read your answers. To clarify, i have not solved my prolem yet. But ill try to explain better what you ask about my situation:
About de os version arobase40 got it right. I Asked google play help reps. And a stock samsung version of android would not trigger googles warning about running a custom version of android. So that point to a modified after-the-fact more than to the fact samsung has their propierary version installed.
About beeing rooted or not, ylwhat you are asking is what im not totaly certajn of, also. I know partition can happen without rooting, its seems to have created a "virtual sd card" since its named as such when sd card slot is actualy empty. About the root files folder, i cant say for sure, all i can say is that its holding a large amount of Gigs that dont get taken into account when looking at storage capacity and usage, and accessing that folder gives me a message that root files cant be access from this device. Does it mean my device had root acess privileges revoked to prevent viewing files that hide what is given control of the software remotely, so i dont find out or have the capacity to remove or alter those files?
What is absolutely sure is that if it is rooted, it wasnt done by me. As for the chance the devices were not factory brand new, 1 of them was not, got it opend box from amazon, a saudi arabia version, but my prkblems had started months before getting it, did not keep it more than 2 months, and all others before and since are 100% pure factory new, some directly from my cellular service provider, as financed device came with 2 year agreement of service,(actualy 2 of them i got this way) and the last one is my tab s7+ i got online directly from samsung canada website, on preorder, delivered on release day.
And lastly the fact i cant seem to shake those persistent leeches, is not from having reckless habbits online, but from having careless and uneducated habbits before that all started, usual older lazy dude stuff, like not changing my wifi password after a ruff breakup with bipolar psycho ex gf, or having only a few passwords reused on most my accounts. I have stopped doing those things long ago now that i know better, but i suspect that i could have been unaware something gettnng installed and staying dormant for a while, maybe? The ex had way more opportunities than needed to do something like this and is more than psycho enough to realy do it also. For having the skills to do it, lets say she has "assets" that can easily get her guys willing to help about that. It may also be coming from somwhere else, but as you say im not a super spy or a high ranking gov. Official. Im not even that interesting, and have absolutely no usable id for fraud or anything, my credit history would raise more red flags then there is in all china. So after so long struggling with this still very active, i cant even think of a rational reason to do so much effort into this, theres nothing to gain, i only can imagine that maybe a twisted mind seeking revege, or with a sick way of amusing themselves could see the point to all that, but i dont realy care. I only want to get rid of it.
As for the way it manages to be so much persistent, i can only see one option left i didnt remove from the process, and its through my phone number/account on the sim card, even a new sim on a new phone, still is linked to my cell service. I did initial setup with only that new sim card, accounts freshely created during setup, with no info or anythink linkable to my previous accounts, and even did it sitting outside, far from any building that could get me in range of a wifi network. And it still was no more effective at staying secure.
Thats why i did not yet try to flash a stock rom myself on my device, because it would, at best, become exactly like it was when brand new, and i know that this is not enough to keep it secure, and that means theres still something im missing in the whole picture.