I did have a search on here, but didn't find anything particularly relevant so I'm hoping some people could help me out.
My situation is that I manage the deployment of Android Handsets and Tablets within my company. This process is fairly ad-hoc as in, I order a few handsets at a time, set them up with company software requirements + some desktop shortcuts, and ship them to the specific user.
My problem is that the quantity of devices I'm going to be deploying in the next 12 months will grow significantly, and this job is extremely boring, and costing me in time wasted on a repetitive task that could be much better spent on other things.
So I am looking for tools to help make this process more automated/quicker/simpler.
The crux of my requirements are:
a) install software packages (some from market, some not eg Lotus Notes Traveler)
b) Slight desktop customisations (add some app shortcuts, browser homepage etc) - realistically this is optional, but I thought I'd mention it.
Currently I take care of (a) with a homegrown python script which makes some adb calls.
(b) and (c) are entirely manual, and currently depend in part on the device going out - could be any of HTC Desire/Desire S/Sensation, Motorola Atrix/Defy+/Xoom or Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1.
I also have to do this *after* having logged in, set up at least one google account + possibly a motoblur account, and enabled USB debugging - is it possible to get adb shell functionality without needing to get into the OS and enable USB Debugging?
Moving to higher level things, I'm open to the idea of paying for dedicated tools to manage this job - eg Google Apps Domain services, or some other Mobile Data Management service (eg silverback mdm).
However, what these tools are geared to is securing a fleet of devices, but don't seem to offer what I'm looking for, which I believe are pretty simple requirements. ie add some arbitrary apps, and make them accessible on the front screen of the device.
I can't imagine that I'm the first person to need to do this, so what are other people doing to ease the management burden?
Hi everybody
The point is rather simple.
We believe (that is a hypothesis) that it's a big deal for the majority of Android users to understand all the possibilities and advantages that Android OS could bring to them.
So it's a greate opportunity for services (mobile applications) which can operate themselves adjusting a smartphone to his owner needs. By analyxing the pattern of using the smartphone and all best users experience practices. And thereafter giving them different recomendaitions of what they could do with their phone setting in order to optimize its productivity, what application he would like above all and would be the best to work on his smartphone and so on and so forth.
So what do you think about all of this.
Thank you very much in advance for your feedback! :fingers-crossed:
Hello.
I am here seeking for help and advice on how to approach the development of a security framework (via APP or via hacked Android ROM to be used by kids, that could be monitored by adults (parents or legal tutors).
The idea would be to develop a (white hat) hacked ROM, that would allow the kids to communicate with their friends, but also would allow their parents to supervise/monitor in real time what their children are doing, who are they communicating with and that way protect their children. The thing is not to spy on our kids, but to be able to check regularly if there is anything wrong going on with our kids (mobbing, insults or harassment). Kids aged (10-14) could be influenced by other kids, adults, or adults simulating being kids, and on some occasions they can be tricked to do things without their parents consent/knowledge that can lead to a tricky situation.
When I was a kid, we had the telephone (wired telephone, of course) on the middle of the hallway, so all our conversations were basically family-public. The truth is that there are not many secret things a 10yo kid could/should talk about, but nowadays, it could be a little bit worrying to lend a smartphone to a kid. I think it's just as letting a kid drive a car; he can do it right, or not be able to evaluate the whole consequences of driving a car.
Talking to other parents around me, they all found very interesting the idea of having a telephone that one could lend to their son, having the kid available all the time, and with the peace of mind that you could know what's going on. Of course the kid should be aware of this, and that the telephone comms are being supervised. I think it's no big deal. "Kid, it's very simple. The telephone is mine, and if you want to use it you have to use it under my terms".
Probably, all of us working for a company, have also our communications supervised, cannot make personal phonecalls with the company's telephones, probably cannot navigate to webs looking for personal content, and we asume those rules (because neither the company's phones nor the computers are ours but our company's). It's basically the same, switching the company-employee role to a father-son one.
So, let's get to the point (technically). I am a tech-geek, linux pro-user, have compiled a few ROMs just for personal use, but don't feel capable enough of starting a project of these magnitude alone. If there is anyone willing to help, opine, or whatever, will be very welcome.
First of all, APP or ROM? I basically think that the ROM is the way to go, but I'm asking just in case someone can convince me on the contrary. I will make a poll on this question.
APP An APP could be easily downloaded and installed but would require a rooted phone, and I don't see it clearly if an APP could resolve all the needed issues (access to communications for example) and could be fairly easily uninstalled too.
ROM On the other hand, a ROM would be trickier to uninstall (basically flashing another ROM) but wouldn't be as easy to install as an APP (though the installer model of cyanogenmod could be kind of a solution). There could be an universal (if possible) independent flashable module, over whatever android ROM, or an entire ROM solution.
Features that I want to develop in this ROM (by the way, I call it 'Vigilante ROM'):
Suitable for as many devices as possible
Web interface for parents available to see device-related information
Some hack-proof measures to avoid kids bypassing the ROM's security
Alerts triggered on some events (offensive words, whatever)
Position of the mobile -just in case-
Suitable for as many devices as possible
The first thing I though was what platform should be used for this ROM. To select Android over others (iOS, Blackberry, W7) was a no-brainer. Now, the question is should we use pure Android or make a CyanogenMod fork?
In my opinion, even though every phone maker has to supply their ROM sources publicly, they usually introduce so many modifications (HTC Sense, Samsung Touchwizz and so on) that it looks more difficult to develop a common security framework over each manufacturer's version of Android, rather than using a more standardized one like CyanogenMod.
CyanogenMod already works with a wide number of devices (and a wider one if you count the unofficial supported devices), I think CyanogenMod should be the base of this ROM. If all the 'things' needed could be flash on top of any Android device, would be even better, but technically I need help with this one.
I understand that basically there should be an internal proxy setup, so that all the communications go through this internal proxy, and based on the kind of communication, we could log whatever we need. For example:
Visited URLs
Whatsapp or other messaging apps should be decrypted
Incoming/Outgoing calls/SMS
Social network activity
I know the Whatsapp protocol because I'm familiar with a project called WhatAPI. The key point to be able to intercept whatsapp messaging is a key generated and exchanged during the app install (although there are ways to later ask the Whatsapp server to renegotiate this keyword) and that's used later to encrypt all the messages between the phone and the whatsapp server.
Web interface for parents available to see device-related information
Behind every kid with a smartphone there should be a responsible adult supervising the kid -even if it's remotely-. In my idea, logs of messaging activity, incoming/outgoing calls/SMS and even the position should be available to the supervisor through a web interface.
Some hack-proof measures to avoid kids bypassing the ROM's security
That's an easy one. CRC checks on some keyfiles would guarantee that the device is not being 'counter-hacked'. Some kids are also very techie, and we should make some defences against kids trying to hack (counter-hack?) the phone.
Alerts triggered on some events (offensive words, whatever)
It could be interesting if somehow the supervisor could receive a notification whenever the kid sends/receives and offensive word, or tries to enter some special tagged website.
I have scoured the interwebs for a solution, yet found only obsolete and empirically ineffectual methods, aka "setprop net.dsn1" etc., none of which persist, neither immediately after the issued command nor, especially, after a reboot.
Please allow me to make it clear, that I find it perverse and loathsome that an "app" would be necessary to accomplish this feat. The indolent '"app" mentality', which is the sadly presumed remedy for nearly every action other than involuntary motion, is a contract with the assassin of freedom – and I abhor it venomously.
I have owned an Android (presently with CM11 ROM installed, with TWRP recovery) device for two weeks. It is the first Android device (or smart, tablet, etc.) I've ever owned or dared t fuss with. I particularly purchased the Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 because it was supported by CM. I am normally a Linux user and value my liberties of hack-ability. Oddly, I was able to successfully configure my DNS via a terminal emulator within my Android device, but recent updates seem to have thwarted my efforts. Apparently, resolv.conf no longer exists and some fundamental changes have been implemented, though this is all new to me and I ain't sure.
I believe that a user should be able to configure their own DNS (amongst other things) and therefore request assistance from the wizards of xda. Google is simply unacceptable, and Verizon hijacking plain makes me mad.
Show me the way, to 208.67.222.222!
Hi all
I a searching for someone who is very experienced in making a secure custom rom for Android.
I have given some example links as a reference.
Create Custom ROM for Android —* which phones do you recommend ?
I have a recent Huawei. I would like to avoid spending many hundreds of euros on phones if possible
I would like a custom Secure firmware, that will be*
-*Protection from zero-days viruses
-*Hardened kernel
-*Stronger sandboxing and isolation for apps & services
-*Firewall & network hardening -**MAC Randomization
-*Security-centric user experience changes
-*Man in the middle doctor* —* Protection from SS7 attacks
-*IMSI catcher decor
-*Verifiable Source Code
-*Protection from silent sms
-*Protect your contacts and call history from unauthorised access
- How to change phone identifiers if I wanted to*
An example of phone software that I would like to emulate as much as possible.
sorry I had to remove the links as its my 1st post. It will be easy to find with this info.
esdcryptophone cryptophone-600g
esdcryptophone comparison
Thank you all for taking time to read my request
Felix