Android Phone Battery

debitcardmayhem

wongataa wrote: »

Killing apps instead of letting Android manage what goes on in the background can actually cause issues such as reduced responsiveness and higher battery usage as every time you open the app it has to be reloaded into memory from scratch.

Anyone who knows anything about Android recommends task killing apps should not be used. Apps should only be force stopped if they are causing an issue at that particular time.

Oh, and you are wrong about anti-virus on Android. Only install apps from Google play and don't search out the dodgier looking apps on there and you will be fine. If Google does come across one of the very few malware apps on Play and you have installed it they will force uninstall it from your device.

DURAK ring any bells?

Richie-from-the-Boro

When you install an app on Android it sets almost all permissions to a default YES for example :

- wake up
- keep awake
- record audio
- make phone calls
- modify settings
- read phone book
- your location
- photo's
- media files
- wifi change
- bluetooth change
- and many many others

The biggest offender of course being google play, then when you get to in-app purchases, it becomes even more frightening. Oversharing is the domain of the free app, a free app is simply a thinly-disguised data thief, just as is Windows 10 - that's the exchange you agreed to. You gave the free app complete access to your smartphone, a crook can now have it away with your credit card / bank account / turn your phone into a relay point so that scammers can attack other peoples phones. PlayStore does regulate malware but not the default permissions the app maker does that and always leaves all the doors on your phone open to abuse by people who know how to abuse them.

I control the doors [entry & exit] on both Android and Windows 10, I don't use an antivirus on my android or any previous android and this is my third. I don't use antivirus on Windows 10 apart from defender the integrated Windows 10 real time anti-virus / anti-malware - I do of course control the doors On Windows and can open and pre-close any door [port] at will, and I don't go looking for trouble on the interwibble clicking yes to everything as most people do. You look after your computer and phone as much as your wallet and bank .. .. and you will be fine.

aliEnRIK

This entire post has done my head in.
Anyone who knows me knows I am not 'techie deficient'
I have personally removed trojans many times on this very site using text files with combofix (Amongst others) to surgically remove them.

I posted this post for those people with phones with batteries that are dying quicker than they used to that do not know why and want help.

Now to be fair I can see the debate on the anti virus for android. There is a lot of scaremongering, many probably is from the people who have anti virus businesses.

I did call the malware on my family members tablet a 'virus' and for that I apologise.
However, I am going to explain why :
I received the family members archos tablet with the 'Cheshire Police Authority' scam running. Shutting the tablet down just went into a loop and restarted the malware.
I managed (Still not sure how as I only managed it the once) to hard reset.
No options came up and the malware was still running.
This time it would 'shut down' as normal
However, it was now dead (!?). I put onto charge for hours holding all sorts of keys down in various sequences to no avail.
Finally on top I saw a 'reset' button hidden away. Using a pin I pressed reset and start.
It came back to life (And I breathed a sigh of relief)
Malware still on (You cant do anything at all with it running)
Rebooted and finally figured out how to go into 'safe mode' (Why the hell is every device different for this?? - and I couldn't find anything on the archos for this)
All google posts on this Cheshire police thing say its dead easy. Safe mode and uninstall app.
Well it wasn't for me. I uninstalled every app I could find to no avail. (Multiple restarts and safe modes inbetween going on hours)
Now as I have already explained, I finally gave up and completely reset the device to default - wiping it clean to (hopefully) fix it
Things I found out :
I believe the cheshire police screen was an actual live wallpaper because it was in chinese, but no matter what I did I could not remove it (Well, it did go, but appeared again!?)
I plugged the archos into my pc. Avira found a VLC player APK file it didnt like (But it wasnt actually installed). It got stuck scanning a movie file with malwarebytes which I ended up manually deleting on the archos itself.

I personally believe that malware for android devices (Of which this is the first time I have personally ever encountered one myself outside of infected APK files) is getting more and more intelligent. I believe the cheshire malware I encountered is a more advanced version because it simply isnt that easy to remove.

here are some examples of what have been found on the PLAY site :
http://blog.checkpoint.com/2015/09/21/braintest-a-new-level-of-sophistication-in-mobile-malware/
https://www.fireeye.com/blog/threat-research/2015/09/guaranteed_clicksm.html
https://blog.avast.com/2015/02/03/apps-on-google-play-pose-as-games-and-infect-millions-of-users-with-adware/
http://www.marblesecurity.com/2014/04/30/bitcoin-mining-android-malware-pulled-from-google-play/

Looking at the 2nd link : "We have observed over 300 malicious, illegitimate versions of Android apps being distributed, including: Amazon, Memory Booster, Clean Master, PopBird, YTD Video Downloader, and Flashlight."

So its a proven fact that there have been (And still continue to be) seemingly legit apps on googles own play store.

The link also states that any android device UNDER 5.0 version can be rooted via malware "(Note: The malware can not root devices with Android OS 5.0 and above, as of now. However, because the root program is downloaded on runtime, we cannot rule out the possibility that the attackers can enhance the root programs. So, upgrading to the latest version of OS will provide some security but is not a guarantee that you will remain completely safe from this malware.)"

The archos device is 4.0.3 (From memory) and wouldn't update anymore (So I am genuinely concerned if it is indeed 'clean' right now)

So even if 'allow installation of apps from sources other than the Play Store' is unticked, you can, through no fault of your own, inadvertently install hidden malware.

Based on this evidence (And a whole lot more I can easily post if people are so sad as to turn there noses up at these links), I stand by my advice of installing a 'decent' anti virus on android (especially phones, as malware can quickly turn out to be VERY expensive)

I respect everyone who decides against using one, I believe they're intelligent enough to know the dangers and weigh up the pros and cons for themselves.

As for the killing of 'active applications' I am about to do a bit of a test. I agree its probably best to not use it on 'all' apps. But certainly some do require killing ('sound meter' off the play store for example)

Currently my battery is at 96% over a 3h 4m period
Android OS - 61%
Screen - 12%
Device Idle - 11%
Cell Standby - 10%
Phone - 4%
Android System - 2%
(anti virus not even on its so small)

I thank everyone for their replies and concerns

AndyPix

God is this thread still going - and you still insist AV on a mobile device has a use !! Bonkers !!

You do realise don't you, that if you had every AV under the sun installed on your device, it still would not, and could not stop you downloading anything from google play, malware or not. !!

AV's don't and cant work like that on mobile devices, it physically cant see or stop you downloading anything from google play !!

So you could have had the "best" AV in the world on your device, and if there was a malwarey app on the play store, you could happily install it and your "AV" wouldn't have batted an eyelid.

Seriously mate - do some research properly before coming onto a techie forum, with your techie hat on, preaching wrong info - Because heaven forbid, someone might actually listen to you.

Its a simple case of ...

AV companies clever marketing : 1
You : 0

bod1467

Now now, Andy. Play nice. RIK's post is well-constructed and polite (regardless of whether or not you agree with what he says).

However I side with you as regards the viability of an AV product on an Android device. An AV (like Avast) cannot override any installation decisions the user makes. If the user decides to install a dodgy app the AV cannot overrule that decision. (The only possible caveat to that is if the device is rooted and the AV has root permissions).

Of course the AV could scan the file and warn the user that it may be dodgy, but it can't stop the user installing it - Android simply doesn't work that way.

AndyPix

Hi Bod pal - Yes im sorry, I have a knack of sounding confrontational when I don't mean too.

Its just a bug bear of mine that AV is completely useless on a phone yet still marketed !!

Did you know, the phone "AV" software, cant even scan the file !! Each app runs in its own sandbox and no cross communication is allowed whatsoever !!

All it can do, is check your list of installed application names, against a list of known application names that contain unwanted behaviour !!

Admittedly its all dressed up very nice, with a similar UI design and the same feeling as AV on a pc so that's why some people believe it is actually doing something!

Its all very cloak and dagger and as I said previously, they exist simply to try to sell you their "full fat cousins" that are available on PC

The ONLY useful thing that a mobile AV program does, is warn you if you have the "install from unknown sources" option ticked !! That's it !!

It cant scan files so it cant spot heuristics, it simply looks at filenames.

So if you only install from google play, you have nothing to worry about, except the occasional malware that sneaks onto there - but in that case a mobile AV solution would be completely useless anyway !!

aliEnRIK

As a test I have just now downloaded many apk files from an external source. I scanned them and one was found to be dodgy.
I put it onto the android device
Straight away AVAST told me it wasnt wanted.
I ignored, turned on the option to allow external apk files and attempted an install.
AVAST stopped to warn me again.
I chose to ignore that warning and install
AFTER it had been installed, two separate warnings came up saying ****is a potentially unwanted program then 'rep malware' and 'android:agent HAH' respectively
3 options were open : uninstall, info and ignore

I uninstalled the 'potential' program and deleted the APK file

AndyPix

Yes, like I said , the "AV" will have a list of filenames that are "dodgy"
It cant and doesn't "scan" any contents of the APK

So now you can see how the "AV" is completely useless
Because had you not ticked the option to allow from untrusted sources (at which point android its self would have warned you) - you wouldn't have been able to install this rogue APK ..

We are going round in circles here - are you sure you don't work for avast or something
You are not proving anything, you are making yourself look silly

AndyPix

Please don't offer advice - on a subject you clearly don't fully understand

because as you said, many non-techies come here looking for advice, and may believe the incorrect stuff you are spouting

debitcardmayhem

AndyPix wrote: »

Yes but YOU have come on here - dressed as a techie - giving techie advice that is plain wrong.

I cant be @ssed argueing the toss with you, if you want to believe that you need antivirus software on your phone tablet then you go right ahead and carry on using it.

For everyone else - simply don't tick the option to allow installation from unknown sources and you will be fine - I promise

Let this guy keep using AV software that's soul purpose is to get you to purchase one of its cousins on the pc mac etc

AV on android doesn't have the functionality to scan the actions of any other software on the device, that's not how android works - Its snake oil plain and simple

If you can show me one example of any AV on any android device that has detected and removed a virus then I will actually eat my hat and post a video of that on youtube. Hows that for you .

Bit of a big promise though

So if you only install from google play, you have nothing to worry about, except the occasional malware that sneaks onto there - but in that case a mobile AV solution would be completely useless anyway !!

Calm down and present your case in a more assured manner, I don't use AV on my phone and hopefully will never need to, but don't say it will never happen.

Slanging matches are one of the reasons this board is going to the dogs