Is there an android jail?

August 22, 2015 7:24 PM

So the dustup over Spotify's new privacy policy got me looking for a way to control what data their app has access to. Is there some type of per-app jail that provides mock locations and presents a cutdown filesystem to android apps? I've got a Nexus 6 running Andoid Lollipop.
posted by rdr to Computers & Internet (6 answers total)

Cyanogen has exactly this. Many Android APIs can simply be turned off for specific apps. Of course Cyanogen is difficult to deal with, with a lot of annoying buggy behavior, so it may or may not be worth it for you.
posted by miyabo at 8:20 PM on August 22, 2015

Also the next major version of Android (5.0 aka Marshmallow) is implementing something very similar:

Android 6.0 Marshmallow app permissions: a closer look

You could install the Developer Preview which should be easier on your Nexus device than all other Android devices, although I doubt it's "easy".
posted by meowzilla at 8:25 PM on August 22, 2015

Waiting until Android M is released would help with this, yes.

I would not suggest trying to install the developer preview - many apps are very broken until they're updated to deal with the changes. The preview - as you can tell from the name - is intended for app developers to use to update their apps, and may (does) have plenty of bugs!
posted by Ashlyth at 8:31 PM on August 22, 2015

If you are rooted, the XPrivacy module for Xposed does this, it either blocks or spoofs most device information as you wish:


http://forum.xda-developers.com/xposed/modules/xprivacy-ultimate-android-privacy-app-t2320783

In case you're not familiar, XPosed is a framework that allows modules to change the core OS features of Android. It does require root to install, but furthermore, it is still in alpha for Lollipop (no automated install etc, use at your own risk even more than the usual warnings, etc). Having said that, it works fine for me on both a Nexus 4 and 5 running 5.1.1.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/xposed/super-alpha-posted-permission-xposed-t3072979

If you're not rooted, and not willing to, then not that I'm aware of, but I think some of these more restrictive and granular permissions are coming in the next version of Android (Marshmallow)?

(On preview, I see the new version is mentioned already).
posted by Boobus Tuber at 8:34 PM on August 22, 2015

I run a version of Android from Cyanogen on my One Plus One and use per app permissioning. Or, what miyabo said.
posted by AugustWest at 8:44 PM on August 22, 2015

If you're already rooted, but running stock, you can install an app like App Ops. I believe I've used this particular app in the past, and for the same reasons.

If you are not yet rooted, I'd recommend using Wugfresh's toolkit.

In the process of rooting, you'll need to unlock your bootloader, which will factory reset your phone. Make sure you back up anything you want to keep before you start.
posted by builderofscience at 9:11 PM on August 22, 2015