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Implications of Android Auto on e/OS (discuss.tchncs.de)

submitted 4 months ago by lucullus@discuss.tchncs.de to c/privacy@lemmy.ml

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I'm using e/OS on a fairphone 6 since some months. I would like to use Android Auto for long trips, though the official documentation tells me to install Google, Google Maps, Google Speech Recognition and then Android Auto.

What privacy implications has installing these? Does the "Advanced Privacy" of e/OS help in keeping my data as far as possible?

I know, that using Google Maps and Android Auto will give Google the usage data of what I'm doing in these while I'm using them. But what about when they are currently not in use? Or apps, that I use while Android Auto is active, but which don't have an integration for it?

There seems to be a set of OSS stub apps, that replace the Google Apss, though from what I have found online they give very mixed results.

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[–] pika@lemmy.today 2 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (1 children)

I don't use e/OS , i use LineageOS, but I use microG and had Android Auto working for a while. The problem is that AA is very fussy about security checks and things, and eventually it stopped working and I couldn't get it to work again. Support for projects like Android Auto 4 microG from Sn00x and rikj000 are drying up.

Android Auto - XLauncher Unlocked can help with using apps that aren't explicitly supported in AA.

[–] lucullus@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 4 months ago (1 children)

Thanks for the suggestion. Seems like aa4mg either needs root (which I currently don't have done on my phone, since my banking apps are allergic to that) or a custom ROM (which honestly is too much tinkering for my available time and a device I use so much)

e/OS also uses microG. Do you know anything about the privacy implications of those google apps here? As my time is limited currently, I would either just install android auto as per instructions or not doing it at all. Long tinkering, that might easily break other things are not my focus at this time.

[–] pika@lemmy.today 2 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

As far as I know, microG only sends data when Device Registration/google login is turned on, Push Notifications in microG are enabled, and through UnifiedNLP (location services). Data gets sent to Google through unifiedNLP due to the fact that the Secure User-Plane Location (SUPL) provider in Android's gps.conf file is Google. There is a Magisk module to replace the SUPL provider, but again that requires root.

MicroG doesn't install a usable version of Google maps, and I wouldn't try to install one if using microG. I am unaware of what data Google Speech Synthesis/Recognition sends if anything (I have it blocked from having internet access using a root firewall as a precaution).

The e/OS team has tried to strip every bit of Google out of Android, but getting everything out is hard. Putting Google stuff back in is fine if you know and control what data is being sent. I accept the tradeoff of potential data being leaked when using Android Auto because I have much of it blocked from internet access, but that also might be why AA eventually stopped passing the security check on my device.