39
submitted 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) by GolfNovemberUniform@lemmy.ml to c/degoogle@lemmy.ml

I am in need of a separate degoogled phone for some things that require high level of privacy (nothing illegal).

I have 2 phones that I can use. One of them is my business phone (it has my business number, apps, data and that sort of stuff) which is now running an OS with all the Google spyware because it's necessary for the apps to work. I can reinstall everything on the second phone and use the first one as the secure device since it supports everything I need. The problem is that it has some issues on vanilla ROMs that I don't really want to deal with and the reinstalling will take a lot of time.

The issue with the second phone is that it is rocking an old MTK chip and rooting instructions are let's say a bit beyond my ability to understand. I still want to use it without Google if possible though. So can I degoogle its stock ROM with ADB or something? And is it worth trying or there will still be some vulnerabilities?

EDIT: to clear some possible misunderstandings, the reason of why I need a separate secure phone is that I am forced to use a very invasive proprietary app that I'd prefer just keeping on a separate device instead of trying to limit its spyware abilities with firewalls and that kind of stuff. I don't trust the last solution much. Also I can't use it in a VM because I need it to always be accessible wherever I am and yk carrying a PC is not an option

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] smeg@feddit.uk 7 points 6 months ago

You can degoogle some phones without root, assuming they have support from a good custom ROM (the classic example being GrapheneOS on a Pixel). You'll need to look up what ROMs are available for your particular phone, and if you're lucky then there'll be a good one which doesn't require too much hackery to install.

If you're unlucky and there's nothing for that device then you probably can't fully de-google it, but you can still improve the situation by avoiding any Google apps and services. This could be by using adb as you suggest, or by managing the network as the other comment suggests, or just by using alternatives.

It all really depends on your threat model and whether or not it's worth buying a new device just for this!

this post was submitted on 27 Apr 2024
39 points (73.5% liked)

DeGoogle Yourself

7743 readers
1 users here now

A community for those that would like to get away from Google.

Here you may post anything related to DeGoogling, why we should do it or good software alternatives!

Rules

  1. Be respectful even in disagreement

  2. No advertising unless it is very relevent and justified. Do not do this excessively.

  3. No low value posts / memes. We or you need to learn, or discuss something.

Related communities

!privacyguides@lemmy.one !privacy@lemmy.ml !privatelife@lemmy.ml !linuxphones@lemmy.ml !fossdroid@social.fossware.space !fdroid@lemmy.ml

founded 4 years ago
MODERATORS