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Many ad SDKs share locations

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  Many ad SDKs share locations ram@zedat.fu-berlin.de (Stefan Ram) - 2026-08-05 21:06 +0000
    Re: Many ad SDKs share locations Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-08-05 13:56 -0800
      Re: Many ad SDKs share locations Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-08-05 15:17 -0800
    Re: Many ad SDKs share locations "R.Wieser" <address@is.invalid> - 2026-08-06 09:16 +0200
      Re: Many ad SDKs share locations Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-08-06 07:55 -0800
    Re: Many ad SDKs share locations Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> - 2026-08-07 16:09 +0200
      Re: Many ad SDKs share locations Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-08-07 18:51 -0800
        Re: Many ad SDKs share locations Arno Welzel <usenet@arnowelzel.de> - 2026-08-09 11:18 +0200
          Re: Many ad SDKs share locations Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-08-15 09:05 -0800
            Re: Many ad SDKs share locations "Carlos E. R." <robin_listas@es.invalid> - 2026-08-15 19:30 +0200
              Re: Many ad SDKs share locations Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-08-15 10:37 -0800
            Re: Many ad SDKs share locations Nuno Silva <nunojsilva@invalid.invalid> - 2026-08-16 09:28 +0100
              Re: Many ad SDKs share locations Maria Sophia <mariasophia@comprehension.com> - 2026-08-16 10:26 -0800

#154705 — Many ad SDKs share locations

| An investigation by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) reveals
| that many mobile advertising SDKs automatically collect and share
| users' precise location data by default the moment an app is granted
| system-level location permissions. Because mobile operating systems
| lack SDK-specific permission controls, giving a trusted app (like a
| weather tracker or fitness app) permission to view a location inhe-
| rently gives that same data to any embedded third-party ad libraries.
| 
| Many developers are entirely unaware of this backend behavior. The
| data quickly moves through Real-Time Bidding (RTB) advertising systems
| straight into the hands of commercial location data brokers.
| 
| Why This Happens
| 
| Invasive Default Settings   Several major ad networks configure
| their SDKs to actively look for and transmit location coordinates 
| automatically without requiring explicit opt-ins from the developer.
| 
| Financial Incentives   Ad networks actively reward developers with
| higher monetization rates or payouts if precise location sharing is
| active.
| 
| Deceptive Documentation   SDK guides often use dark patterns, unclear
| language, or omit the exact extent of their background data harves-
| ting.
| 
| Key Harms of Leaked Location Data
| 
| This is not just about serving creepy, hyper-local ads. Aggregated
| location histories from data brokers have been actively weaponized,
| bought, or leaked for severe real-world harms:
| 
| - Government intelligence tracking and law enforcement investigations
|   without warrants.
| 
| - Global digital spying tools and targeted cyber surveillance.
| 
| - Tracking political union organizers and military personnel.
| 
| - Targeted harassment, outing individuals, and massive data broker
|   database breaches.

  Lines marked with "| " come from my editing, where I start by writing
  prompts for the chatbot and then edit the generated texts and format
  them for USENET.

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#154707

Stefan Ram wrote:
>   Lines marked with "| " come from my editing, where I start by writing
>   prompts for the chatbot and then edit the generated texts and format
>   them for USENET.

In other words, when we grant an app (like a weather or fitness app)
permission to use our location, mobile operating systems (iOS/Android) give
that data to all software inside the app, including hidden third-party
advertising libraries (SDKs).

It may be that most app developers do not even realize this is happening.
The ad networks automatically harvest precise location coordinates and pump
them into Real-Time Bidding (RTB) systems, selling them to commercial data
brokers.

Unfortunately, ad networks use invasive default settings, financial
incentives (higher payouts for developers who share location), and
deceptive documentation (dark patterns) to trick developers into keeping
these features active.

This data goes far beyond annoying targeted ads. 
Purchased or leaked location histories are used for:

a. Warrantless government and law enforcement tracking.
b. Global digital spying and targeted cyber surveillance.
c. Tracking political union organizers and military personnel.
d. Harassment, doxxing, and massive data broker database breaches.

Luckily, as far as I'm aware, all that is impossible on my phone.

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#154710

Maria Sophia wrote:
> Luckily, as far as I'm aware, all that is impossible on my phone.

While probably one in a million people knows how to properly set up a phone
for privacy, I decided to check my phone to see if it's even possible for
an SDK to report my location without me explicitly allowing it to happen.

 Newsgroups: comp.mobile.android
 Subject: PSA: A quick Android location and network access audit using adb
 Date: Wed, 5 Aug 2026 15:15:11 -0800
 Message-ID: <1150g5v$1lsp$1@nnrp.usenet.blueworldhosting.com>

I wrote that PSA up so that anyone else can run the exact commands
(which were only tested on my Samsung Galaxy A32-5G though).

-- 
My conversations are deep because they cover more detail than most do.

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#154713

Stefan,

[snip]

What about posting the links to the articles, so we can read it, and
possible user contributions for ourselves ?   Possibly even read other
articles.

As for this :

> An investigation by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) reveals
> that many mobile advertising SDKs automatically collect and share
> users' precise location data by default the moment an app is granted
> system-level location permissions.

And water is wet.    Wait, It still is, isn't it ? :-)

Why would *anyone* think that an advertising company would *not* try to grab
as much information about its victims* as it possibly can ?

* and yes, I mean it like that.  Nobody wants it, but somehow everybody gets
it anyway.

Regards,
Rudy Wieser

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#154720

R.Wieser wrote:
> What about posting the links to the articles, so we can read it, and
> possible user contributions for ourselves ?   Possibly even read other
> articles.

I agree with anyone, no matter their past history, when they state a 
logically sensible remark, so I must agree the article would be nice.

What I did, when I read the information, was (1) summarize it for the team, 
so that what was posted, was summarized to make it easier to digest.

Then, I wrote up a way to identify if my phone has those advertising sdks
 Newsgroups: comp.mobile.android
 Subject: PSA: A quick Android location and network access audit using adb
 Date: Wed, 5 Aug 2026 15:15:11 -0800
 Message-ID: <1150g5v$1lsp$1@nnrp.usenet.blueworldhosting.com>

Where others can perform the tasks I ran in response to the information.
 1. No ad SDK ever requested location
 2. No ad SDK ever registered for location
 3. No ad SDK opened any network sockets (ad SDKs always open sockets!)
 4. No unknown or hidden packages exist that accessed the network
 5. No background location requests were made (ad SDKs often do that)
 6. No ad libraries opened sockets

I'm currently writing a script which others can use to scan their entire 
device to locate the exact apps and the exact advertisment sdks.

But... I'm not as good at Windows batch programming as Rudy is.
It's still failing to properly run the findstr on the unzip APKs.

Here it is, in its current version, but I can't get the findstr to work.

  :: ------------------------------------------------------------------
  :: Note Windows thinks Android /data is a Windows path!
  :: The failure is only inside CMD's batch parser.
  :: ------------------------------------------------------------------
  :: scanads.bat
  :: Scans non-rooted Android 10+ to look inside all apps for ad SDKs
  :: ------------------------------------------------------------------
  :: Debug: scanads.bat > full_console_output.txt 2>&1
  :: cmd /v /c "echo on & call scanads.bat > full_trace.txt 2>&1"
  :: ------------------------------------------------------------------
  :: v2p1 20260806 debugging
  :: v2p0 20260806 Created scanads_patterns.txt file containing SDKs
  ::      Because these strings only appear in apps that actually embed ad SDKs.
  ::                com/facebook/ads/AdManager
  ::                com/mopub/mobileads
  ::                com/applovin/mediation
  ::                com/unity3d/ads/android
  ::                com/ironsource/mediationsdk
  ::                com/bytedance/sdk/openads
  ::                com/chartboost/sdk
  ::                com/inmobi/ads
  ::                com/vungle/publisher
  ::                com/mintegral/msdk
  ::                com/tapjoy/TJAdUnit
  ::                com/adcolony/sdk
  ::                com/amazon/device/ads/AdRegistration
  :: v1p9 20260806 added "setlocal enabledelayedexpansion"
  :: v1p8 20260805 List APKs with ad SDKs in the summary and into a file
  :: v1p7 20260805 Cleaned up minor errors and strengthened the summary
  :: v1p6 20260805 Changed to match SDK classpaths, not metadata filenames
  :: v1p5 20260805 Tightened grep from "ads" to a list of known ad packages
  :: v1p4 20260805 Added result summary for packages found with ad SDKs
  :: v1p3 20260805 Set temporary file names via easily-modified variables
  :: v1p2 20260805 Added separate output folder and consistent file names
  :: v1p1 20260805 Added checks to make sure adb is working first
  :: v1p0 20260805 Scans all Android apps for ad-related packages
  :: ------------------------------------------------------------------
  :: This program connects to an Android device over ADB, collects the 
  :: full list of installed apps, extracts the file paths of their APKs, 
  :: and then scans each APK for known ad-network SDKs. For every APK, 
  :: it uses unzip -l on the device to list all files inside the package, 
  :: then it searches that file list for specific SDK classpaths. If any 
  :: of those classpaths appear, the app is counted as containing an ad SDK.
  :: Otherwise, the app is counted as clean. At the end, the script prints 
  :: a summary showing how many APKs were scanned, how many contained ad SDKs, 
  :: and how many did not. Here is my first output on my daily drive:
  ::  Total APKs scanned: 986
  ::  APKs containing ad-related files: 3
  ::  APKs with no ad-related files: 983
  :: ------------------------------------------------------------------
  @echo off
  setlocal enabledelayedexpansion
  echo Android APK Ad Network Scanner
  echo.
  
  REM Working directory and filenames and counters
  ::  Define the directory name for temp working files
  set WORKDIR=scanads
  ::  Define the file name for the list of package names and APK paths
  set RAWPKG=%WORKDIR%\scanads_1packages_raw.txt
  ::  Define the file name for the list of APKs scanned
  set APKPATHS=%WORKDIR%\scanads_2apkpaths.txt
  ::  Define the file name for the APK unzip showing every file in the APK
  set APKCONTENTS=%WORKDIR%\scanads_3apkcontents.tmp
  ::  Define the ephemeral file name for ad-SDK classpath matches
  set MATCHES=%WORKDIR%\scanads_4matches.tmp
  ::  Define the file where we save all APKs that contain ad SDKs
  set ADSOUT=%WORKDIR%\scanads_5adsfound.txt
  ::  Define a pattern file that contains the desired search keywords
  set PATTERNS=scanads_patterns.txt
  ::  Start counters at zero
  set COUNT_TOTAL=0
  set COUNT_ADS=0
  set COUNT_NOADS=0
  
  REM Create working directory if missing
  if not exist %WORKDIR% mkdir %WORKDIR%
  
  REM Check ADB connection
  adb get-state > nul 2>&1
  if errorlevel 1 (
      echo No device detected. Connect Android and enable USB debugging.
      exit /b
  )
  
  REM Check unzip availability
  adb shell which unzip > nul 2>&1
  if errorlevel 1 (
      echo Device does not have unzip. Install BusyBox or enable unzip.
      exit /b
  )
  
  REM Dump package list
  echo Pulling package list...
  adb shell pm list packages -f > %RAWPKG%
  echo Package list saved.
  echo.
  
  REM Extract APK paths
  echo Extracting APK paths...
  powershell -NoLogo -NoProfile -Command "(Get-Content '%RAWPKG%' | ForEach-Object { ($_ -replace '^package:','') -replace '=[^=]+$','' }) | Set-Content '%APKPATHS%'"
  
  echo APK paths saved.
  echo.
  
  REM Scan APKs
  echo Scanning for ad networks...
  echo.
  
  :: v1p8: clear output file for ad-SDK results
  echo Ad SDKs found in these APKs: > "%ADSOUT%"
  
  :: begin scan loop
  for /f "usebackq delims=" %%A in ("%APKPATHS%") do (
      set /a COUNT_TOTAL+=1
      echo Scanning %%A
  
  :: v1p8: clear APKCONTENTS before unzip to avoid stale data
      echo. > "%APKCONTENTS%"
      adb shell unzip -l "%%A" > "%APKCONTENTS%" 2>nul
  
  :: v1p8: clear MATCHES to avoid stale data
      echo. > "%MATCHES%"
  
  :: Find ad SDKs inside of the list of files in every APK
  ::    findstr /i "com/facebook/ads/AdManager com/mopub/mobileads com/applovin/mediation com/unity3d/ads/android com/ironsource/mediationsdk com/bytedance/sdk/openads com/chartboost/sdk com/inmobi/ads com/vungle/publisher com/mintegral/msdk com/tapjoy/TJAdUnit com/adcolony/sdk com/amazon/device/ads/AdRegistration" %APKCONTENTS% > %MATCHES%
  
  findstr /i /g:"%PATTERNS%" "%APKCONTENTS%" > "%MATCHES%"
  
  :: errorlevel=0 means matches found, therefore it has ads
  :: errorlevel=1 means no matches, therefore it does not have ads
      if errorlevel 1 (
          set /a COUNT_NOADS+=1
          del %MATCHES% 2>nul
      ) else (
      echo [ADS] %%A
      for /f %%X in (%MATCHES%) do echo     %%X
  
      :: v1p8: append results to ADSOUT file
      echo APK: %%A >> "%ADSOUT%"
      for /f %%X in (%MATCHES%) do echo     %%X >> "%ADSOUT%"
      echo. >> "%ADSOUT%"
  
      set /a COUNT_ADS+=1
  
  :: Save it for debugging
  copy "%MATCHES%" "scanads\matches_%%~nA.tmp" >nul
  
      del %MATCHES% 2>nul
      )
  )
  :: end scan loop
  
  echo.
  echo Scan complete.
  
  echo.
  echo Summary:
  echo Total APKs scanned: %COUNT_TOTAL%
  echo APKs containing ad-related files: %COUNT_ADS%
  echo APKs with no ad-related files: %COUNT_NOADS%
  echo.
  
  :: v1p8 show the file containing detailed ad-SDK results
  echo Detailed list saved to: %ADSOUT%
  echo.
  
  gvim %ADSOUT%
  pause
  
  :: end of scanads.bat

-- 
Usenet allows old friends to discuss unique topics of mutual interest.

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#154750

Stefan Ram, 2026-08-05 23:06:

> | An investigation by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) reveals
> | that many mobile advertising SDKs automatically collect and share
> | users' precise location data by default the moment an app is granted
> | system-level location permissions.
[...]

Well - this isn't obvious? Location based ads are nothing new. In the
past the used GeoIP only, then also coarse location based on the
connected base stations and now GPS as well. Not really surprising.

Best solution to avoid this: use open source without ads or at least
paid apps which don't have ads at all.

-- 
Arno Welzel
https://arnowelzel.de

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#154787

Arno Welzel wrote:
> Well - this isn't obvious? Location based ads are nothing new. In the
> past the used GeoIP only, then also coarse location based on the
> connected base stations and now GPS as well. Not really surprising.

Hi Arno,

Only one in a million people know how to set up Android to not show ads.

I think it's NOT obvious that an ad-related SDK is secretly hidden inside
of apps which, according to the article, even the developer is unaware of.
 <https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/07/developers-beware-ad-libraries-betray-your-users-location-privacy>

If it's not obvious to a developer, how could it possibly be obvious to us?

> Best solution to avoid this: use open source without ads or at least
> paid apps which don't have ads at all.

As you know, I've not seen an advertisement on my Android in many years.
So, I might disagree with you as for what the "best solution" is.

However, for most people, assuming they're not all that technically astute,
then, sure, the best simple philosophy to give them is to mainly install
FOSS apps. 

As for the advice to pay the app developer NOT to show ads, well, that's
kind of like paying the Mafia insurance not to burn down your business.

While it's absurd advice in my opinion, I'm sure most people follow it.
Just like most people would pay the Mafia not to burn down their buildings.

As for me, I would just prevent Android from ever showing ads.
Then, you could install the free versions of any software.

You'll never see ads ever.
Ask me how I know this.

 Newsgroups: comp.mobile.android,alt.msdos.batch,alt.comp.os.windows-10
 Subject: Need help getting Windows to list all files inside every APK and then look for advertising SDKs
 Date: Thu, 6 Aug 2026 20:02:36 -0000 (UTC)
 Message-ID: <1152p8r$eh8$1@nnrp.usenet.blueworldhosting.com>

 Newsgroups: comp.mobile.android
 Subject: PSA: A quick Android location and network access audit using adb
 Date: Wed, 5 Aug 2026 15:15:11 -0800
 Message-ID: <1150g5v$1lsp$1@nnrp.usenet.blueworldhosting.com>
-- 
Only one in a million people know how to set up Android to not show ads.

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#154836

Maria Sophia, 2026-08-08 04:51:

> Arno Welzel wrote:
>> Well - this isn't obvious? Location based ads are nothing new. In the
>> past the used GeoIP only, then also coarse location based on the
>> connected base stations and now GPS as well. Not really surprising.
> 
> Hi Arno,
> 
> Only one in a million people know how to set up Android to not show ads.

Just not using apps with Ads? Or would that be too easy? ;-)

> I think it's NOT obvious that an ad-related SDK is secretly hidden inside
> of apps which, according to the article, even the developer is unaware of.
>  <https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/07/developers-beware-ad-libraries-betray-your-users-location-privacy>
> 
> If it's not obvious to a developer, how could it possibly be obvious to us?

Well - if it's not obvious to a developer, that the app he is working
on, has an ad-related SDK as dependency, he should either get some
training in dependency management or stop working as professional
developer and do something else.

>> Best solution to avoid this: use open source without ads or at least
>> paid apps which don't have ads at all.
> 
> As you know, I've not seen an advertisement on my Android in many years.
> So, I might disagree with you as for what the "best solution" is.

Why? How else would you avoid ads? By installing some ad blocking proxy
app which may not work, when you need to have a VPN as well?

> However, for most people, assuming they're not all that technically astute,
> then, sure, the best simple philosophy to give them is to mainly install
> FOSS apps. 

Yes - that's what I said - "use open source without ads".

> As for the advice to pay the app developer NOT to show ads, well, that's
> kind of like paying the Mafia insurance not to burn down your business.

You would never pay for services or software?

OSMAnd also has a *paid* subscription to support their work, even when
the app itself is free and can be downloaded for free as well.

> While it's absurd advice in my opinion, I'm sure most people follow it.

Why is it "absurd" to use paid apps which don't have ads instead of
using "free" versions which show ads to generate income for the developers?

> Just like most people would pay the Mafia not to burn down their buildings.

I don't. But I have to pay my landlord for the rent and also for
electricity, water and internet access. Are all these companies "Mafia"?

> As for me, I would just prevent Android from ever showing ads.
> Then, you could install the free versions of any software.
> 
> You'll never see ads ever.
> Ask me how I know this.

Yes, but then you don't remove ads, you just stop the apps to show them.
The whole location spying code is then still installed.



-- 
Arno Welzel
https://arnowelzel.de

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#155013

Arno Welzel wrote:
>> Only one in a million people know how to set up Android to not show ads.
> 
> Just not using apps with Ads? Or would that be too easy? ;-)

Hi Arno,

Good point! Touche

I will never disagree with any logically sensible viewpoint.
Only fools do that. That's why they're fools.

While we disagree on philosophy sometimes, most of the time we agree on the
facts, where I do agree with you, much as I'd agree with anyone who
presents a logically defensible point of view, that the *easiest* solution
is simply not to load apps that have ads.

This is easy to do even for the hoi polloi given every app must declare
whether or not it contains ads. 

However, I think the point of the original article was that many app
developers incorporate Google SDKs which, according to the article,
secretly record your GPS location and report it to the Google ad servers.

>> I think it's NOT obvious that an ad-related SDK is secretly hidden inside
>> of apps which, according to the article, even the developer is unaware of.
>>  <https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/07/developers-beware-ad-libraries-betray-your-users-location-privacy>
>> 
>> If it's not obvious to a developer, how could it possibly be obvious to us?
> 
> Well - if it's not obvious to a developer, that the app he is working
> on, has an ad-related SDK as dependency, he should either get some
> training in dependency management or stop working as professional
> developer and do something else.

Again, I agree fully with you. To see if I had any apps which have
ad-related SDKs inside them, I started writing a batch script but it turned
out that the "grep" is too difficult for Windows so I put that on hold.

Every day there's a new program to write, as you well know, so I'm working
on others at the moment as my phone has never shown an ad in many years.

>>> Best solution to avoid this: use open source without ads or at least
>>> paid apps which don't have ads at all.
>> 
>> As you know, I've not seen an advertisement on my Android in many years.
>> So, I might disagree with you as for what the "best solution" is.
> 
> Why? How else would you avoid ads? By installing some ad blocking proxy
> app which may not work, when you need to have a VPN as well?

My phone is literally absolutely physically incapable of showing ads. 

My point was that only one out of a million people know how to do that. 

Even I would be hard pressed to write a tutorial as it's not simple to do.

>> However, for most people, assuming they're not all that technically astute,
>> then, sure, the best simple philosophy to give them is to mainly install
>> FOSS apps. 
> 
> Yes - that's what I said - "use open source without ads".

I never disagree with any logically defensible statement, Arno, so I agree.

>> As for the advice to pay the app developer NOT to show ads, well, that's
>> kind of like paying the Mafia insurance not to burn down your business.
> 
> You would never pay for services or software?

Well, almost never. The only software I've ever paid for is TurboTax.

> OSMAnd also has a *paid* subscription to support their work, even when
> the app itself is free and can be downloaded for free as well.

OSMAnd~/OSMAnd+ has both a free and paid version, as you're well aware.

I've used OSMAnd~ but I find it inferior to other solutions, even as I do
very much love that it's an open source project, even for the map database.

>> While it's absurd advice in my opinion, I'm sure most people follow it.
> 
> Why is it "absurd" to use paid apps which don't have ads instead of
> using "free" versions which show ads to generate income for the developers?

The instant you 'pay' for anything on the net, you have lost your privacy.

>> Just like most people would pay the Mafia not to burn down their buildings.
> 
> I don't. But I have to pay my landlord for the rent and also for
> electricity, water and internet access. Are all these companies "Mafia"?

Well, I get my Internet for free but you're not paying those companies to
give you a product sans ads, so I don't think the example is appropriate.

I can install an ad-supported app and it works fine, just without ads.

>> As for me, I would just prevent Android from ever showing ads.
>> Then, you could install the free versions of any software.
>> 
>> You'll never see ads ever.
>> Ask me how I know this.
> 
> Yes, but then you don't remove ads, you just stop the apps to show them.
> The whole location spying code is then still installed.

You think I'm only using ad blocking VPN settings, but it's more than that.
My phone is literally physically incapable of ever showing a single ad.

Only one in a million people know how to do that, and, even I would be hard
pressed to list the things I had to do to make my phone incapable of ads.

The proof though, which took me many hours to test about two or three
months ago, is that none of the ad-serving packages are left on my system.
-- 
You clearly don't appreciate how smart I am compared to most people. :)

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#155016

On 2026-08-15 19:05, Maria Sophia wrote:
> Arno Welzel wrote:
>>> Only one in a million people know how to set up Android to not show ads.
>>
>> Just not using apps with Ads? Or would that be too easy? ;-)
> 
> Hi Arno,
> 
> Good point! Touche
> 
> I will never disagree with any logically sensible viewpoint.
> Only fools do that. That's why they're fools.
> 
> While we disagree on philosophy sometimes, most of the time we agree on the
> facts, where I do agree with you, much as I'd agree with anyone who
> presents a logically defensible point of view, that the *easiest* solution
> is simply not to load apps that have ads.
> 
> This is easy to do even for the hoi polloi given every app must declare
> whether or not it contains ads.
> 
> However, I think the point of the original article was that many app
> developers incorporate Google SDKs which, according to the article,
> secretly record your GPS location and report it to the Google ad servers.

The OP did not mention Google SDKs. It talked about "mobile advertising 
SDKs" which I understand are third party.


-- 
Cheers,
        Carlos E.R.
        ES🇪🇸, EU🇪🇺.

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#155025

Carlos E. R. wrote:
>> However, I think the point of the original article was that many app
>> developers incorporate Google SDKs which, according to the article,
>> secretly record your GPS location and report it to the Google ad servers.
> 
> The OP did not mention Google SDKs. It talked about "mobile advertising 
> SDKs" which I understand are third party.

Hi Carlos,

Yes. Thanks. I was too colloquial with Arno, as the SDKs we seek are
from various parties (for example, from my recent scanforads batch script)
::                com/facebook/ads/AdManager
::                com/mopub/mobileads
::                com/applovin/mediation
::                com/unity3d/ads/android
::                com/ironsource/mediationsdk
::                com/bytedance/sdk/openads
::                com/chartboost/sdk
::                com/inmobi/ads
::                com/vungle/publisher
::                com/mintegral/msdk
::                com/tapjoy/TJAdUnit
::                com/adcolony/sdk
::                com/amazon/device/ads/AdRegistration

You are correct. 
I was being too colloquial with Arno.

My main point to him was that 999,999 out of a million people think the way
to avoid ads is to use an ad blocker and/or don't install apps with ads.

I'm not disputing that's what 999,999 out of a million people would do.
I'm only saying that my Android is physically incapable of showing ads.

It was a complex (and somewhat accidental) series of removals that
accomplished that worthy feat, where even I would be hard pressed to list
all the things I did (mostly remove packages with adb) to accomplish it.

But at this point, I could install adware, and it still won't show ads.
Anyone want to help me test that shocking but apropos claim of mine?

Tell me which adware you'd like me to install that I can test.

I only ask that it be:
 a. Available for free
 b. With no need for registration
 
And, just let me know under what circumstances you'd like me to test it.
I'm never afraid to put my assertions to the test as I'm a scientist.

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#155037

On 2026-08-15, Maria Sophia wrote:

> Arno Welzel wrote:
>
>> OSMAnd also has a *paid* subscription to support their work, even when
>> the app itself is free and can be downloaded for free as well.
>
> OSMAnd~/OSMAnd+ has both a free and paid version, as you're well aware.
>
> I've used OSMAnd~ but I find it inferior to other solutions, even as I do
> very much love that it's an open source project, even for the map
> database.

IIRC, OSMAnd is the free Google Play version, OSMAnd+ the paid one, and
OSMAnd~ is the FLOSS build on at least F-Droid.

I've found OSMAnd* to be OK, but to be fair there were many years where
I did just not have it installed, so I'll have to slowly "evaluate" it
again.

It's lacking regarding real-time public transit information, I should
check if I can add that, but I think I'd actually prefer an application
focused on that (something that, unlike Google Maps, allows to look just
at stops and routes instead of having to go through additional hoops of
reviews, comments, photos). It's another thing in the list of things I
have to check :-)

>>> Just like most people would pay the Mafia not to burn down their buildings.
>> 
>> I don't. But I have to pay my landlord for the rent and also for
>> electricity, water and internet access. Are all these companies
>> "Mafia"?

Are they disrupting the service they provide to you in order to extract
more money from you?

-- 
Nuno Silva

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#155043

Nuno Silva wrote:
>> I've used OSMAnd~ but I find it inferior to other solutions, even as I do
>> very much love that it's an open source project, even for the map
>> database.
> 
> IIRC, OSMAnd is the free Google Play version, OSMAnd+ the paid one, and
> OSMAnd~ is the FLOSS build on at least F-Droid.

This is true, but we were getting at deeper levels than just the surface.

IMHO, OSMAnd~ USA road maps are "almost as good" as Google Maps in terms of
accuracy (i.e., they're "good enough"), but what OSMAnd~ lacks is the POI
that Google Maps has amassed. 

In the past, I wrote tutorials on how to scrape the Google Maps POI for
offline use, and then how to use that offline Google Maps POI with OSMAnd~
routing, but that worthy trick is no longer available to us (AFAIK).

What OSMAnd~ excels at, which Google Maps sucks at in comparison, is
walking directions inside of building sites such as apartment complexes.
 
> I've found OSMAnd* to be OK, but to be fair there were many years where
> I did just not have it installed, so I'll have to slowly "evaluate" it
> again.

I've run extensive tests of OSMAnd~ for backcountry hiking, and I have
posted those 1:1 results comparing to the USGS backcountry map apps.

For backcountry hiking, in the USA, IMHO, OSMAnd~ sucks compared to USGS
maps inside of Avenza or PaperMaps or even for caltopo online topo maps.

I am well aware most of the rest of the world has nothing like the free
USGS geopdfs so, for them, for backcountry use, OSMAnd~ is what they use.

> It's lacking regarding real-time public transit information, I should
> check if I can add that, but I think I'd actually prefer an application
> focused on that (something that, unlike Google Maps, allows to look just
> at stops and routes instead of having to go through additional hoops of
> reviews, comments, photos). It's another thing in the list of things I
> have to check :-)

That's a good point about lacking real-time public transit information.

The good news about real-time public transit, especially for most of the
world (as in the USA, we really don't understand the concept of public
transit) is that most transit agencies have their own real-time apps.

Since I'm in the USA, I've almost never once taken a train or bus in my
life, which is sad given I've taken both in many places around the world.

>>>> Just like most people would pay the Mafia not to burn down their buildings.
>>> 
>>> I don't. But I have to pay my landlord for the rent and also for
>>> electricity, water and internet access. Are all these companies
>>> "Mafia"?
> 
> Are they disrupting the service they provide to you in order to extract
> more money from you?

I agree with you that my analogy was unfair, which you've aptly pointed
out, so I apologize to whomever it was (Arno?) for using that analogy.

But my point was paying the rent is completely different than paying for
OSMAnd+ when you can get OSMAnd~ for free, and, I've often said on this
very newsgroup that it's stupid to pay for OSMAnd+ even when what your goal
might be to reward the developers.

Why pay Google their percent if your real goal is rewarding the developers?
It's just stupid. 

IMHO, anyone paying for OSMAnd+ who says they're doing it to "reward the
developers" is not doing what they think they're doing since I'm sure there
are plenty of ways to reward the developers WITHOUT Google getting a cut.

HINT: Google === mafia 

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