I wonder if this is the same functionality some carriers use to install their management app on your phone. For example, I've recently bought a second hand Samsung tablet.
I've reset it to factory settings and put in a Vodafone SIM. The next time I looked though the installed apps I saw some Vodafone Services app that I didn't install. It couldn't be removed either.
So clearly, either Google with play services or the carrier over the baseband modem can install apps without user consent.
Is there any way this can be avoided? Do open ROMs like carbonROM or LineageOS protect against this?
> The next time I looked though the installed apps I saw some Vodafone Services app that I didn't install. It couldn't be removed either
Are you sure that's an actual Android App and not just the SIM Application Toolkit[0]? On iOS these show up under the Carrier menu in Settings but on Android it shows them as if they were an app, even though it's something running on your SIM card (they are backwards compatible and show up way back on old feature phones).
That's a very good point! I removed the SIM and the app was gone again. So I guess you're right, it may be installed on the SIM and not actually the device.
I've reset it to factory settings and put in a Vodafone SIM. The next time I looked though the installed apps I saw some Vodafone Services app that I didn't install. It couldn't be removed either.
So clearly, either Google with play services or the carrier over the baseband modem can install apps without user consent.
Is there any way this can be avoided? Do open ROMs like carbonROM or LineageOS protect against this?