Infinix reportedly serving ads on their devices' lockscreen

Smartphones
#1

Someone shared with me that they have been received ads on their new Infinix S2 Pro.
The ad looks like this:

IMG-20170523-WA0001.jpg607×1080 52.1 KB

Following up on the issue, he let me know that he’s been getting the ad about three times a day and so far he’s only gotten ads on the Zero 4.

The ad comes when “magazine lockscreen” is enabled and lasts until you unlock/relock your device.

We must agree that the ad is not that intrusive but this is not ethical seeing that the phone was not bought on offer or anything like that. He paid full price for it.

BLU an OEM based in the US launched the BLU R1 HD, device that was serving ads from Amazon on the lockscreen.
However, their device was being sold at a subsidized price, unlike Infinix’s approach.

What do you guys think?

UPDATE: Clicking on the ad redirects to this broken link http://www.infinixmobility.com/smartphone/zero-4/

#2

More likely the lock screen app is the one displaying the ad. The big question is whether that app is OEM or bundled with the handset.

Either way it is an ethically questionable move if the user hasn’t given explicit consent.

#3

I agree. If you paid full price for a device - not promotional, not an offer, not part of an advertising campaign or giveaway - but FULL PRICE then this is completely unethical, intrusive or not. If it’s an app, then can simply be removed after answering the question of who installed it - user or it came bundled.

If it came bundled and activates by default - or after learning your usage patterns - then the manufacturer has some explaining to do.

#4

This is not an app. It is the default lockscreen that comes pre-installed on the device. If you have used an Infinix device running XUI, you know that it comes with the magazine lockscreen enabled by default and this is where the ads are showing up.

#5

It is the default lockscreen. Just as you have on your S7 Edge. With the Infinix lockscreen, you have an option to enable “magazine lockscreen” which changes your wallpaper randomly and displays random quotes each time you unlock your device.

Infinix is now using this avenue to display ads and not just displaying wallpapers like it was.

#6

Seems that you are right, I saw a post on the Infinix forums claiming lock screen ads are a recently added feature.

It’s an epic fail for both consumer privacy and UX.

2 Likes
#7

I talked to Infinix concerning the matter. They insist that they don’t show ads. But agree that they do “feature” their products on the lockscreen.
Full article coming up.

#8

This is why I must root every phone I buy. I would block the shit out of those ads even if they are being pushed by a stock app. Manufacturers are not always ethical so we gotta have a last line of defense. What better way to gain full command of your phone than having root permissions?

#9

Oh, I forgot to update you guys on the article, here it is:

#10

Recently had to use an unrooted phone. It was such a shock!! I had forgotten how bad the ads are on mobile. Ended up using the opensource dns66 app to kill ads. Works pretty well if you are unable to root your phone or are unwilling to.

2 Likes
#11

That is a horror story to me. I’m telling you if I can’t root my phone I’d rather sell it and get one that will. More than a quarter of everything I do to my phones need me to be rooted.

#12

I’m always fascinated by you. Even with all the changes to Android, you still find the need to root?

1 Like
#13

Yea, I have to root because Android is a sweet operating system but the cream and cherry on top of that cake is (rightfully) considered a security risk by Google but I must have it. I don’t have to play within the boundaries of what is considered safe because that’s for the majority of users who would be stranded if anything were to go wrong. That’s not me.

Google knows people root their phones and they even to some extent support it being a member of the Open Handset Alliance. They clearly let people know the risks involved like some apps not working et cetera and that’s as far as they go. Giving you that information is enough to them because you’ll have nobody to blame for mishaps but yourself because you assume any risk if you choose to root.

#14

In the neighbourhood that’s what they call kupelekwa kama fala. Infinix wouldn’t attempt something like that in Europe or the States.

2 Likes
#15

Ok, I should rephrase my questions.

With proper explanation, give five reason why you root your devices

#16

The real question you should be asking is what am I missing by not rooting my phone? There are so many reasons why I root but here are 5 for you…

  1. Removing bloatware
    Yeah, bloatware is still a thing. Phone companies still put useless apps into the system partition where you cannot remove them by uninstalling. Some even don’t allow you to disable them in settings. In this case, rooting is the quickest way to remove those pesky apps.

  2. Build.prop editing
    You probably know what the build.prop file is but I’ll elaborate for anyone who doesn’t. It is a simple text document located in the system partition of any Android phone and it contains numerous settings that dictate how your phone operates. The phone reads this file every time at boot to know what is supported by the phone and what to activate or deactivate in the operating system. There are too many settings in the file for me to even begin to mention here. I edit the build.prop in any phone I root because it usually contains some generic settings that are not ideal for the phone. This is usually the case for ported operating systems (copied from another phone and made to work for yours.) Most importantly, I edit the build.prop to add important settings that weren’t included. This topic is too wide so I’ll leave it there.

  3. Vital (IMO) apps that need root to work
    There are numerous apps that require elevated privileges to work because they need to change files that only the operating system is allowed to change. Heck, even the OS is not allowed to change some files. But with root permission, you can change EVERYTHING because root privilege supercedes all users. Anyways, some of the apps I can’t live without include:

Servicely: it enables you to stop any service from running including system services. You can also select specific activities to block from running. Apps often rely on several activities to do their thing, for instance, many apps that serve ads have an activity dedicated to fetching ads. Servicely lists all activities of an app and you can disable some of them and leave others on. This enables you to keep using the app without the offending behavior. For instance the lockscreen that Infinix uses to show ads can be tamed using this app. I gave details about this app because it can solve the problem on the thread topic.

A few other root apps I need include: kernel adiutor, naptime, and SD Maid.

  1. Changing libraries
    Hardware components in the phone use libraries which determine their operating parameters. Sometimes you may need to change the libraries to get better performance from your hardware. For instance, you could change camera libs to eliminate shutter lag caused by your stock libraries. You could also change audio libs to get better sound quality than the stock audio libs. That’s what audio DSP (digital signal processor) apps like Dolby Atmos do.

  2. Converting system apps to user apps and vice-versa
    I usually do this to install downloaded apps into the system partition. This is because system apps enjoy certain benefits that downloaded apps don’t. For example, the operating system does not kill system apps in low memory conditions. It goes for user apps first.

I also convert system apps to user apps to make space in the system partition for my own apps. Since the system partition is created at the factory, the manufacturer gives it just enough space for their system apps. If you want to put yours in there, you must remove some of theirs to make room.

1 Like
#17

Xposed framework is enough to warrant rooting your phone. You can mod most aspects of the OS (and apps) once Xposed is installed. What a wonderful little framework.

#18

Xposed Framework doesn’t need root

#19

As good as systemless root sounds, I hate the fact that you lose root access everytime you restart your phone.

Flashing the zip file is a one time deal that can only be undone by a major OS update.

#20

Something else must be making you to lose root during boot, not the fact that you have systemless root. Is your bootloader unlocked? Systemless root must patch your boot image to make the rooting permanent. If your bootloader is locked, rooting can only be temporary because the bootloader will overwrite any changes that the rooting process did.