I’ve had a Galaxy S22+ for 2 years and still want to use it. When I look up how to maximize privacy on Android, many results say to install custom ROMs which I can’t since its a US model and the bootloader is locked. I just want to minimize tracking and sharing of personal information. I could use a firewall app like RethinkDNS to block trackers, but could I completely block tracking from Google and Samsung? Are there any lists of packages to uninstall to improve privacy? (I’ve used ADB to remove a bunch of bloatware. Ex: pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.samsung.android.arzone)
This project has a good starting list
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I’m currently using an S24 Ultra, I use the app Warden to get an insight on what apps are tracking and logging. I also use a free account at Tailscale to access my PiHole I have setup at home, I like it more than RethinkDNS because I get to add way more adlists.
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No, not entirely. You will need to connect to their domains to install Play System updates and monthly security patches respectively. And they can get information about your device that way (for example, the model). You can try signing out of Google but it’s going to be pointless because of Play Services being so deeply integrated.
Disable the Apps that you don´t use and can´t uninstall. Limit the Apps running in the background if you don´t need them.
Check almost every App for their telemetry and shared Data.
I think this along with using Good alternatives goes a long way and it is a very good privacy/security and usability balance.
(Disclaimer: I lost trust in Custom ROMs and I can´t recommend them in a good faith to anyone anymore).
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Nate from The New Oil has a great guide on mobile setups without doing a custom OS.
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