5 ms·

Can't you already install arbitrary OS to most Android phones? See Cyanogenmod & company.

nextos 12y ago
Not really. Cyanogen is OK, but it's just Android. The hardware problems are still there: i) no drivers so GNU/Linux can't be ported ii) the baseband processor is usually badly isolated so it's easy to attack the device.
- gizmo686 12y ago
  If you can port Cyanogenmod, then don't you have a functioning Linux kernel that you can use to run any Linux based OS?
  - nextos 12y ago
    You do, this is Ubuntu Mobile strategy at the moment AFAIK. However, drivers in ARM platforms are very opaque. You rely upon the goodwill of the manufacturer to update them, and most of the time they don't. See how most devices get unsupported in Cyanogenmod after a while. And in any case, all the privacy concerns remain. It's a hardware issue. Android would be fine.
- mirimir 12y ago
  Best practice here is using a WiFi-only device with a separate cell modem. So you have hardware baseband isolation. See <https://blog.torproject.org/blog/mission-impossible-hardening-android-security-and-privacy> https://blog.torproject.org/blog/mission-impossible-hardenin....
  - j_s 12y ago
    working link: https://blog.torproject.org/blog/mission-impossible-hardening-android-security-and-privacy https://blog.torproject.org/blog/mission-impossible-hardenin...
    - coldpie 12y ago
      My 2nd ever comment on HN asked them to fix this. Still broken, almost 3 years later :) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4112327 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4112327
    - mirimir 12y ago
      Thanks. Didn't check. Will from now on. The <> format has worked before for me here. ???
  - pakled_engineer 12y ago
    Then you run into problems with WiFi such as it broadcasting all your preferred networks/tracking, and the sad state of proprietary WiFi drivers. Blackphone uses Kismet WiFi Manager to prevent MAC broadcasting and other issues https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.kismetwireless.android.smarterwifimanager&hl=en https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.kismetwire...
    - mirimir 12y ago
      That's true. But at least it's legal to spoof MAC.
olalonde 12y ago
Not unless you use a popular phone model since each phone needs to be individually ported. I just bought a Mi Note (http://s1.mi.com/m/product/minote/index.html http://s1.mi.com/m/product/minote/index.html) and am out of luck.
pakled_engineer 12y ago
For now you can install arbitrary custom Android builds on a few commercial devices until all the device bootloaders have Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) signing schemes preventing any user changes. Mobile devices are becoming increasingly more tightly sealed blackboxes not more open.

Not really. Cyanogen is OK, but it's just Android. The hardware problems are still there: i) no drivers so GNU/Linux can't be ported ii) the baseband processor is usually badly isolated so it's easy to attack the device.

gizmo686 12y ago
If you can port Cyanogenmod, then don't you have a functioning Linux kernel that you can use to run any Linux based OS?
- nextos 12y ago
  You do, this is Ubuntu Mobile strategy at the moment AFAIK. However, drivers in ARM platforms are very opaque. You rely upon the goodwill of the manufacturer to update them, and most of the time they don't. See how most devices get unsupported in Cyanogenmod after a while. And in any case, all the privacy concerns remain. It's a hardware issue. Android would be fine.
mirimir 12y ago
Best practice here is using a WiFi-only device with a separate cell modem. So you have hardware baseband isolation. See <https://blog.torproject.org/blog/mission-impossible-hardening-android-security-and-privacy> https://blog.torproject.org/blog/mission-impossible-hardenin....
- j_s 12y ago
  working link: https://blog.torproject.org/blog/mission-impossible-hardening-android-security-and-privacy https://blog.torproject.org/blog/mission-impossible-hardenin...
  - coldpie 12y ago
    My 2nd ever comment on HN asked them to fix this. Still broken, almost 3 years later :) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4112327 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4112327
  - mirimir 12y ago
    Thanks. Didn't check. Will from now on. The <> format has worked before for me here. ???
- pakled_engineer 12y ago
  Then you run into problems with WiFi such as it broadcasting all your preferred networks/tracking, and the sad state of proprietary WiFi drivers. Blackphone uses Kismet WiFi Manager to prevent MAC broadcasting and other issues https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.kismetwireless.android.smarterwifimanager&hl=en https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.kismetwire...
  - mirimir 12y ago
    That's true. But at least it's legal to spoof MAC.

olalonde 12y ago

Not unless you use a popular phone model since each phone needs to be individually ported. I just bought a Mi Note (http://s1.mi.com/m/product/minote/index.html http://s1.mi.com/m/product/minote/index.html) and am out of luck.

pakled_engineer 12y ago

For now you can install arbitrary custom Android builds on a few commercial devices until all the device bootloaders have Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) signing schemes preventing any user changes. Mobile devices are becoming increasingly more tightly sealed blackboxes not more open.