Develop Bugs

Track lost phone with GPS?

I know that Android based phones have applications where you can track your phone through GPS software should it ever get lost. Is there such an application for our phones? I'd hate to lose my phone that has GPS capability and not be able to find it. And the thought of losing it and someone else finding it, hack it, and use it for their own personal use would be very more irritating.
And I know that the Motorola CLIQ even has the capability to erase all your stored information on the phone should you lose it to prevent someone from hacking into the phone and retrieving your sensitive information. Again, is there any software for our phones also?

Im Packing said:
I know that Android based phones have applications where you can track your phone through GPS software should it ever get lost. Is there such an application for our phones? I'd hate to lose my phone that has GPS capability and not be able to find it. And the thought of losing it and someone else finding it, hack it, and use it for their own personal use would be very more irritating.
And I know that the Motorola CLIQ even has the capability to erase all your stored information on the phone should you lose it to prevent someone from hacking into the phone and retrieving your sensitive information. Again, is there any software for our phones also?
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Sprite Terminator:
http://store.spritesoftware.com/?page_id=280

Search the forum, there are already two threads on this subject:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=479257
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=469415&highlight=anti+theft

i personally prefer remotetracker.
i lost my phone b4. n it works fine. i able to track bak my phone.

[email protected] said:
Search the forum, there are already two threads on this subject:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=479257
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=469415&highlight=anti+theft
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Click to collapse
I always do use the "Search" function, but even with sifting through posts I didn't come across the two you listed. Thank you. Maybe I'm trying to be too technical with my searches...

Free web services (and Beta), with "Find" and "Erase" functions, among others:
www.flexilis.com
www.mobiwee.com

I just tried the Maspware GuardsMobile and ended up locking my phone up. It recommended disabling balloon pop-ups and a soft-restart. I allowed that then it gave me errors loading some related tracking.exe file. I tried to enter the default pin and it didn't work. Gave me 3 attempts. After the 3rd attempt the phone was locked! Searched around and came up with nothing. There's not even a guide explaining what happens.
So now I'm forced to reflash the phone and restore my PIM. I do not recommend this program for anyone with cooked ROMs.
I'm going to now play with Ultimate Theft Alert.

Can't find any command lines for Ultimate Theft Alert V35. I don't think I really like it a whole lot as some of the others...think I'll try my luck at Maspware GuardMobile again.

Ok, reinstalled GuardMobile. Activated it (fingers crossed). It recommended disabling the SMS bubbles again and a soft-reset. I let it and amazingly my phone didnt lock up this time when entering the demo password "1234".
I feel much more comfortable trialing this program than Ultimate Theft Alert as they list the commands on their website, and you don't get ANY commands list until you've purchased UTA. So without having any commands to trial the program I will not be purchasing UTA.
Time to play around with MaspWare GuardMobile now...

Ok, just tried to exit GuardMobile and I got the freaking error again!
"An unexpected error has occurred in GuardMobile_TS.exe.
Select Quit and them restart this program, or select Details for more information.
Luckily this time I didn't leave it active while testing. Reset phone and it works. But everytime I try and test the locate or monitor it fails to send SMS. Then I exit the program and it crashes. I'm going to uninstall and forget this program...AGAIN!

Sprite Terminator seems to work so far. Only exception is that I can't use the "Alternate GPS" It doesn't give me a lock on my position and comes up with all ZEROS. Going to keep playing with this.

Had you tried any of the web services I've posted?
They both work fine for me. And they are both free (at least, for now, at Beta stage...).

there's a program called WIMP, i havent tried it yet though

Sprite Terminator works, BUT when it intercepts the SMS code it doesn't text back.
vmiguel said:
Had you tried any of the web services I've posted?
They both work fine for me. And they are both free (at least, for now, at Beta stage...).
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Haven't tried them...yet, but I've already downloaded the programs and thank you for the suggestions.
moukun said:
there's a program called WIMP, i havent tried it yet though
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Wimp didn't work receiving SMS codes.

Do any of these programs have a "explode and burn the face off the thief who stole my phone" option?

illmurs said:
Do any of these programs have a "explode and burn the face off the thief who stole my phone" option?
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Only in the professional edition.

illmurs said:
Do any of these programs have a "explode and burn the face off the thief who stole my phone" option?
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Well, Flexilis have a "Scream" command, that will make the phone starts playing a rather anoying horn sound, for 30 seconds.
Handy to find a lost device, at least. And to get some atention on a stolen one, but the thief can just turn it off...

Kaspersky Mobile Security 8
Looks like no one has mentioned or tried this software yet.
I've already tried the 1 month trial version and then purchased a 1 year plan which I believe is worth every penny.
It's an anti virus, anti spam, sms and phone blocker and phone locater.
link:
http://www.kaspersky.com/kaspersky_mobile_security?thru=reseller=kmssidebanner3
Features:
Block access to contacts, photos or files on your phone if it is lost or stolen
Get the GPS location of a lost or stolen phone
Encrypt sensitive personal and business data
Remotely wipe your smartphone if necessary
Block unwanted calls and SMSs
Cybercrime and your smartphone
Stop cybercriminals hijacking your smartphone to make money
Block the sending of data to third parties
Prevent corruption of personal data
Hope this helps!

jpijper said:
Only in the professional edition.
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vmiguel said:
Well, Flexilis have a "Scream" command, that will make the phone starts playing a rather anoying horn sound, for 30 seconds.
Handy to find a lost device, at least. And to get some atention on a stolen one, but the thief can just turn it off...
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Click to collapse
Hmm might be at least a bit useful like you say - maybe a password to turn off sound will be better?

Well, they are in Beta, so accepting ideas and feature requests... why don't you send them an e-mail?
I'm going to give kaspersky a run, it sounds good.

EVO insecure?

This is not troll baiting or OS Slamming...
Looking for knowledgeable and constructive feedback regarding device security. I'm thinking in terms of an Executive or VP or Network Admin or such loosing the device. a piece of software
1) to do more to control access than a squiggly line
2) to allow for remote GPS tracking and/or device data wiping
3) that is stealthy and/or hard to remove.
I know there are a few "security services" out there but that leads me into "how do i know whose who and who can be trusted in the android segment". I place a great deal of trust in the developer of my ROM. That he/she/they are benevolent and not including by intent or negligence loggers or other malware. then i have a companies like Wave and Norton and Good all angling to get installed on my device. i don't know Wave nor Good and I have no luv for Norton.
The EVO allows for RDC and VNC sessions. It allows for VPN access and has the pwd's to my personal and work email. meebo has me signed into all my chat networks. As a long time Windows person I guess it's just a lil disconcerting when i stop and think on it. this device can easily be configured to hold everything needed to access a secured network. Perhaps this is a reflection on my lack of understanding the system in depth. perhaps i'm not sure how well the opensource community will communicate "problem" apps and developers.
Also, and kinda sorta related. Applications in the marketplace. sometimes you get an application and the types of security access it is asking for seems a bit "off". occasionally in the comments the developer may comment that "i need to access X in order to provide Z". It usually makes sense (whether true or not i cannot say), but is there any nice cross-reference of what types of actions require what access level. or why so many apps need to know the phone state and identity or general location or full network access and what exactly that means to me as the end user. this second paragraph is proving difficult to put to paper..i may come back and edit for clarity.
and lastly, i guess is a question on how to protect from apps like this...
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2010/060210-android-rootkit-is-just-a.html?page=1
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/security/commercial-spying-app-for-android-devices-released/4900

If the app seems fishy don't download it you can allways get lookout from the market it will pull your phone up on the gps and tell you exactly where it is I've tested you can also make it chirp real loud as for them accessing your phone put the pattern lock on in stead most thiefs are not hackers so they probably won't be able to access your phone even if you hard reset you still have to draw the pattern I mean unless they full root the phone and wipe it in petty sure you will be ok hope that helped
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

Lookout kinda falls into the same category at Good or Wave. (at least to me thus far). All appear to be fine and yet somehow free products. I'm looking for a corporate solution, not end user solution. a free solution would be swell, so long as trust can be established.
i am looking at this from a corporate IT security perspective. not a young person, a enthusiast nor regular end user. heck, if I could get all of my users to actually know what is meant by "if the app seems fishy don't use it", most of my job would be completed. but to be honest, i'm still trying to get a grasp on that myself in the android world, hence the question about access levels in last paragraph of original post.
the zigzag is nifty and should protect from casual access. Froyo will provide an interface that a secured Exchange server would prefer to have. that will help.
( BTW ... if anyone knows how to make the red line not appear when you mess up the pattern lock...you'd be my personal hero for the day)
its not thieves that I'm worried about...it's my own end users that have to be protected from themselves. if a device was left in a bar or cab and did end up in the wrong hands....data could be sold, deals could be lost, people could be embarrassed, with the type of data that 'can very easily' exist on these devices...network security itself can be compromised. and sadly, i must assume that a good many end users will disable security if they are able to. for the same reason they ***** at automatic screenlocks on their desktop/laptop computers.
would you rather your IT team "hope/pray/expect the device will be picked up by some incompetent/benign/lawabiding citizen" or the opposite?
i choose to prepare for the worst...hope for the best. not the other way around. hence, my questions.

Isn't remote wipe being built into froyo somehow? Thought I read that somewhere.
I have my exchange email set up on my device and it requires me to use a passcode. I cannot disable it.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

As for wiping data remotely wave secure will do that it might be close to what you need or something for the time being hopefully this will help
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

This is kinda sorta what I'm lookn for.
http://www.downloadsquad.com/2010/06/28/understanding-the-android-market-security-system/

Custom rom/mod to block CelleBrite UFED from accessing any info from EVO

http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/34/3458.asp
http://www.cellebrite.com/forensic-products/ufed-physical-pro.html
regardless of my reasons behind this this makes all phones inherently tappable if stolen etc or from other corporate espionage attempts
this is a serious flaw and i would like to see if its possible for you custom rom bakers to cook us up some protection
if they want my info they should subpoena my records from sprint or Google not be able to brute force into any and every phone with a device
i and many other would be more then happy to donate for such a solution especially if it wasn't dependent upon only 1 rom
seen this but doesn't yet support the evo
http://www.whispersys.com/whispercore.html

+1 to this for my hd2 too please! or just android

I'll throw in
We should start a Kickstarter for this or something. Either way, count me in to contribute $150+

I could foresee a specific app that launches when plugged into a computer.
If the phone fails to receive user authorization or is plugged into a blacklisted device (say, CelleBrite UFED), then the phone is locked down/wiped.
And/or spoof information, a fake system dump.

tropicalbrit said:
I could foresee a specific app that launches when plugged into a computer.
If the phone fails to receive user authorization or is plugged into a blacklisted device (say, CelleBrite UFED), then the phone is locked down/wiped.
And/or spoof information, a fake system dump.
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excellent thinking glad im not the only paranoid one at this point

or make it so ur phone gives it a virus or borks the device somehow

{ParanoiA} said:
or make it so ur phone gives it a virus or borks the device somehow
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Wouldn't want to screw up the device, they ain't cheap. A bit too aggressive

Bumping for continued interest.

im not sure if the fulldisk encryption option in android negates this or not but i believe with ICS if u have full disk encryption enabled should negate what this can do correct me if im wrong

spyngamerman said:
im not sure if the fulldisk encryption option in android negates this or not but i believe with ICS if u have full disk encryption enabled should negate what this can do correct me if im wrong
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Only if you can manage to power off your device before the cops take it from you. Otherwise, the data partition is already mounted, and they can suck it down into their UFED via the ADB interface.
A question, though: if you have USB debugging disabled, then ADB isn't available over USB, so could the UFED still access your data? The cops would need to turn on USB debugging, wouldn't they? And if you have a pattern/passcode lock, they wouldn't be able to get into the settings to do it.
Anyway, encrypting your data partition and powering off your phone before the cops get to it is the safest option. Use a really long passphrase, though, because they could still grab an image of your encrypted data partition and take it to a lab where they could try to brute-force the passphrase.

whitslack said:
Only if you can manage to power off your device before the cops take it from you. Otherwise, the data partition is already mounted, and they can suck it down into their UFED via the ADB interface.
A question, though: if you have USB debugging disabled, then ADB isn't available over USB, so could the UFED still access your data? The cops would need to turn on USB debugging, wouldn't they? And if you have a pattern/passcode lock, they wouldn't be able to get into the settings to do it.
Anyway, encrypting your data partition and powering off your phone before the cops get to it is the safest option. Use a really long passphrase, though, because they could still grab an image of your encrypted data partition and take it to a lab where they could try to brute-force the passphrase.
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yes good points
the simplest method i find to protect against this is use Full disc encryption for starters
then use cryptfs to set a long ass password for preboot and keep a short pin for lockscreen that's reasonable and have a nice shortcut for immediate poweroff on lockscreen if concerned about this and then powering off is easy/fast
and ofc keep usb debugging off unless needed
if your really adventurous you can also use yubikey key second slot for partial password for the preboot if you have a microsd adapter for it and your device supports it preboot via OTG etc as input
then
type in a brainpassyouknow+yubikeyslot2
and its 2 factor auth and secure as **** long ass random password combining something you know and something you have

I'm also interested in this project

Let me tell you a little story about a guy (me) who was sitting in a car while his girlfriend was working when an officer approached. I wasn't doing anything wrong but due to a little misfortune I had nowhere I could go and stay so I had to just sit in the car until she was done working. The cop came to the car and asked me what I was doing and why I was sitting in the car on my laptop in a public garage. I told him I had nowhere to go and I was waiting on my girl. I noticed his hand placed on his weapon and I realized very quickly this was not going to be a casual encounter. he asked me to step out of the vehicle and I asked him why. Now I know normally you shouldn't question an officer but something seamed very off about this gentleman. It was when I locked the doors that things started to escelate and my anxiety went through the roof. I told the officer that I did not feel safe with him holding his weapon to me when I had done absolutly nothing wrong. He just became aggitated like a guy on steroids and called in some other officers. Well things wasn't looking good for me but I decided to try and use my phone camera as some added protection so I wouldn't get shot for absolutlly no reason at all. Well the cops did back off, but this is where things got really crazy. a few minutes later, and it couldn't have been more than 5 minutes, my phone went to some screen like when you have emergency dialing only. I tried calling my girlfriends job but nothing worked at all. I got scared so I dialed 911...NOTHING!!! These guys basically turned my phone into a paperweight. I couldn't do anything with it. I didn't know what to do so I called out the window to a crowd of people and told them to call 911 for me. I then noticed the officers leaving in their vehicles and I got out and ran to my girlfriends job where I stayed until she got off of work.
Now in all of this there is two main points that I really feel are extreme issues. One is how is it legal for anyone, even an officer of the law, to take away your ability to use emergency services?? And second why do they need this software that basically can give them an opening to do whatever they want to you without you being able to protect yourself. Law enforcement is becoming more and more alarming to me with all the technology that they have at their disposal. I say if they want to be able to have surveillance on us 24/7 I believe we should get the same respect. We cannot stand by and have our basic human rights violated like this!!!!

[Q] Is our information really secure from theft?

If you are like me, you should have all your favorite apps, documents, pictures etc. stored right on your phone that basically gives a full picture of who you are as an individual. You also have been pretty satisfied with the pattern, pin number, password or face unlock or all of these together as a security you have in place to prevent unauthorized access. But here is something that happened by accident that led me down this thought process. While trying to yank out the phone from my pocket while driving (which when you are getting a phone call especially becomes the most impossible task), I noticed that the phone "Power Down", "Restart", "Airplane Mode" pop up was on. This is on top of my regular swipe to unlock with pin number lock screen. This made me curious and noticed that the back button will work to close this pop up and also the power button works to reactivate this pop up. I hope everyone is with me till here. What surprised me was that the phone will actually turn off or restart from this point without the need for an unlock code. This means anyone with rooting and backup knowledge can steal my phone, restart my phone into recovery and wipe it to make the phone their own or just create a backup (CWM) and through that access my personal information. I know that photos and documents stored on the external card is open unless encrypted. But I hoped the internal data would be secure.
What do you guys think about this? Is there any app that would prevent access to the phone while locked via hard keys? What do you do to keep your information safe?

TL;DR version
If phone is stolen and person has knowledge of android they can factory reset your phone, even if you have a password setup. If they enter recovery they can wipe data and factory reset your phone and now it is usable for them.
My theory if you have your phone rooted I wish there was a way to lock the recovery with a password. Unfortunately ODIN will always be available able to get back to stock. Cerberus is a great app to have full control of phone if stolen FYI

DesperateScorpion151 said:
What do you guys think about this? Is there any app that would prevent access to the phone while locked via hard keys? What do you do to keep your information safe?
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As soon as I realize it is missing I would activate the wipe feature in this software.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lookout&hl=en
If I have your phone in my possession I guarantee I can hack it regardless of any security measure you make take, so the best solution is to be able to wipe it remotely.

technically even a remote wipe is not enough if the thief is knowledgeable. I accidentally wiped flashing in Odin with nand erase checkd and recovered everything that was on it using this
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1994705 so your never completely safe

Exactly my point like everyone else confirms it here. We have advanced so much to a point that even a 9 year old (not that 9 is too young to know computer basics) who is familiar with basics on rooting after reading through forums after forums can get away with stealing a smart phone now a days. At this point the only way I could think of protecting my data (first priority) and then track my phone is if the tracker is incorporated into the boot loader or recovery itself on top of what ever software you have installed in the OS. So if the thief tries to unlock my phone after a restart, the installed software should take care of the rest but If he/she is smart enough to go via boot loader or recovery then the incorporated tracker can do its thing. Anything of that sort exists?

Did you forget you could just pull the battery to get into recovery?

Why do you need to pull the battery?

Aerowinder said:
Why do you need to pull the battery?
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You don't, but its easier than going through all of the steps OP posted.

I really doubt my data is worth anything. Pictures of my cats aren't exactly hot commodities and I don't store anything on my phone that I wouldn't publicly reveal, anyway.
I wouldn't be worried about my worthless information, just annoyed I was dumb enough to let it get stolen. Yeah, I know that basically anyone with half a brain can wipe a phone and re-sell it - it always amazes me when people think that thieves aren't smart enough to do that.
I'm cynical. Saves a lot of worry since I just expect the worst, I guess.

They get into your email where it may be more info to compromise.
Sent from my SGH-T999 using xda app-developers app

I would be less worried about the minute possibility of a phone thief targeting your personal information than I would be about your personal data being mined from your phone by numerous applications.
Bottom line is, if you use Google or Facebook, you personal information is already in the hands of giant corporations who will never be held accountable for the theft of your personal info.
Take Facebook for example - within the app, the only time it should ever ping your location is if you are using FB chat and have the location setting enabled. However, even when you disable location within FB chat, every single time you open Facebook it uses your GPS to get your location. Every time.
In addition, although you are unable to see it in action because there is no notification icon for it, I would bet a million bucks it's also pulling your network location if your GPS is off.
Facebook is constantly working in the background - even if you never opened it.
Google? I won't even begin to try and explain the amount of data they are collecting from you. As is T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon, ATT, etc. every single second that your phone is on with data enabled.
Should we be concerned with some random thief who knows the ins and outs of Android pulling your data? Sure, we should think about it. But the reality is, if you own a smart phone your information is already out there in the hands of companies who will use it to any end they can in order to turn a profit. Period.

ButWhile I see the pros and cons of different parts involved in using social networks and so forth, one thing we can (at least for now) be certain of is that they won't use your credit card information etc. to make illegal purchases and so forth. I know of a person who routinely used the credit card app to check balance, pay bill etc. and next thing he was getting phone calls to see if the purchases made at a casino in Spain are OK?! This is without ever losing the phone!!. So, it could be worse in the case of phone loss. Sure, personal data, pictures and even email to some extent is not as bothersome to me as identity theft. Thank to some anti-fraud features of the banks etc. one can deny and simply not be associated with that activity (of course in legitamate cases). My friend ended up getting another card with different number and they closed the online banking account. He had to re-register all over with another id. So, it can be a big hassle. I heard of cases where people had to hire lawyers and run around courts to prove their innocence due to identity theft. Of course if you keep a picture of your driving licence on the phone, you are really asking for it so... (trust me, one girl was doing this because she didn't want to carry her purse/wallet on night outs)
Having said that, I am always worried if the roms we download here in XDA have trojans or backdoors built into kernels and system files... I know that it is like doubting even the good devs but how do we know for sure? Unless you are really an in-depth expert and figure out all the details such as processes and ports that are open and so forth, how do you really know? The phone's data icons keep pinging back and forth every now and then and at times I wonder what's being sent and what is it receiving... just sync'ing contacts...or...??
Call me paranoid but, after what happened to my friend, and similar stories, I am a bit skeptical about the security and integrity of the ROMs in the first place... Now, mostly I download and try different roms and settle on one that suits my preferences. I use the phone for calls as well as to make general tasks easier in many aspects except financial transactions. In short, I don't trust my smart phones.
For those of you wondering what Google is tracking, (not by any means the only place to look) login to your gmail account and look around different settings. You'll see web history, phone data to name a few..

[Cellcrypt App] -Encrypts Voice Calls and SMS

Just curious if there are any fellow Note 3 users of this app: Cellcrypt
And if so, what your thoughts are on it? This is the first that I've seen with voice encryption.
It seems pretty legit, but it's interesting how there's an office in the state of Virginia.
Just thinking outside of the box: If I was one of the three letter gov @GenTcies and wanted to create a platform to lure in those who's wanting secure communication, wouldn't it be proactive to create or have your hands in with a company who develops these kind of things?
I just have a trust issue with big companies and the you know who's being so nosy. Heck, I don't even trust our carriers...
So the big question is, for those who need secure communication (encrypted) what would be the best way to go?
Cellcrypt uses your data pipeline.

Your common sense already gave you the answer to your question. It may be nice encryption for general privacy but the big 3 letter gov agencies will surely have access to anything you say. If you don't believe it then try the men in black litmus test. Say something naughty that you know people dare not say and see if men in black show up to greet you
Knowing all this I still sometimes use redphone and textsecure.

Granted, using a VPN with Cellcrypt or RedPhone would make it a heck of a lot harder for intruders.
The only way I see it possible for anyone (carrier and them) to get anything from you is obviously from the carrier themselves being in bed with "them," to sell themselves out upon their request. (Logs etc...) However, with your phone connecting to the tower and the data being encrypted along with a vpn (already encrypted data within a vpn encrypted tunnel), I'm still having a hard time comprehending how the data can be cracked? We're talking some serious encryption that would even take super computers thousands++++ of years to even 'not even make a dent.'
Looking at it from a birds eye view:
Phone -> VPN -> Cellcrypt or RedPhone App -> Encrypted Data -> Tower -> VPN exit server -> Encrypted Data -> www/sms/voip
The only point of interception is the companies themselves..ie..Cellcrypt / RedPhone etc...
But, even then how would they be able to crack the encryption? (Probably because they hold the encryption keys?)
It would be interesting to get some insight on all this from the fellow members who are well versed in this stuff....
:good:
the-Mike_D said:
Your common sense already gave you the answer to your question. It may be nice encryption for general privacy but the big 3 letter gov agencies will surely have access to anything you say. If you don't believe it then try the men in black litmus test. Say something naughty that you know people dare not say and see if men in black show up to greet you
Knowing all this I still sometimes use redphone and textsecure.
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