Replacement Android Launchers and Safety / Privacy

[GSTGuy]

Are there any concerns with privacy and malware regarding the aftermarket Android launchers? I know I have trust issues and all that, so bear with me if you're snickering already and that 10,000,000+ downloads should tell me there's nothing wrong with them.

I love HTC Sense, but I'm tired of the "Loading" screen popping up of late when exiting certain applications and the launcher having to reload. Are things like GO Launcher and ADW and LauncherPro and Zeam, etc, safe for free use? I'm especially curious of the GO Launcher devs, as they seem to have a lot of quality products, yet all of them are free as well as ad free (bonus). How do they make money? Are they giving these things away through the goodness of their veiled hearts?

I enjoyed using GO Launcher and GO SMS for a day or so until I scared myself into uninstalling it... Am I right to worry about the safety and privacy of information on my phone or am I just being paranoid?

[KeiCar]

Paranoid.


I've used the big 2, ADW & Go Launcher, never an issue, they work great. I've used Trebuchet on my tablet and it was limited in features so I would stay away from that.

I don't know how the "Go" products are all free, I think they make other paid products and get their revenue that way.

[DenCo]

While it's a valid concern, I don't really think there's any need to be paranoid about it. I've experimented a bit with different launchers and I just applied the usual caveat emptor to the whole thing.

As long as one is careful as to what they download, they typically will not run into any big problems. So do your homework on the app itself, and on who the developper is, etc. If the launcher in question gets great reviews, good feedback, and was develloped by a well-known dev with a good reputation, I wouldn't worry too much. Also, if anything doesn't seem right, stop using it and uninstall...

- Posted from my Motorola XOOM using Tapatalk -

[Jesse]

Don't worry.

[silver_slayer]

dont worry about it....been running free launchers since my OG droid days (over 2 years ago) with no issues what so ever.
pretty much, as long as it is from the official google play (market) store, you will be good....every once in a while there will be some malware that slips through (usually tucked into some really crappy "hot chicks" or "anime wallpapers" app. but it usually gets yanked pretty quickly.

[Jesse]

google is pretty good about detecting and removing malicious apps from the store. in one instance, they even remotely wiped an app from everyone's phone because it was nasty. So, that's the downside to having an open market, but I still prefer it to a closed system like Apple or MS because there is the potential for much more variety.