Only allow trusted IP connections

[SecUpwN]

Hey @xLaMbChOpSx, while analyzing our App I found AdMobGms and I wonder what we need this for? Can we remove it, please? I'd like AIMSICD to never ever show Ads or other invasive stuff.

I know I can trust you with the coding and really hope you won't implement unnecessary stuff. Please clarify on the above mentioned AdMobGms discovery.

[xLaMbChOpSx]

Hey @SecUpwN I totally agree that the app should be ad-free and as you have hopefully experienced that is the case. I have in no way incorporated any form of advertisement within any part of AIMSICD in any version.

My first thought off the top of my head is that the Admob method is part of the google play & maps libraries which power the Map Viewer components I will look into it tonight when I get home from work and provide more details.

Feel free to take a look through the source of you are still worried and you will find no references to any form of advertisement delivery.

[SecUpwN]

Thanks for elaborating on my discovery, @xLaMbChOpSx. Would be cool if you could trace down and fully remove the code of AdMobGms to avoid complaints from other people in the first place, too. :)

Please post a short update of where the AdMobGms library comes from and if you removed it.

[E3V3A]

@xLaMbChOpSx @SecUpwN
One great way to ensure we're not getting ads in our App, is to promote the use of a system hosts file, that essentially blocks all calls to IP's providing ads. Check out MOAB.

Another way, would be for us to implement some firewall or other app magic, that only allows our App to access certain IP addreses, like OpenCellID and Gmaps etc and block everything else.

[SecUpwN]

@E3V3A, thanks for recommending MOAB - I previously used MinMinGuard until he sadly cancelled his great project due to "ethical reasons". With saying that I want to keep AIMSICD completely free of Ads, I really meant to not even introduce the smallest bit of code into it that would enable Ads to be shown.

I really like what you said earlier, @E3V3A: Our App should be as independent as possible and function without noise from outside - meaning, that it shouldn't communicate with other Apps or Internet sources until explicitly being advised to do so. Maybe @xLaMbChOpSx can add to these thoughts?

[SecUpwN]

@xLaMbChOpSx, I now you've got much on your plate. But can you implement this in the long run?

Another way, would be for us to implement some firewall or other app magic, that only allows our App to access certain IP addreses, like OpenCellID and Gmaps etc and block everything else.

That way, users would not have to download and keep updating some sort of hosts file but rather AIMSICD would already bring this with itself and thus only connect to trusted IP addresses. Thank you ahead!

[andr3jx]

@SecUpwN It is not hard to check which servers AIMSICD uses to communicate. Only because AdMob is implemented in the library, doesn't mean that it is used. Which servers AIMSICD uses is transparent in the code. I can verify later if something is send to google (except data for the map viewer), but we need to focus for now on the core functions.

[SecUpwN]

@andr3jx, I know that this Issue is quite old, but still open. Let me ask on how to proceed here: Is the AdMob library still present in the current code? I know we don't use any Google Services anymore, but coming back to my initial question: Should we add some sort of "protection" that no other IPs other than the ones officially allowed can be contacted by our App? On the other hand I know very well that our project shall not provide a general internet connection firewall for the whole phone. This Issue was solely meant for our App. What do you think about this, @E3V3A? Good idea or shall I rather close this Issue?

[E3V3A]

Yes, please close this. I think there are tons of firewall like apps out there. We should not get involved in that.