Even if the contents aren’t sent over Google servers in the first place, there’s still information left about when the app receives a notifcation.

This kind of metadata is already quite useful for profiling purposes, since it creates a clear trail to follow.

The lead dev sold simplemobiletools to Zippo Apps (or whatever they’re called), a company known for buying apps and stuffing them full of ads, trackers and bullying people into buying subscriptions.

That news came a bit out of the blue, and while I understand why he sold it, the fact that he sold it to such a fuckface company that goes against everything his apps stood for is… yeah

The simplemobiletools apps are being forked by one of their bigger co-developers, so I’ll just use that as soon as it’s available.

Until then, as long as you got the build from F-Droid, there shouldn’t be anything to worry about.

What’s more disappointing now than ever is that Protonmail for Android still depends on Play Services/FCM for push notifications.

Recent news should be their cue to do something about that, and if they don’t… Idk, sour taste and all that

Signal does in fact distribute an APK that isn’t dependant on Play Services/FCM on their website. Uses a websocket, so not the most elegant way I guess, but oh well.

It’s rather hidden, which I think is disappointing. But it exists. Updates itself, too.