Guardify - Privacy Guard Android App

A comprehensive mobile security application that helps users audit installed apps, monitor permissions, detect background data usage, and identify potential privacy threats.

Features

V1.0 — Core Privacy Audit

1. User Authentication

Email/Password login and registration
Google Sign-In integration
Secure Firebase Authentication

2. Onboarding Flow

Permission explanation screen
SMS permission request for scam detection (optional)
App scanning permission (automatic on Android 11+)

3. Home Dashboard

Quick scan summary with risk counts
One-tap device scanning
Quick action buttons

4. App Audit

Real-time scanning of all installed applications
Permission analysis for each app
Risk classification (High / Medium / Low)
Search functionality to find specific apps
Filter by risk level

5. App Details

View all permissions for any app
Exodus Privacy API integration for tracker detection
Direct link to system settings to manage permissions
One-tap uninstall option

6. Settings

User profile display
Logout functionality

V1.1 — Background Monitoring & Audit Overhaul

1. Real Permission Scanning

Shows only permissions apps actually have (dangerous/user-granted), not auto-granted normal permissions
Eliminates misleading permission displays that could guide users in the wrong direction
Uses requestedPermissionsFlags + PROTECTION_DANGEROUS filtering instead of checkPermission()

2. Accurate Permission Labels

Replaced pattern-matching (contains()) with exact lookup maps for all 40+ Android permissions
Eliminates duplicate labels (e.g., Storage no longer appears twice)
Every permission has a unique, human-readable name and description

3. Background Usage Monitoring

Detects apps that access permissions and transmit data while running in the background
Tracks how long each app ran in the background and how much data it used
Generates alert messages: "Instagram used its Microphone access while in the background for 5 min, using 2.3 MB of data"
Energy-efficient 15-minute periodic scanning via WorkManager (respects Doze mode)
Uses UsageStatsManager for background state detection and NetworkStatsManager for per-app data usage

4. Alerts Page

Real-time alert feed showing background permission usage events
Unread alert count with visual indicators
Tap any alert to view the app's full permission details
Clear all alerts with confirmation dialog
Built-in test button to verify the detection pipeline works end-to-end

5. Background Detection Test

One-tap test button on the Alerts page
Downloads 1–10 MB of data over ~20 seconds via a foreground service
Proves the data usage detection pipeline works: minimize the app, wait for the download to finish, and see the alert appear
Handles all permission flows (Usage Stats, Notification permission on Android 13+)

6. Audit Category View

Toggle between "By App" and "By Category" views
Groups related permissions together (Camera + Video + Photo, Precise + Approximate Location, etc.)
Expandable permission groups showing which apps use each category
9 distinct permission categories with custom icons

V1.2 — Device Security, Breach Checker & App Integrity

1. Room Database Migration

Migrated all persistence from JSON/SharedPreferences to Room (SQLite)
6 tables: alerts, monitored_apps, scan_results, device_checks, breach_results, app_settings
Type-safe DAOs with coroutine support

2. Persistent Background Service

Always-on foreground service (START_STICKY) with 10-minute scan loop
Survives app close — auto-restarts via BootReceiver after reboot
Battery optimization exemption prompt for uninterrupted protection
WorkManager fallback if the service is killed by the OS

3. Monitor Tab

New bottom navigation tab showing all installed apps sorted by risk
Per-app enable/disable toggles for background monitoring
Bulk Enable All / Disable All controls
Service status indicator (running/stopped)
Search filtering across monitored apps

4. Realistic Scan Overhaul

Replaced fake animation with real parallel batch scanning (8 concurrent coroutines)
Live progress: "Scanning: Instagram (23/147)" with smooth animated progress bar
3-phase scan: discover apps → analyze permissions → cache to Room database
Auto-populates monitored apps table after scan

5. Device Security Check

8-point security audit scoring 0–100:
- Screen Lock (20pts), Biometric (15pts), Disk Encryption (15pts), OS Version (15pts)
- Developer Options OFF (10pts), USB Debugging OFF (10pts), Unknown Sources OFF (10pts)
- Guardify Protection ON (5pts)
Grade system: Excellent / Good / Fair / At Risk with color coding
Expandable checklist on Home screen with pass/fail per check
Results persisted to Room for history tracking

6. Email Breach Checker (HIBP)

Check any email against the Have I Been Pwned database
Shows breach count, severity (HIGH/MEDIUM/LOW), exposed data types
Individual breach cards with name, date, description, affected accounts
Auto-fills logged-in user's email from Firebase Auth
API key saved locally for convenience
Results cached in Room database

7. App Integrity Scanner

Per-app security analysis shown in App Detail screen:
- Debuggable — detects debug-mode APKs (CRITICAL)
- Cleartext Traffic — HTTP allowed, vulnerable to MITM (WARNING)
- Backup Extraction — data extractable via ADB (INFO)
- Test Build — dev builds on production device (CRITICAL)
- Install Source — sideloaded vs trusted store (WARNING)
- APK Signature — missing or multiple signing certs (CRITICAL)
Overall status badge: CLEAN / INFO / WARNINGS / ISSUES FOUND

8. New App Install Alerts

BroadcastReceiver detects PACKAGE_ADDED / PACKAGE_REPLACED
Instantly scans new app's permissions + integrity
Auto-adds to monitored apps (enabled if medium/high risk)
Sends heads-up notification with risk summary
Tap notification to view full app detail

Setup Instructions

Prerequisites

Android Studio (Arctic Fox or newer)
macOS, Windows, or Linux
JDK 11 or newer

Step 1: Open in Android Studio

Open Android Studio
Select File > Open
Navigate to the Guardify folder and open it
Wait for Gradle sync to complete

Step 2: Add your own google-services.json

IMPORTANT: You must provide your own app/google-services.json from Firebase Console. This file is excluded from the repository for security reasons.

Your Firebase project must have:

Package name: com.uow.guardify
Email/Password authentication enabled
Google Sign-In enabled (with SHA-1 fingerprint added)

Step 3: Add SHA-1 for Google Sign-In

Run this command in Terminal:

keytool -list -v -keystore ~/.android/debug.keystore -alias androiddebugkey -storepass android -keypass android

Copy the SHA-1 fingerprint and add it to: Firebase Console > Project Settings > Your App > Add Fingerprint

Step 4: Build and Run

Connect an Android device or start an emulator (API 26+)
Click Run
Grant permissions when prompted (Usage Stats access is required for background monitoring)

Project Structure

app/src/main/
├── java/com/uow/guardify/
│   ├── adapter/
│   │   ├── AlertAdapter.kt            # Alert list with unread indicators
│   │   ├── AppListAdapter.kt          # RecyclerView adapter for app list
│   │   ├── MonitoredAppAdapter.kt     # Per-app monitoring toggles
│   │   ├── PermissionAdapter.kt       # Adapter for permission list
│   │   ├── PermissionGroupAdapter.kt  # Expandable category groups
│   │   └── TrackerAdapter.kt          # Adapter for tracker list
│   ├── api/
│   │   ├── ExodusApiService.kt        # Exodus Privacy API interface
│   │   ├── HIBPApiService.kt          # Have I Been Pwned API v3
│   │   └── RetrofitClient.kt          # Retrofit singleton
│   ├── data/
│   │   ├── dao/                       # Room DAOs (Alert, MonitoredApp, ScanResult, etc.)
│   │   ├── entity/                    # Room entities (6 tables)
│   │   └── GuardifyDatabase.kt        # Room database singleton
│   ├── model/
│   │   ├── AppInfo.kt                 # App data model with risk calculation
│   │   ├── PermissionAlert.kt         # Background usage alert model
│   │   ├── PermissionGroup.kt         # Category grouping model
│   │   └── TrackerInfo.kt             # Tracker data models
│   ├── receiver/
│   │   ├── AppInstallReceiver.kt      # New app install detection + alerts
│   │   └── BootReceiver.kt            # Restart service on device reboot
│   ├── service/
│   │   ├── GuardifyMonitorService.kt  # Always-on foreground monitoring service
│   │   └── TestDataUsageService.kt    # Foreground service for detection test
│   ├── ui/
│   │   ├── home/HomeFragment.kt       # Dashboard + device security score
│   │   ├── audit/AuditFragment.kt     # App audit with By App / By Category toggle
│   │   ├── monitor/MonitorFragment.kt # Per-app monitoring toggles
│   │   ├── alerts/AlertsFragment.kt   # Background usage alerts
│   │   └── settings/SettingsFragment.kt
│   ├── util/
│   │   ├── AlertStorage.kt            # Room-backed alert persistence
│   │   ├── AppIntegrityChecker.kt     # Per-app security/tampering analysis
│   │   ├── AppScanner.kt              # Parallel batch app scanner
│   │   ├── BackgroundUsageMonitor.kt  # Core background detection engine
│   │   ├── BatteryOptimizationHelper.kt # Battery exemption utilities
│   │   ├── BreachChecker.kt           # HIBP email breach checker
│   │   ├── DataUsageHelper.kt         # Network stats helper
│   │   ├── DeviceSecurityChecker.kt   # 8-point device security audit
│   │   ├── PermissionHelper.kt        # Permission metadata (exact lookup maps)
│   │   ├── PreferencesManager.kt      # Room + SharedPreferences manager
│   │   └── TrackerRepository.kt       # Exodus API handler
│   ├── worker/
│   │   └── PermissionMonitorWorker.kt # WorkManager periodic fallback scanner
│   ├── LoginActivity.kt
│   ├── OnboardingActivity.kt
│   ├── SplashActivity.kt
│   ├── MainActivity.kt
│   ├── AppDetailActivity.kt
│   ├── BreachCheckerActivity.kt
│   └── ScanActivity.kt
└── res/
    ├── layout/
    ├── drawable/
    ├── values/
    └── menu/

Permissions Used

Permission	Purpose
`INTERNET`	Firebase auth & Exodus API
`ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE`	Check connectivity
`QUERY_ALL_PACKAGES`	List all installed apps
`PACKAGE_USAGE_STATS`	Detect background app activity & data usage
`FOREGROUND_SERVICE`	Persistent background monitoring service
`FOREGROUND_SERVICE_DATA_SYNC`	Android 14+ foreground service type
`FOREGROUND_SERVICE_SPECIAL_USE`	Security monitoring service type
`POST_NOTIFICATIONS`	Alert notifications (Android 13+)
`RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED`	Restart monitoring after device reboot
`WAKE_LOCK`	Keep CPU alive during background scans
`REQUEST_IGNORE_BATTERY_OPTIMIZATIONS`	Exempt from Doze for continuous protection
`READ_SMS` (optional)	Scan messages for scam links
`RECEIVE_SMS` (optional)	Monitor incoming messages

Risk Classification Logic

High Risk = (sensitivePermissions >= 3 && hasInternet && hasHighRiskPermission)
Medium Risk = (sensitivePermissions >= 2 && hasInternet) || sensitivePermissions >= 1
Low Risk = Everything else

// High Risk Permissions:
- READ_SMS, SEND_SMS
- READ_CALL_LOG
- ACCESS_BACKGROUND_LOCATION
- RECORD_AUDIO
- CAMERA

Exodus Privacy API

The app uses the Exodus Privacy API to detect trackers in apps.

Endpoints used:

GET /api/search/{package_name}/details — Get tracker report for an app
GET /api/trackers — Get all known trackers

Design

Dark theme design:

Background: #101922
Cards: #161E2C
Primary: #2B8CEE
High Risk: #EF4444
Medium Risk: #F59E0B
Low Risk: #10B981

Known Limitations

Cannot revoke permissions programmatically — Android security model requires user to manually manage permissions in Settings
Tracker detection requires internet — Exodus API must be reachable
SMS scanning — Requires explicit user permission and may trigger Play Store review
Usage Stats permission — Must be granted manually by the user in system settings
Background data stats — NetworkStatsManager may have a short delay before reporting recent usage

Future Enhancements

SMS scam detection with ML
Network traffic analysis
Security score history & trend graphs
Export PDF security reports
VPN-based network monitor

License

This source code is viewable for academic and portfolio purposes only. No copying, modification, or distribution is permitted without written permission. See LICENSE for details.

Author

Created for UOW Graduation Project

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
app		app
gradle		gradle
.gitignore		.gitignore
LICENSE		LICENSE
README.md		README.md
build.gradle.kts		build.gradle.kts
gradle.properties		gradle.properties
gradlew		gradlew
gradlew.bat		gradlew.bat
settings.gradle.kts		settings.gradle.kts

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