Android is the most used operating system in the whole world, with billions of people using its functions constantly, and the freedom it offers is an important element for many of those who use it.
This freedom, but also the possibility of modifying Android in any way and shape, was the basis of the FBI's decision to deceive the underworld to whom it sold a phone produced under the Anom brand, with a modified version of the operating system .
Android is offered open source by Google, and the FBI modified it to make spying extremely easy, even if for the average user the phone seemed to be designed to offer advanced security functions.
The Android phones that the FBi sold under the name Anom included a special application that promised to offer encrypted communications, it being hidden in the Calendar application, but this was also done by the federal agency, all communications being monitored.
The Android phone that was sold by the FBI to the Underworld
Android was the operating system chosen by the FBI because it could do anything the federal agency wanted, the phones including a special function that allowed the complete deletion of data from the lock screen, something that was not to the liking of the authorities.
FBi chose Google Pixel 3A and 4A phones for sale to the underworld that was willing to buy them, so it was not about making a special phone for this operation, but only about modifying some existing ones.
Android had its name changed to Arcane OS, and the Google Play Store disappeared from phones along with the options to activate GPS, or other functions designed to allow the location of phones from a distance in any way.
The FBI made calls that at first glance seemed to be completely safe, but on the basis of which they managed to gather evidence against some people involved in organized crime in the USA, even if some managed to completely erase their phones.
Android still remains an operating system that can provide security for those who really want it, but what the FBI did also shows us that people can be tricked into giving up their data without knowing what is happening.
