Phone back from repair? Check it in five minutes

Short answer

Before you start

Note the dates: when you handed the phone in and when you got it back. Applore shows when each app was installed, so those dates let you tell a new app from an old one.

The five-minute check with Applore

Each flagged app shows a level: Known monitoring app High Worth a look Not flagged. The levels describe how strong the warning signs are, not what the app has done.

If you saved a snapshot first (Pro)

Phone back check is part of Applore Pro. Before you hand the phone over, you save a snapshot of its apps and settings. When it is back, you tap Check my phone and Applore lists what changed, most serious first:

• new, removed, replaced, updated or reinstalled apps, and whether a new app came from an app store;
• an app that was given accessibility access, notification access or device admin rights;
• a different keyboard;
• a removed screen lock;
• developer options or USB debugging turned on.

The snapshot and the comparison stay on your phone. Only take a new snapshot while the phone is in your hands. Phone back check.

Before the next repair

• Back up photos, contacts and anything else you want to keep. Repairs can end in a reset.
• Save a snapshot in Phone back check (Pro) just before you hand the phone in.
• Ask about a repair or maintenance mode. Some phone makers offer one that hides your data during a repair. Check your phone maker’s help pages.
• Set a temporary PIN for the shop and change it back afterwards.
• Lock what is private with App Lock, so banking, messages and photos stay behind your PIN even while the phone is unlocked. App Lock.

Common problems

Applore flagged an app that came with the phone

Apps installed by the phone maker’s firmware are treated like store installs, so most are not flagged. If one is, read the explanation: a carrier or region app with broad access is common. If you recognise it, mark it as trusted with your PIN.

I cannot find a settings screen Safety Check mentions

Phone makers rename and move screens. Open Settings and use its search bar for the words Applore shows, such as “Accessibility” or “Device admin apps”.

The check found nothing

A Not flagged result means no match with the known list and not enough warning signs. It is a good sign, not proof. A changed PIN and a look through Safety Check cover most of what a check cannot see.

What stays private

The check runs on the phone. The threat list is downloaded and compared on the device; findings, your trust list and any snapshot stay there. The list of installed apps is not sent to analytics or advertisers. Data and privacy.

Next steps

• For loans, shared homes and lost phones, read someone had your phone: what to check.
• Read how to check an Android phone for spyware and stalkerware for the full set of checks, and what Applore will and won’t do.