Huawei Mate 30 loses Google apps workaround as researcher exposes 'backdoor'

[steven36]

Likely the smoking gun the US gov was waiting for

 

Huawei's Mate 30 can no longer access Google Play - even unofficially

 

IT'S BAD NEWS for those of you who were eyeing-up Huawei's Mate 30 flagship, as it's once again unable to install Google Play Services - even unofficially.

 

While, hardware-wise, the Mate 30 is arguably Huawei's most exciting smartphone to date, it's also its first handset to launch without access to Google apps after the firm failed to secure an exemption to the US ban that prevents it from launching devices with Google Play certification. 

 

To make matters worse, Huawei confirmed at the launch that it wouldn't be unlocking the Mate 30's bootloader, which would have allowed users to sideload Google Play.

 

Last week, however, a shady Chinese app called 'LZPlay' offered a glimmer of hope for Mate 30 users by enabling them to sideload Google Play onto the device without unlocking the bootloader or rooting the device. 

 

This, unsurprisingly, rang alarm bells among the security company, and John Wu, one of Android's leading security researchers and the creator of Magisk, has dug deeper into how the third-party app was able to install Google apps on the Huawei Mate 30.

 

Wu perhaps uncovered more than he had bargained for; he found that LZPlay hooks into a set of undocumented Huawei APIs hidden in the Mate 30's software, acting as a sort of "backdoor" that allows non-system apps access to elevated permissions and privileges.

 

What's more, in news that likely has the US government rubbing its hands together in glee, Wu's research claims that in order to use these undocumented permissions, the anonymous developer of LZPlay would need to have received certification from Huawei.

 

"At this point, it is pretty obvious that Huawei is well aware of this 'LZPlay app, and explicitly allows its existence," Wu claims. "The developer of this app has to somehow be aware of these undocumented APIs, sign the legal agreements, go through several stages of reviews, and eventually have the app signed by Huawei.

 

"The sole purpose of the app is to install Google Services on a non-licensed device, and it sounds very sketchy to me."

 

Since Wu published his findings, LZPlay has been taken down. Curiously, Mate 30 phones that used the workaround to install Google Play now fail Google's SafetyNet tests, which essentially labels the devices as compromised and insecure and blocks the use of services like Google Pay.

 

Huawei has yet to respond to our request for comment, but we'll update this article as we hear more.

 

Source

[zanderthunder]

Plus, with the nature of the news, Huawei can push an OTA update to block instances of LZplay installation.

 

Until now, lets hope that this nonsensical "trade war" between US and China over Huawei products ends.

[steven36]

1 hour ago, Edward Raja said:

Until now, lets hope that this nonsensical "trade war" between US and China over Huawei products ends.

I wish  that would solve it but it want ,  the trade war don't really have anything to do with it.  Because One Plus  is still sold in  the USA  So is a lot of stuff from China  . They been  after Huawei  every since Cisco sued them in 2003. Its more to do with them selling Routers in the USA before than Smartphones .

How Huawei became America’s tech enemy No. 1

https://qz.com/1627149/huaweis-journey-to-becoming-us-tech-enemy-no-1/

 

It's just now getting heated up .

 

 

[zanderthunder]

This Huawei fiasco shoudn't be created in the first place, if America can lower their egos and de-list Huawei from trade list ban.

[steven36]

2 hours ago, Edward Raja said:

This Huawei fiasco shoudn't be created in the first place, if America can lower their egos and de-list Huawei from trade list ban.

The Trade War was coming  with or with out the powers that be , The USA   was wanting block China  back in 2001 and i knew it was going to happen one day too.

 

Quote

China hawks contend that America should have blocked China’s entry into the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 2001.

https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2019/09/26/the-trade-war-did-not-start-with-president-donald-trump

 

If it would happened to begin with we would still have all our lost Jobs to China  in the USA .  Only Thing  was they waited tell it was too late now they will just move them some were else overseas  So the problem will still exist,, they need to  ban businesses in the USA from setting up shop out of the USA  or they can leave the USA  and put there office were ever they make there products at and see how good it sells when there in Huawei's or ZTE's shoes  but  idiots up in D.C signed trade deals with them so stuff was made over seas and across the border instead. Businesses in the USA that make there stuff overseas just take  our money and never create jobs they ride on the USA name and Trade agreements they the lowest of the low.

 

It's not just China that's the problem.  I went to a  meeting about China taking our jobs at my work back in like 2004  and the Government done nothing about it and it closed down.  I didn't like the Government  then and i don't like them now . All they did for us is cause problems.

[zanderthunder]

There's another workaround to install GMS on Huawei Mate 30, but this only meant for Pro series at the moment.

 

Unfortunately, the linked thread created by forumer "zhangyang_haha" in XDA Developers (here) no longer has the downloadable resources which are deleted due to copyright issue from the author (forumer under the name "hesonglin"). The author instead asking those who interested to join a QQ group that discuss this new workaround.

 

However, the method continues to remain operative in its concept, presuming if you get your hands on the downloadable resources.

 

But I'll be sharing an excerpt from this news from XDA Developers:

Quote

 

The ability to run Google apps is a big deal for many, so people will perennially be interested in sideloading Google Apps on such capable hardware. XDA Senior Member zhangyang_haha has figured out a different workaround, one that essentially involves restoring a backup image from a device that managed to install Google apps using Google Services Assistant from back when the method worked. Also, note that the method appears to be specific to the Huawei Mate 30 Pro as the backed-up image is from that device — we were unable to confirm if the same could work on the Huawei Mate 30 or the Honor 9X Pro.

 

While this method is not as simple as installing Google Services Assistant and letting it do everything, it still works — with the caveat that SafetyNet will continue to fail since that is a server-side change from Google.

1. Users need to back up their files to HiSuite on a PC and factory reset their phones.
2. Install the Google apps provided in the downloadable zip in the thread.
3. Unzip the provided backup image zip to your HiSuite backup folder on the PC.
4. Restore the backup to your device, ensuring that you also restore the “system settings” from the backup image to your phone.
5. Once the provided backup has been “restored” (aka installed) on your phone, you need to restart your device.
6. Next, ensure that you get into App Settings and clear all data for the Google apps that you installed, and grant all the permissions that those apps request.
7. Reboot for good measure.
8. Launch the Google Play Store while having an active internet connection on your phone.

The thread is not immediately clear on when you can restore your previous data. Most users will be using the method on new Huawei Mate 30 devices, so data loss should not be significant. Do note that SafetyNet will still fail and will likely continue to fail until the political situation improves. For now, if you are looking to install Google Apps on your new device, this new workaround is your best bet.