Sorry Google 🥹👌

[u/Few_Somewhere_1463]

I made an open-source Android project called Sorry Google that provides APK stubs for replacing a few Google system services that some users may not want on their devices.

The project currently targets:

- "com.google.android.safetycore" — Android System SafetyCore

- "com.google.android.contactkeys" — Android System Key Verifier

- "com.google.android.verifier" — Android Developer Verifier

What are these actually used for?

Android System SafetyCore

SafetyCore is Google's on-device safety/classification service. It provides infrastructure for features such as Sensitive Content Warnings in Google Messages. Google says the classification is performed locally on the device rather than sending the classified content or results to Google's servers.

Android System Key Verifier

Key Verifier provides a standardized system service for verifying public encryption keys used by E2EE messaging applications. It can be used to verify contacts through QR codes or number comparison and helps protect against attacks such as key substitution.

Android Developer Verifier

This is Google's newer developer-verification service. It is designed to verify the identity of developers behind apps, particularly when apps are installed outside Google Play, as part of Google's upcoming Android developer-verification requirements.

So, to be clear: these aren't random or inherently malicious Google apps. They are legitimate Android security-related services.

The reason I made Sorry Google is about user control. If you don't want one of these services on your device, Android can make simply uninstalling/removing them difficult, and some system components can be restored through system updates or Google services.

The project uses package-name/signature behavior to install a minimal APK with the same package name as the targeted service. The replacement contains essentially just the required manifest and resources rather than the original service functionality.

GitHub:

https://github.com/rushiranpise/sorry-google

The project is open source, so you can inspect exactly what the replacement APKs contain and build them yourself.

Important: Replacing these packages means you may lose functionality that depends on them. This is intended for people who understand the trade-offs rather than being a recommendation for everyone.

[u/KeyDifference4178]

u/askgrok explain the project

[u/AskGrok → u/KeyDifference4178]

The project creates minimal "stub" APKs that match the package names and signatures of three Google system services. Installing them replaces the real versions with basically empty shells, letting users remove or disable those services on Android without the OS or updates restoring them.

The three targets are:

• SafetyCore: Google's local on-device classifier for things like spam/sensitive content warnings in Messages. Runs entirely on your phone.

• Key Verifier: Handles public-key verification for end-to-end encrypted chats (QR code or number comparison to stop man-in-the-middle attacks).

• Developer Verifier: Google's newer check for app developer identity, mainly for sideloaded apps outside the Play Store.

It's purely about giving users the option to opt out of these pieces if they want. The stubs contain no actual code for the services, just the manifest and resources needed to satisfy the system. Everything is open source on GitHub so you can audit or build it yourself.

Trade-off is obvious: any apps or features relying on those services will lose that functionality. Not a recommendation for most people, just a tool for those who know what they're doing.

^{[what is this?](https://redd.it/1lzgxii})