Where to download safe versions of older Android apps (apk)

[zoezydk]

I am increasingly tired of the newer versions of a particular Google app that is - amongst others - used for viewing 'small clips' of all kinds of content (***cough cough***).

So my intent is to install an older version of said app without all the nuisances that have been added to it throughout time.

With regard to the aforementioned, I have googled and found the following link with lots of suggestions and links to websites which offer downloads of those versions.

stackexchange /questions/14910/where-can-find-older-versions-of-apps

My question for one is if anyone here knows those sites/links and can vouch for them as being legit sites (as in no malware or other garbage in those downloadable apks).

For the other..., can people here recommend similar legit sites that one can trust and that they have been using before for the very same purpose without any issues?

I am looking forward to any input no matter big or small.

Thanks in advance.

 

[mustang7757]

https://www.apkmirror.com/

 

[B. Diddy]

I agree, that's the main site I trust since it's run by the people at Android Police. Be careful with any other apk site, since they may not vet files for malware.

 

[tube517]

https://www.apkmirror.com/

I have used this site for about 10-11 years. Very reliable and have never had any issues.

 

[hallux]

Just be aware that developers will often block old versions from their services. How far back they'll allow to work is anyone's guess but it's possible that the old versions won't work anymore...

 

[zoezydk]

Thanks to all four of you who took the time and effort to answer me.

Much appreciated.

I'll stick with the site that mustang7757 suggested in his reply. If you guys have had positive experiences over the years and can vouch for it, I got no problem downloading apps from there.

Hallux, your reply got me thinking. I'm on Android version 8.0.0 and my phone won't be upgraded by Samsung anymore to a newer version as it's from 2017. I'm not sure how far to go back either but the app obviously has to be able to work on versions before and up to my present version.

What would be the best way to proceed?

Just randomly trying out the app versions until I hit bullseye if the first one's don't work? Is there a way to unblock the services if it's going to be an issue?

 

[me just saying]

you can also contact the developer of the app. usually you can contact them through their app in the play store. usually it is below the description and reviews. always remember older versions of the apps may not be as secure as the newer ones.

 

[hallux]

@zoezydk - the challenge is that something that works today might not work tomorrow. The developer or website could decide that the version of their app at API level x is no longer current enough and flip the switch to block that version overnight. It would be a moving target...

 

[zoezydk]

@hallux

I see. That sounds as if there is no other way than trying each of those app versions out, starting from lowest to highest and in consecutive order to see what works.

One more question..., what about security holes in the older versions? Is there a way to see the details of possible patches in the app versions? Or do you guys just take that risk as a tradeoff when installing older apps?

 

[smvim]

Depending on the app in question and its corresponding online connection, you might be really pushing your luck by intentionally using a no longer supported version of that app. Simply because it may or may not still be fully functional, or even partially functional, there could possibly be some exploit or compromise involved. New app versions are not just about adding/removing/altering features or changes to the user interface, a lot of updates involve security and/or privacy fixes.
So just be judicious about what you're attempting to do. A lot of people tend to purposely avoid updates and such, but keep in mind there's also countless security and privacy breeches going on at an increasing pace. Yes, an update might introduce some change you don't like, or there are infrequent times when an update messes things up for the user, but one over-riding aspect you should always focus on with all your gadgetry is to make them safer to use online, not intentionally open them up to being exploited.

 

[zoezydk]

Depending on the app in question and its corresponding online connection, you might be really pushing your luck by intentionally using a no longer supported version of that app. Simply because it may or may not still be fully functional, or even partially functional, there could possibly be some exploit or compromise involved. New app versions are not just about adding/removing/altering features or changes to the user interface, a lot of updates involve security and/or privacy fixes.
So just be judicious about what you're attempting to do. A lot of people tend to purposely avoid updates and such, but keep in mind there's also countless security and privacy breeches going on at an increasing pace. Yes, an update might introduce some change you don't like, or there are infrequent times when an update messes things up for the user, but one over-riding aspect you should always focus on with all your gadgetry is to make them safer to use online, not intentionally open them up to being exploited.

@smvim Absolutely agree with you on the security issues and using older apps. That's why I posted my last response to @hallux and specifically asked about that aspect.

I am also painfully aware of the risks in outdated software and as a rule of thumb have throughout most of the time I owned Android phones and at least for the latest 90% of that period permanently used security apps such as antivirus and ie. Malwarebytes. In general, I am always keeping all of my devices - not only my phone - updated to the latest OS, firmware etc. and regularly check for safety issues.

However, the Google app in question has become close to a nuisance. For one it is introducing more and more features which are - directly - designed to harass and p*ss off the users as much as humanly possible and in the most patronizing and perfidious way in order to force them to pay for their sh*tty subscription for which they constantly display pop-up 'offers' time and again in the app although you already said 'NO' about fifty times before (if this wasn't designed to be harassment, they'd just register it in the settings the first time you said no and that would be it) while at the same time evading taxes in a majority of countries through offshore tax havens, shoveling in billions and billions in revenue because politicians have either been too lame a** to get into the game fast enough or were corrupt and in their pocket.

On top of that, what they announced a long time ago would be 'free forever' is now being - literally - turned into a garbage pipe for commercials and other junk. Latest 'feature' is that when using the app while on the move it stops playing in the middle of the clips 'asking you to confirm' with a 'yes' that you 'still want to use it'...!

And that's the reason for my question and considering older versions. I kind of had enough. If they want to play hardball, they can get hardball from users. I am not prepared to fold to greed - at any given time.

Apart from the above mentioned facts, I still am interested in hearing from people on the security issues and if someone knows how to handle it best with a minimum risk.

Thanks again for any input so far.

Highly appreciated.

 

[smvim]

Another option is to just stop using the Google app/service in question, at least if there's an alternative that's functionally the same. That's a pretty conditional matter since depending on just what it is, there might not be any other viable options. But if there's some feature about this Google app you can't do without, there are lot of things that sometimes we all just get addicted to but later find out are able to live without. For years I thought having my browser bookmarks, tabs, extensions, history being synced across multiple devices was a 'must-have' feature but now see that as more of a security/privacy loophole and don't rely upon it that much anymore.

 

[zoezydk]

@smvim Unfortunately, that's not an option since they basically (through their tactics of bait and switch, first giving away 'free' services and thereby forcing all their competitors out of the market or leaving them without a real chance, then when the time is right switching policies to coerce users into paying for their apps) hold a sort of monopoly in that area. I'd say the whole issue arose primarily due to the fact that Android is made by Google and thus, gives them full control of this neo-capitalistic blackmail with politicians or the responsible government institutions being either in their pocket, slow or don't fully understand yet how the system is rigged by companies such as Google. So far, I used to like Android vs. for instance Apple where everything is about overpriced, overhyped devices that cost 2-3 times as much as an Android (which is one of the reasons, that I always were and still am using Android). But now Google uses its dominance over the OS to shove their apps down Android users' throat with a forced price-tag that resembles usury apart from blackmail (much like what Apple has done for ages). The most effective way of countering that is implementing legal regulations and thus reigning in big tech. That's in the works but that won't help me right now. What's the alternative to Android then if you don't like nor want Apple instead? Symbian? Not really a household name yet and other players like Nokia are also not looking too attractive. Sure there are some 'alternatives' when it comes to video services but they are either not big enough or do not have the same kind of content. Thinking off the top of my head, Vimeo would be coming to mind as being similar, yet it's not the same. The problem is also that everybody knows Google and goes straight to their services to upload content there first and foremost. Without any real competition there isn't any thing such as a real alternative (and that's apparently what Google was trying to achieve all the time). Also, it's not like using a bookmark syncing tool (although I do understand what it is you are trying to say here) but a much more frequently used tool for leisure and fun.

As a note on the side, I was trying not to get too much and too deep into the background and my reasons for starting this thread but on the other hand, that has made us come full circle and back to the topic and my initial question. The fact remains that I am extremely tired of the present version of the app as well as the nuisances continuously built into it and am therefore seriously considering taking a chance and using an older version of said app.

So I'd still be delighted if anybody could let me know the trade-offs and possible security-risks involved when using an older app version.

Thanks once again to all of you for your input.

 

[hallux]

It seems your issue, in the case of the one video app (if it's the one I'm thinking of), is the tactics with that particular app. If you want to use that service, that's what you're stuck with and it has ZERO to do with Android as you would have the same concerns on iOS. Those are the terms of using that particular service.

 

[smvim]

Please state just which Google app is in question. Without a specific name, all our comments and suggestions are just vague, generalized opinions that only apply to the most common scenarios. We be living in a time where now a lot of people consider opinions to be facts and fact to be opinions, but any definitive comment that applies to every Google app/service may be valid, or may not be.

 

[B. Diddy]

I know it can be frustrating for a previously free service to require a paid subscription at some point, but bear in mind that these are companies, not charities, so as long as the services I'm paying for are useful and high quality, I personally don't begrudge a company for instituting a subscription fee (or for raising fees occasionally).

That being said, I would say that one of the tradeoffs to consider would be the hassle of trying to maintain that older app version, because it might always be recognized by the system as being outdated, and the Play Store may always prompt you to update it back to the current version.

It's always hard to know if there might be any security risks to using an older app version. For a Google app, I doubt there would be many security flaws at the app level -- those would be more on a system level, which is why monthly security patches and the big system version upgrades can be so important.

 

[zoezydk]

"It seems your issue, in the case of the one video app (if it's the one I'm thinking of), is the tactics with that particular app. If you want to use that service, that's what you're stuck with and it has ZERO to do with Android as you would have the same concerns on iOS. Those are the terms of using that particular service."

@hallux It might or might not work that way on iOS. I really don't know since I haven't tried it nor - as mentioned previously - use that platform at all but it is also irrelevant. As indicated in my last answer to @smvim I hinted that I never wanted to nor do I use Apple products due to the reasons mentioned. If it's the case that this behavior happens with the app on their devices as well (which I don't know) then that is just underpinning my previous reasoning which is, that there aren't any real alternatives to neither Android nor iOS and that Google intended to do this all the time (switch and bait). The dominance over the phone's OS - in this case Android - however, gives it another advantage and thus another possibility to coerce users even more (if it's this app today, it might be that app tomorrow and so on and so forth). The fact remains that it is a) a nuisance of an otherworldly dimension to coerce users by means of harassment to pay for a 'service' and b) their terms hadn't been like this since the dawn of times. IF it would be a service that had cost something from the beginning, then that would have been acceptable and a choice. But it's been free to use for ages and until recently, even without ads. If the logic of Google would have been, that it 'suddenly' had 'suffered' increased costs that it somehow (with its multi-billion dollar revenue achieved every single year through tax evasion maneuvers, then funnelled into offshore accounts in tax havens) 'wasn't able to pay', then it should have been able to offset those costs with the introduction of ads. And frankly, I do not believe the former to be true. I believe - like the majority - that this was a deliberate, long-term strategy of pushing out other competition and then turning on the screws, once those that seriously could have been alternatives all had folded.

Please note, that I am only giving the above answer as a sort of explanation to where I am coming from and did so to @smvim earlier because I somehow felt a need to explain myself and why his suggestions of quitting etc. weren't an option. The same goes for this answer. I was really reluctant to write the earlier explanation and am also reluctant to do it again now but hope, that that will at least give some the background for my wish to swap to an older version. As such I would like to ask anyone to please, just focus on the initial question and the security issues at hand as this wasn't intended to be the type of forum post that spirals into something else and starts some sort of pandemonium. I respect others' opinions but I got my own as well and all I really want to do is to find a solution to the questions, posted in this thread. This isn't meant to sound disrespectful or nasty. It's just why I started this thread.

Thanks for understanding.

 

[zoezydk]

Please state just which Google app is in question. Without a specific name, all our comments and suggestions are just vague, generalized opinions that only apply to the most common scenarios. We be living in a time where now a lot of people consider opinions to be facts and fact to be opinions, but any definitive comment that applies to every Google app/service may be valid, or may not be.

I'm haven't really been keen on mentioning it by name so far as I would hate to give Google some good 'ideas' in terms of the app nor their search algorithm an easy time and was hoping, that my hint at 'clips' and Vimeo as an alternative would have been sufficient to identify it. But to make things a bit easier and clearer..., it's the app that you use to tube with...

 

[zoezydk]

I know it can be frustrating for a previously free service to require a paid subscription at some point, but bear in mind that these are companies, not charities, so as long as the services I'm paying for are useful and high quality, I personally don't begrudge a company for instituting a subscription fee (or for raising fees occasionally).

That being said, I would say that one of the tradeoffs to consider would be the hassle of trying to maintain that older app version, because it might always be recognized by the system as being outdated, and the Play Store may always prompt you to update it back to the current version.

It's always hard to know if there might be any security risks to using an older app version. For a Google app, I doubt there would be many security flaws at the app level -- those would be more on a system level, which is why monthly security patches and the big system version upgrades can be so important.

@B. Diddy For a reply to your first paragraph, please see my last post and explanation about this subject to smvim. I don't agree with the concept of Google being a 'victim' or a 'poor' company here. You can easily Google the revenue and issues related to the same and find plenty of proof for that fact being real. It's been long ago that 'do no evil' was the company's true agenda. With all the new people coming in and going rogue in the most neo-capitalistic ways, you can even read that employees feel the squeeze to 'meet certain goals'. That's where this uncongenial attitude of harassing and coercing users stems from. It's not because that company 'suffers' issues with its revenue. Anyhow, let's just get back to the question and the advice and answers.

I agree that maintenance would be a bit of a burden and that the Play Store would ask to update the app time and again. I assume that I'd just have to either disable the app in some way to circumvent this issue or manually update every app in the Play Store in order to avoid the update requests. I guess that would fix that problem. Please advise if you have some comments or there are problems with this approach.

In terms of your comments on security risks, I am pretty confident since what you said actually makes good sense. The app itself is built pretty simple and basically only taps into the api to access the service. The other issues you mentioned are not so much of a concern to me as I always keep the OS and other security updated at all times and on top, run AV as well as antimalware.

My only concern is, that if I choose to uninstall the current version and then want to reinstall an older one, would there be any 'record' or something which would set a particular app version as a 'minimum'?

 

[hallux]

You do realize that, at its heart, Google is an advertising company, right? The instant the video service (we can all deduce which video app by Google you're referring to based on the description) was purchased by Google (that's right, that service/app was a Google acquisition not a homegrown app) ads embedded in videos should have been a foregone conclusion. Without ads in the videos, creators would not get monetized videos and the videos there wouldn't be nearly as entertaining. Google realizes not everyone wants to see the ads and offers the subscription to help offset the loss of ad revenue.

Would it be nice to have an option to dismiss the prompt to get you to sign up for the subscription at app launch and keep it gone? Sure.

If it's not the ads at issue but certain tactics of preventing certain content from being posted, understand that after January 6 companies are TERRIFIED that if similar activities are planned using their resources or platforms that they will be held responsible. Similar can be said about moderating information about other recent events in order to help prevent false statements from becoming widely distributed and then attributed to their platform.

Also consider the requirement to use the Google-supplied app a form of copyright protection. Some of the content available on the video app is more than "short videos" and is regulated by copyright. Allow 3rd-party access to the platform and it's opened to the content being pirated.