Way to disable SIM card app?

[Callistus]

The SIM card app from my new carrier just took my phone out of sleep, in the middle of the night, and planted an offer dialog (with two big buttons: ACCEPT/CANCEL), right thru my lock screen, quite dimly. It wouldn't go back to sleep before I hit the CANCEL button. This also happened on my daughter's iPhone, and ended up draining her battery until the morning.

Hadn't I noticed that, I could end up buying some service I didn't want, by accidentally touching the ACCEPT button.

I digged deeper into that and realized that the SIM Card app has all imaginable Android privileges. How come something like that happens?

There's no way to disable the app (disable button in app mgmt is grayed out).

The carrier is VIVO (Brazil). Any advice is welcome.

 

[SiempreTuna]

If you're on 4.3 there's a new hidden app that lets you control privileges - that might help (there's a thread about it here).

Assuming you're not on 4.3, I think your only option would be to root and delete the app. I'm afraid details of how to do that are way beyond me, however if you go to the forum for your phone model, you should find lots of information.

Not sure what your daughter could do with an iPhone - think she may be stuffed

 

[mikedt]

It might be something the carrier is doing with their SIM. Seems to bypass all phone privileges, overrides it all just plonks a big advert right in the middle of the screen. I had one doing it occasionally...China Unicom

 

[Callistus]

It might be something the carrier is doing with their SIM. Seems to bypass all phone privileges, overrides it all just plonks a big advert right in the middle of the screen. I had one doing it occasionally...China Unicom

Here's the list of privileges the goddamn SIMcard app is granted:

I wish I could work it around without rooting. I'd rather keep my GS3 (GT-I9300, retail, 4.1.2) a sandbox as it is.

BTW thanks SiempreTuna and mikedt.