Apps GMAIL API - best way to automate emails from apps?

[DaftEejit]

Hi,
I'm developing a security app that will need to transmit GPS locations from handsets, without alerting the thief that emails with locations are being sent from the handset.

To this end I need silent email generation and posting, and was thinking about the GMAIL API for this.

I guess this could be either by setting up the app to use the users google credentials or to set up the app to use generic 'application' credentials. So the email would either come from them, or from an account set up just for the application...

Does this seem like a good way to perform the above, or are there better ways?

 

[HeavensSentSword]

Cant you just simply encrypt them? Like outlook uses a encryption file that can let you encrypt a email. So only the sender and the receiver can read it. Gmail probably has this function in the API.

 

[DaftEejit]

Hi, it was more the fact that I need the email to be produced and sent by a background process (silently and unbeknownst to the thief). If an email client pops up at all, and the thief spys it then the game is up

 

[HeavensSentSword]

But wouldn't any communication do that then? If I was looking to steal any information from a source I would just take everything and then shift though it latter.
You could try to send it via another app so that your app doesn't directly send it so if the thief is just listening in on your app he would just ignore the other app and would let the information slip by with out a second thought. So basically use your app to package a email then send it over to gmail to actually send it over the net.

 

[Deleted User]

It's possible to send an email programmatically without using the email client. I'm pretty sure I used the following guide, it basically sends an email in the background, without any user intervention. Which I guess is what you need -

http://www.jondev.net/articles/Sending_Emails_without_User_Intervention_(no_Intents)_in_Android

 

[HeavensSentSword]

@LV426, wow that is some pretty nifty stuff.
@DdaftEejit who or what is this "thief" by the way? Just wondering.

 

[Deleted User]

And the great thing about that code is that you can just lift it, as is, paste it straight into your project, and with a little tweaking of parameters, it just works.
Isn't the Internet great?

 

[DaftEejit]

@LV426, wow that is some pretty nifty stuff.
@DdaftEejit who or what is this "thief" by the way? Just wondering.

Just a thief ! Someone who nicks your handset

 

[DaftEejit]

It's possible to send an email programmatically without using the email client. I'm pretty sure I used the following guide, it basically sends an email in the background, without any user intervention. Which I guess is what you need -

http://www.jondev.net/articles/Sending_Emails_without_User_Intervention_(no_Intents)_in_Android

Fantastic resource link - thanks.

Next problem would be to encrypt the password so my app doesn't become a security risk for its users. (or for me if I use an email account created just for this application)

 

[DaftEejit]

But wouldn't any communication do that then? If I was looking to steal any information from a source I would just take everything and then shift though it latter.
You could try to send it via another app so that your app doesn't directly send it so if the thief is just listening in on your app he would just ignore the other app and would let the information slip by with out a second thought. So basically use your app to package a email then send it over to gmail to actually send it over the net.

I'm designing a system that secretly monitors location and use of a stolen handset, not one that protects the users data. In normal circumstances there will be no UI visible, but background processes will be running to achieve this.