Android permissions

Question

For start I must say that I´m new to Android.

I´m a Msc Student and for my Msc thesis I've to develop a system that collects all user inputs on the touchscreen, regardless of the applications that are being used, and it must be done in background.

The objective is to use that data to establish a user profile and then apply an algorithm that continuously compare the new inputs with that old ones to grant the legitimate user authentication.

In other words I've to develop a touchlogger, but not for malicious purposes.

My question is: Are the initial permissions, that a user accepts in the installation process, enough to allow my app to collect the touch inputs from other applications, or it will be blocked because of the sandbox?

Note: The system is to be used for a regular person in a regular device, so rooting the device must not be an option.

Thanks for your help.

Best Regards

Answer 1

This is not possible, especially in newer versions of Android.

This is because even though there are system overlays allow you to display things like chat heads over any other app, you cannot capture touch events and pass them down to the app below. So even if you manage to capture the events, you will end up rendering the device useless, as nothing below your layover will work.