Link to similar post: Lemfo16 - spam messages. Does anyone recognise the app symbol in attached pics?
Link to a solution: How to delete installed Apps on Android 10
This issue has popped up for other members and been addressed to some degree in the posts linked here.
I would like to include my recent experience here in the A11 Z40 discussion as it may be relevant to the spreadsheet of issues that could be addressed in a system update.
I work in a school where there is a peak period in the day for Snapchat posts. During this time my LOKMAT APPLLP 4 pro gets hammered with notifications. The icon associated with these is the same as the Gaofit one identified in the linked post.
I have never installed Snapchat on any device so do not have an account. My watch does not have Bluetooth or wifi on. The sim is active.
After a particularly heavy round of notifications, I read out loud the users that had messages on my phone. The nearest group of students responded asking how I had intercepted their messages. I informed them that it was just happening and asked them to help sort out why. Many offered topical suggestions from the recent media stories on cyber crime, but a few more focused individuals set about testing a couple of scenarios.
The most interesting test came when a couple noticed that their Bluetooth could see a device simply named WATCH. They were not paired to it but it presented awaiting connection. My watch could not see it as Bluetooth was not on. One student mentioned they had a cheap watch they had attempted to pair with their phone that identified using that name. (I will try to get a brand name in due course).
Another student asked how my watch would identify itself if it were being paired, none could see it and my Bluetooth was still turned off. A brave soul paired with WATCH and sent a Snapchat. A few of the phones including mine responded with a notification. The pairing was removed and another Snapchat sent. Only a few phones responded, but mine was one of them. The student with the phone that had the cheap watch turned off their phone; another student sent a Snapchat; only those with a connection to Snapchat received a notification. My watch didn’t.
Not for a moment do I purport to be a detective, but it would appear that something resident in my LOKMAT has responded to another Bluetooth wireless on another person’s phone that has been paired with an as yet unbranded watch. This ‘hunting’ connection appears to be the conduit for the spamming notifications.
I have since explored my watch and the settings associated with Bluetooth and discovered that a pink square with a red Bluetooth rune titled WATCH appears awaiting pairing when I turn on my Bluetooth. This is somewhat unnerving as I walked to the middle of a deserted football field just to see if I could locate who had this device. Surely it cannot be internal to my device?
There is a setting in the Bluetooth preferences titled ‘Nearby Share’. I have this turned off, but one of the lower settings mentions Bluetooth scanning will occur even if this is turned off. (Show notification can override the ‘off’ button.) This function appears to be associated with my Google account. (My wifi is turned off and no sim data is being used).
Can Gaofit access Bluetooth scanning even when I have Bluetooth turned off?
I will investigate further, but in the meantime, I wonder if this is worth adding to the spreadsheet as something to address in a system update.