Even though some illegal or banned android apps on may be well-designed applications made by scrupulous developers to help satisfy your needs, some of them don’t usually comply with Google Play Store’s laid out guidelines and policies. This is something that may seriously compromise the safety of your information and even the overall safety of the device that you rely on to access the Google Play Store. This is why Google Play Store sets out guidelines, policies, and restrictions that guide the use of its platform by the apps.
Its is important to note that some of the illegal/banned android apps on Google Play Store now, sometimes used to be the best apps in the Google Play Store. Some of the reasons why certain apps may be banned in Google could be engaging in illegal activity or policy violation. Now, dealing with them without regarding the imposed by Google may pose a serious threat to both your personal information or your device may even get damaged as a result of using them. So if you are still going to use them anyway, it is a risk that you will be taking!
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Disclaimer
- Please note that we do not endorse or recommend that you use any of the following banned android apps we are about to review because they are categorized as illegal for some reasons. These apps pose potential risks to your personal information that is sent or immediately available on your device. Kindly note that this article is solely created and written for the sole purposes of raising awareness of illegal apps and the related risks of using the apps.
- Please note that we will not be held responsible and liable for any legal issues that you might face out of using any of banned android apps highlighted here on this article.
- Kindly note that we are not in any way affiliated with nor related with any of the app here or even their developers.
- Using any of the apps reviewed here pose direct threat and risks than can potentially cause harm or even stealing of information about the users. If you do wish to still use the apps here, you will be doing so at your own risk.
- We will not provide any source or any information as to where you can get the apps, we strongly advise against using these apps.
Here are the 25 best illegal/banned Android Apps List that is not on Google Play Store 2022
1. SHOWBOX
It is a very impressive app that is jammed packed with lots of amazing content, but you won’t find it on the Google Play Store. It packs a very large library of movies and TV shows that users can view free of charge. Even though it is not readily available on the Play store platform, it remains one of the most popular online streaming applications you will find online. Many users like if for the obvious reasons; offering free content and also it’s amazing easy to use user interface. Another app similar to ShowBox is Coto Movies.
Here are some features of the app:
- It doesn’t have any annoying adverts.
- You don’t have to sign up to use the app or gain access to its content.
- It supports high-quality high definition images.
- There are subtitles available for enhanced user experience.
- Users have the option of filtering movies as per the genre, year and rating.
- It has a user-friendly interface.
- There is an option for the user to download movies to later watching.
- An extensive library of movies and TV shows that are constantly updated.
2. GROWBOX
This app is developed by the same developer who designed ClockWorkMod recovery for Android, a major recover app frequently used by many users out there. Well, this app can be synchronized with ShowBox to help a user cast a movie or TV show that is being watched on Chromecast that is connected to a PC. Users, however, have to install the AllCast app from the Google Play Store for GrowBox to work.
It is a great app that you can use with ShowBox that lets users watch whatever they would watch on any device display that is connected to a Chromecast.
Features of GROWBOX:
- Works in synchronization with ShowBox allowing you to watch TV shows or movies shown on Chromecast.
- An impressive and easy to use user interface (UI).
- It is available for use free of charge; you don’t have to pay anything.
3. LiveNetTV
This is yet another banned app in the Google Play Store platform. It is a general-purpose entertainment application that has got a multitude of entertainment offering to choose from. It currently hosts over 700 live channels, movies, and TV shows. It also offers live sporting action as well as popular programs broadcast from over eight countries. It is interesting to note that the service is free and is easy to use even for beginner app users.
Features of LiveNetTV:
- VOD for popular movies.
- HD live TV streaming support.
- Chromecast support.
- Over 750 live channels from different categories and genres.
- All the videos available of the app are offered free of charge.
- Easy to use interface.
- Filter for channels feature is available allowing the user to easily filter the channels and only get what they like to watch.
4. Terrarium TV
This is another illegal movie streaming app that enables you to easily watch the latest entertainment from the big media houses. The good thing with it is that you get to watch right on your mobile device as long as you have an internet connection regardless of your location. You don’t have to pay any subscription fee to enjoy this service from the app. Users don’t have to create an account to start enjoying amazing content that is available on the app’s platform. Also, check out our list of movie apps to watch free movies on Android.
You will enjoy the latest TV shows and released movies in HD that are uploaded on the platform as soon as they are released. The app is designed to support Android-based devices but can also be used on devices that use other operating systems by using an Emulator.
Terrarium TV app features:
- There is downloading available for the content on the platform. These can be downloaded to either an internal or external storage space.
- There is a large library of 4K and HD movies.
- There are multiple language subtitles.
- There is an option for bookmarking your favorite movies.
- There is support for Chromecast, fire stick, and fire TV.
5. Secret SMS Replicator
This creepy spyware app works best for users who are keen on spying on other people. It is an app that can be installed on the target victim with their knowledge and then left to run in the background. It can be activated remotely by without the owner of the phone is aware of this.
This application works by forwarding all the incoming messages of the target victim to the user’s phone number. It is because of this spying activity that it was reported to Google then later it was banned from the Google Play Store platform.
Secret SMS Replicator features:
- It is a premium app that must be paid for to function.
- It only runs on Android-powered smartphones.
- To de-activate it, the users have to send a text ‘ooo’ which then will promptly bring a secret control panel to operate it.
6. Sarahah Messaging App
This was a popular messaging app in play store that was introduced way back in 2016. Its popularity grew with many users thanks to user’s ability to send many messages anonymously. This app allowed users to be able to send messages yet the recipients of those messages could not trace the senders. While this feature was the one that made the app so popular, it is the same one that led to its downfall.
In just 2 years of the app’s debut, it was ultimately banned from Google Play Store obviously for Google’s policy violation.
Sarahah Messaging App features:
- Private messaging for friends around the world.
- Designed for Android-powered devices.
- Download and use for free.
- Minimal interface.
- Connection to snap chat.
- Size on the device is 12.0 MB.
- Publisher- Sarahah.
- Minimum software requirement Android 4.4 and higher versions.
7. Royal Likes – Unlimited Instagram Likes
This app is popular amongst users of Instagram, a popular social media site that allows users to post or share memorable photos. Instagram has become popular for business-minded people who are keen on capitalizing on the massive numbers of followers there. Now, Royal Likes is an app that is designed in such a way a user can use it to gain more Instagram likes and followers.
It works on a model where the user has to earn coins and also complete certain tasks to get more followers and likes. It is however considered an illegal Android app and therefore it is officially banned in Google Play Store.
Royal Likes Features:
- Coins have to be earned with tasks completed for you to get more followers.
- Log in to your Instagram account is required for you to access the app.
8. NewPipe
It is an open-source YouTube app with an interface that looks somewhat like YouTube. It can be downloaded independently without relying on Google Play Store services. It works by collecting YouTube websites URLs and then making them available for the user on the interface.
You can use NewPipe to download videos from YouTube with complete privacy. When it is successfully installed on your device you can stream music in the background even if you are using it on another action.
NewPipe Features:
- It runs without Google play.
- There is an option for the user to change the quality of the video.
- It is easy to download video and audio at varied resolutions.
- You can play video in the background.
- It doesn’t take much disk space on your tablet or smartphone.
- There is a possibility of playing video as pop-up box multitasking.
9. VidMate
This app that lets you to easily download videos from the internet is not available in Google Play Store for obvious reasons. If you need to download it, you have to visit its official website to access it. It features a faster download speed than most other video download apps available online. This allows you to easily download videos quickly from the internet with it. The best part about this app is that once you download it, you get to enjoy its offerings free of charge for as long as it remains installed on your device.
VidMate features:
- In-Built browser support.
- Multiple simultaneous downloads.
- Lesser ads.
- A large collection of Hollywood and Bollywood TV shows and movies.
- A user-friendly interface.
- Users can filter movies by genre, rating, year, and type.
- There is download support for video downloads from Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook.
10. Tube Mate
Tube Mate is a leading android app that is not available in the Google Play Store for some reasons. It allows users to easily download videos from YouTube perhaps one of the reasons why it is banned from the Google Play Store platform. Google considers downloading of videos from YouTube as a violation of its policy and terms of use.
Currently, as things stand, you can save videos on YouTube for offline viewing on your device but you can’t play the videos on another device. You can’t also save the videos for a lifetime and as long as you clear the cache on your device all the videos saved there will be lost.
Tube Mate features:
- Allows users to download any video regardless of the size.
- It downloads videos from YouTube and other sources as well.
- Apart from downloading video files, it also downloads MP3 files.
11. Ad-Away
This app works by blocking ads on your device once it has successfully been installed either on your smartphone or tablet. It for this same reason that Google decided to ban it from the Play Store. The app posed a huge threat to mobile advertising that Google couldn’t allow.
It is a fairly effective anti-ad app that works effectively to block those annoying apps that keep on popping up as you surf the internet. Some apps may become functionless on your device once you install Ad-Away on it. It is one app that will block you from seeing even some advertisements is that may be beneficial to you.
Ad-Away features:
- It lets users block unnecessary ads on the internet when surfing it.
- Easily installed on android devices once it has been downloaded from the internet.
- It is offered for free.
12. Grooveshark
Grooveshark belongs to the group of android apps that are banned from the Google Play Store platform for some reasons. Grooveshark, has been banned then re-admitted to the platform on several occasions before ultimately being permanently banned. It’s banning from the Google Play Store was controversial as there were no clear reasons given by Google to ban it from the Play Store platform.
If you are living outside the USA then this app can work perfectly for you to help you streaming of free music. If you wish to get a great app that will let you stream some great music then try Grooveshark.
The app is a great alternative to other popular streaming apps such as Pandora. Note that this app lets you stream all your favorite music files free. If you wish to get the app downloaded right on to your device, visit its official website.
13. Humble Bundle
Humble Bundle is yet another banned app from the Play Store that offers paid game to users at a highly reduced cost. It works by offering regular bundles of games at a price that is set by the users themselves. Every bundle in the app consists of up to ten games and if a user pays more than one dollar, they are offered up to three bundles. Perhaps this is the reason that Google decided to remove the app from its Play Store platforms to help protect the various app developers get their money.
The app features an intuitive user interface that is so easy to understand and use even if it is your first time to try it. You decide the amount of money that you will pay to enjoy its various features. It is designed for the Android-powered devices
14. TV Portal
This app lets users be able to stream TV shows and movies from various sources online. It is perfect for those hailing from areas that are not covered by the popular Hulu. There is a wide range of selection of TV shows and movies available on the app for users.The app is offering all these amazing features all for free but if you decide to pay for the premium version you get to enjoy watching your favorite TV shows or movies without interruptions of ads. It is thought that Google may have banned the app from its Play Store platform due to copyright issues. It is one of the few apps that are banned on Google Play Store which are safe and won’t pose any immediate risk of threat to your device. To get, head over to its official website page for download.
15. XPosed Framework Installer
You can easily modify your Android device by installing a custom ROM. However, you don’t have to use a custom ROM to modify your Android if your wish is only to perform just a few modifications here and there.
XPosed Framework Installer is specially designed for root-level users only and it comes jam-packed with an array of mods and tweaks that can be applied to an Android device. It is important however to take caution when dealing with this app including making a full backup of the files of your device before installing it.
16. Transdroid
This app that is not found in the Google Play Store because it is banned there. It offers a great for users to manage their torrents remotely. It supports both the home servers and seedboxes. From within it, you can, amongst many other things, make additions of torrents, start and stop them. The app supports all the big torrent clients available on the internet such as uTorrent, Vuze and Deluge. Of course, there are everal other torrent clients that it supports.
This great torrent app can easily be gotten from its official website page however you may first have to check with your local laws regarding Torrenting to ascertain if it is allowed. You can as well download the Torrent app from the AIO Downloader. It is not clear why Googlebanned it from their Play Store Platform but as things stand now, you will not find it there.
16. Hackode
If you thought we could complete this list of banned/illegal apps in Google Play Store without listing Hackode, then you got it all wrong. It is one of the best apps missing in Google Play Store that comes jam-packed with various amazing tools which can be used for a multitude of purposes. It is one app that’s most commonly used by ethical hackers and IT professionals alike to analyze their software and tools before they can launch them officially. This gives them an idea of weak areas on their software they need to improve before releasing them for other people.
This application is most commonly used by IT professionals to launch attacks on their apps and programs to gauge their vulnerability. Using Hackode is free of charge and the best thing about it is that you don’t have to provide your private information to use it. It can also be used for unlimited periods.
18. DroidSheep
Ever heard about android apps that are specialized for hacking purposes? Well, DroidSheep is one such hacking app that is designed for people who are keen on hacking. It is ideally designed to perform attacks over Wi-Fi networks and works in a way that the attack victim must be on the same Wi-Fi network.
The app can be downloaded from its official website page and installed on the user’s smartphone. The user can then use the device on which the app is installed in as a router to monitor all the devices that are connected on the network.
With this app, the user can easily pry on the target’s victim’s social media profiles. Some social media networks that can be monitored by this app includes; Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. The app also works as anti-virus to protect the user’s device from potential attacks.
19. AndroRAT
This is another Android hacking app that is designed for use on Android devices such as tablets or smartphones. It is designed for performing several hacking attacks over a given network. With the app, the user can easily fetch Android information from any device within the target network in just seconds. The app also offers the user some hacking services that are helpful to the hacker.
The other things that the user can be able to track on their target victims include; tracking their contacts, their call logs, and even their location. Tracking of the victim’s messages or calls made on the target cellphone is also supported in this app. This app is officially banned from the Google Play Store obviously for these reasons which are considered policy and term violations that Google takes very seriously.
20. Network Spoofer
This app also belongs to the hacking range of apps. With it, you can easily alter a website on another person’s device right from your phone. With it installed on your Android device, you can easily scan any possible vulnerability that may be present in the given network.
It is so popular with many people out there owing to its ease of use as it features a user-friendly interface. You don’t have to be an advanced app developer or programmer to be able to use this application. All you need to do is download it from the internet and have it installed on your device.
It works best on Wi-Fi networks where the user will have to identify a spoof to spy on and then execute the hacking without the targeted victim even noticing that they are being spoofed at. Note that the app was banned from Google Play Store for policy violation.
21. Dood’s Music Streamer
Just like the name already suggests, the app is all about music streaming services and so it makes a great addition for you as a music enthusiast. Once you get the app and install it on your device, it lets you stream lots of music from multiple sources online.
The Dood’s Music Streamer app is not difficult to use and even you are first timer music streaming person you can do so easily on this app. Another great feature of the app is that you can cache songs for offline playback all for your enjoyment. The app is free as long as you have downloaded it from its official website. It is a good alternative to the paid online music streaming apps that will just get your job of music streaming done easily and quick.
22. Viper4Android
Google decided to take down this amazing Android app from its Play Store platform for unknown reasons. It is an XDA Labs app which lets users get in deeper into the audio capabilities of their phones. With this app installed on your phone, things to do with music effects such as equalizers, effects, as well as custom drivers becomes easy for you to handle.
This app is great for professional DJs who may find enhancing the sound of audio that they play convenient for their audiences. If you wish to get this app, a visit to its official website page will just be perfect for you.
23. MiXPlorer
This is one of the best Android file managing apps available on the internet that features a good user interface. It is perfectly ideal for both casual users and even professional users alike. There is tab support and also a dual-panel mode available for big screens that come in handy if you are working with numerous folders at once.
Accessing your cloud files with the MiXPlorer Android app is so easy as long as you got it installed on your device. Use the app to access your popular cloud files stored in platforms such as Dropbox, Google Drive, MEGA and even Onedrive.
The app also supports root access for advanced operations and advanced search functions. The best thing about this particular file managing app is that you can just get it for absolutely free of charge.
24. Popcorn Time
This app lets you watch your popular TV shows and movies online without much hustle. All you have to do is download the app from its official website and install it on your mobile device and get to enjoy your favorite TV shows and movies right on the palm of your hands!
The app also features a built-in VPN option if you wish to use it securely. There are just numerous options available for you to customize the look and feel of the app. Some of the things you can customize in the app include; color, font, size, as well as the download speed time. It is a torrent based app so it is upon you to do the due diligence to check with your local authorities if they are allowed.
25. Is My Son Gay?
This particular app was developed by an openly gay man called Christophe de Bran to help promote a comedic novel (is my son gay?) that was an upcoming comedy novel at the time. Due to cries from advocacy groups that called the app to be offensive, Google finally caved into people demands and pulled it off their Play Store platform.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How can I download illegal android apps?
You will have to set up your Android device for downloading illegal android apps. You will then enable unknown sources to install APK files. You can search for APK files all over the internet. Always download APK from reliable and trusted sources to be safe from malicious software.
Is there a way that apps can be hacked?
Apps are usually designed for various purposes and can be relied on to offer convenience or even entertainment. There some apps that usually feature malicious software that can be used to steal your vital information. It is therefore important to be wary of the apps that you download and use to make transactions over the internet.
The best way to be safe and protect yourself from attacks is to install a reliable anti-virus and also keep your data well protected from scammers.
Is my Android hacked?
It is important to note that downloading illegal/banned Android apps from the internet puts your device at an increased risk of malicious attacks.
Here are some signs that may show that your device has been hacked:
- Slowed performance
- Receiving suspicious SMSs
- When the device hangs a lot.
- Unexpected transaction charges.
- Leaked data.
Conclusion
Now that you are in the know of the above listed illegal/banned Android app, you will be in a better position to make informed decisions before deciding to use them. Most of these apps have been banned from the Google Play Store for policy and terms violation. Continued use of the apps puts your device and your personal information and even identity at risk of theft.
Did you find the article useful? If you did, kindly share it with your friends and family to enlighten them about the various illegal/banned apps.