IBM Security MaaS360

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  • 1.  How to remove Zombie Maas360 from Samsung Phone

    Posted Mon July 20, 2020 10:44 AM

    I have a Samsung Galaxy S7, on which Maas360 was installed inadvertently, either by Spiceworks or by Verizon, in a misguided approach to endpoint security. I own the phone outright, there is no IBM account of which I know that controls this unit, and I wish to remove the program.  

    Maas360 does not appear on the screen of apps available to be started.  It only is shown on the list of Apps in the OS. The only option in Settings | Apps | Maas360 is Uninstall.  If I click this, I see "This app is Active ..." and a long page of potential activities.  I then see "Cancel" at the bottom of the page --"Deactivate and uninstall" is grayed. I believe this means I cannot do anything with the program in any normal course of operations.

    If I back up the data using Acronis, and then wipe the phone by doing a hard reset, will that remove this program?  If I do so, does that brick the phone? What should I record so I can I reconnect it to my Verizon account?  



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    David Luce
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  • 2.  RE: How to remove Zombie Maas360 from Samsung Phone

    Posted Fri September 11, 2020 03:27 PM
    Hello,

    I am in a similar boat. Have you found a solution to successfully remove the MDM profile from your device, since you have no affiliation with its original use?

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    David Peterson
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  • 3.  RE: How to remove Zombie Maas360 from Samsung Phone

    Posted Fri September 11, 2020 07:38 PM
    I have been unable to remove the Maas360 program; on the other hand I have been frightened of doing the full factory reset which I believe to be required.

    David Luce
    Cell: 401-374-7837; Land: 860-415-8340





  • 4.  RE: How to remove Zombie Maas360 from Samsung Phone

    Posted Mon September 14, 2020 05:38 PM

    Hi David - just need to ask a few questions to make sure I give you the correct advice:

    • When you purchased this phone did you activate it yourself or was it activated and then handed to you?
    • If the former is the answer, did you notice any wording or messages around MaaS360 during activation?
    • Have you launched the MaaS360 app and if so can you tell me what you see on the screen?


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    Matt Shaver
    System Architect
    IBM
    mshaver@us.ibm.com
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  • 5.  RE: How to remove Zombie Maas360 from Samsung Phone

    Posted Mon September 14, 2020 06:48 PM
    Edited by David Peterson Mon September 14, 2020 06:53 PM
    Matt,

    I purchased the phone around 2 years ago on eBay from a listing that said "Unlocked MDM Iphone 6s."

    It came with a SIM card. Everything was wiped off of the phone, except the MDM Profile (which happened to be IMB's MaaS360.

    I believe the phone is not "Activated" at all, if I am understanding the term correctly. But perhaps I am not?

    When I try to activate the phone, (selecting languages, settings, networks, on the set-up phase of the iPhone after booting up), one of the set-up portions is the acknowledgement that the device is MDM, even though I did not have an option to "opt out." Clearly Whoever had this phone last was part of a company that had this profile installed and the device was given to them as part of the company.

    I have launched the MaaS360 app. It shows me 3 icons and that is all. "Messages," "Settings," and "Support." None of which allow me to change any of the info or access further sub menus. In "support" I have access to account numbers, device names, device ID, Policy Info, etc.

    In "Settings" when I click "User Info" all 3 items are blank.

    I am more than happy to provide additional details about anything you would like to know, and believe me when I say, your assistance means a lot to me. Thank you very much.

    EDIT: Note that my device is not an Android, even though that is what thread we are in. Mine is an iPhone 6s. But I could not find a relevant thread for my issue, so my apologies if I am in the wrong place.

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    David Peterson
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  • 6.  RE: How to remove Zombie Maas360 from Samsung Phone

    Posted Mon September 14, 2020 07:21 PM
    Edited by Matt Shaver Mon September 14, 2020 07:23 PM

    **My response here is for David Peterson but the original question is valid to David Luce's original post**

    This is a precarious situation - the iOS device is part of an enrollment program meant specifically for enterprise use.  I won't speculate too much on what happened between the time the device was procured by that company and the time it made its way in to your hands, but an employee selling a company owned device without their permission or knowledge is certainly not a unique situation.

    Due to privacy/legal reasons, I will be unable to provide you any information about that device or the company that owns it, our hands are tied there.

    You essentially have three courses of action here:
    1) You can contact Apple support and provide them with your transaction receipt from eBay and ask them to remove it from the enrollment program.  The likelihood of them complying with this is pretty low.  In fact, they may very well give you the same above statement I just did.

    2) You can contact the original eBay seller and ask them about this to determine if they have the authority to remove it from the program.  If they refuse or don't respond, you may have some recourse via the eBay terms and conditions, but you'll have to ask eBay about that to know for sure.

    3) Upon factory reset and re-activation, during the setup screens, when the display pops up about enrollment, there may be some (non-IBM/non-MaaS360) corporate information about the original device owner.  This could potentially include contact info which may prove fruitful.

    Keep in mind that this device may have been stolen/sold without authorization, which could potentially put you in the middle of a sticky legal situation.  Apple takes extensive measures to ensure that these types of devices don't get sold to consumers, so there is a good chance that this could be the case.



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    Matt Shaver
    System Architect
    IBM
    mshaver@us.ibm.com
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  • 7.  RE: How to remove Zombie Maas360 from Samsung Phone

    Posted Fri June 25, 2021 02:05 PM

    Thank you for posting such a great article! Impressive!



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    robert leo
    Software
    Computer & Tech Help
    New York. NY
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