I tried to use Vipps on my Fairphone 6 with e/OS, but it gets stuck on the verification screen. Whenever I open it, it keeps telling me to use biometric verification. If I do use it, it just shows the same pop-up again. If I try to close the app, it re-opens Vipps by itself. This forces me to restart my phone completely. Also, the application says that “Vipps can’t start. Try deleting Vipps and downloading it again from Play Store. It’s also possible that your phone has been modified. If that’s the case, get in touch with the store or person you bought the phone from.” How do I fix this?
Edit: DNB doesn’t seem to work either. In case of DNB I can’t log in at all.
For me, Vipps crashes when enabling biometric verification, so I always leave it unchecked. Also, after some time of use, I do get the message you refer to, “Vipps can’t start…” Then I need to set a new password in order to be able to log back in. Other than that, Vipps works well for me. FP5.
I’m able to configure Vipps with PIN and biometric verification. However, after a while the app starts reporting this (in Swedish) when I enter my PIN or use biometric:
Vipps kan inte starta. Försök att radera Vipps och ladda ner den igen från Play Store. Det kan också vara så att din telefon har modifierats. Kontakta i så fall butiken eller personen du köpte telefonen av.
Translated to English:
Vipps cannot start. Try deleting Vipps and downloading it again from the Play Store. It may also be that your phone has been modified. In that case, contact the store or the person you bought the phone from.
If I delete the app, reinstall it and configure it again it works for a while (~12 hours?). Then the message above starts appearing again.
I download the app from the App Lounge with an anonymous account.
I get the same message from time to time. I ignore installing the app anew. Instead, I select the “create new password” on the same screen, log in with my credentials like when setting up Vipps the first time, set my preferred code, and the app works again, for a while. I need to do this process whenever that message appears. It can be weeks between each time, or more often.
I can also use the “create new password” option. In that case, I’d need to add my card again to be able to use it for tap-to-pay. However, the tap function continues to work even when I can no longer log in to the app with PIN/biometrics. So I might just leave the app in that state since I currently only use it for tapping and not for sending money to other users. Still, it would be nice if the app could function fully on e/OS in the long run.
As far as we could deduce, it’s because the banks / VIPPS use Google Play Integrity API to check if our phones are “safe” for the bank to admit. Which is a very weird way of doing it, of course, with all kinds of problems in itself. Which is why I wrote to the Norwegian Finanstilsynet and complained (they never wrote back) Link to the letter is further up in the thread I linked to.
However, what has worked for me has been to go to the apps overview in settings and choose Mobilepay/VIPPS, then storage & cache. And then delete storage. This means that the app is setup again, so I need to key in my phone number, reidentify and choose my password again. Then it works - for a while.
However, it has actually worked for a month now, which is the longest yet. Don’t know whether Murena did something to facilitate this? But before, I was typically logged out within 24 hours, so if it lasts, it’s a big improvement!
I also add the link where I keep a documented list of my complaints to authorities about this, because I will not go down without some fight <3 #DanmarkSkifter - guide til at finde din motivation - integral-lifestyle.dk (see the bottom, most of it is in Danish, but let me now and I can translate to English).
Well, you’re right @Bettina - that definitely sounds like Vipps has the same problem as MobilePay.
And, yes, to our best knowledge the problem is that the Vipps/MobilePay apps uses Google Play Services to check the security of the device (that it has not been rooted or tampered with in any other way). So from time to time, the app calls Google Play Services to make that check and evidently, as e/OS doesn’t contain Google Play Services, the check will fail on e/OS and MobilePay will block. Of course, this check is ridiculous as Google is probably the worst scoundrel around.
However, based on your latest experience @Bettina I will try to activate MobilePay again.
Hi and thanks for the heads up @Bettina. In addition to the comment from @Lars_O I can add that MobilePay has now been working on my phone a month or so without kicking me out, so that is very positive indeed. I quit the app after every use, hoping it will avoid any background integrity check. If it really makes any difference I do not know.
Chiming in from Finland as a mobilepay user: I recently flashed /e/os on my Pixel 8, and so far my banking apps have worked a-ok, including mobilepay. During the install I did lock the bootloader of the phone as the Pixel supports it with the official /e/os image, but I’m not sure if it affects the banking apps or any other app compatibility. I’m hoping it’ll be as smooth sailing as it has been so far.
edit. the banking apps were installed via app lounge
Glad to hear that the app is working for some of you now. I’ve just reconfigured the authentication in my Vipps app, and I hope it will keep working for me as well.
