Background Service Architecture

Relevant source files

The following files were used as context for generating this wiki page:

• app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/ScannerService.kt
• app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/CompleteScannerService.kt
• app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/SensorCollectionService.kt
• app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml
• app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/ui/screens/HomeScreen.kt
• app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/ui/screens/SettingsScreen.kt

ShadowCheck Mobile utilizes a robust background service architecture to facilitate real-time signals intelligence (SIGINT) collection. The system is designed to perform continuous scanning of wireless environments—including WiFi, Bluetooth (Classic and LE), and cellular networks—while simultaneously logging high-frequency sensor data and device hardware metadata.

The architecture relies on Android Foreground Services to ensure persistent operation and bypass system-level power management restrictions. This allows the application to maintain a constant state of situational awareness, updating local databases and user notifications even when the application is not in the foreground.

Core Service Components

The background architecture is composed of specialized services that handle different aspects of data acquisition. These services are declared as foreground services with specific types, such as location, to satisfy Android's security and performance requirements.

Sources: app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml:51-51, app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/CompleteScannerService.kt:20-30

CompleteScannerService

The primary orchestrator for network intelligence collection. It integrates location tracking with wireless radio scanning to provide georeferenced signal data.

• Responsibilities: Coordinates WiFi, Bluetooth, and Cellular scanning; manages the Room database connection; updates system notifications with real-time discovery counts.
• Location Integration: Requests updates from both GPS_PROVIDER and NETWORK_PROVIDER to maintain a high-accuracy location context for every discovered signal.

Sources: app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/CompleteScannerService.kt:143-155, app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/CompleteScannerService.kt:216-225

SensorCollectionService

A specialized utility class managed by the scanner services to capture environmental and inertial data.

• Sensors Monitored: Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Magnetometer, Light, Pressure, Temperature, Proximity, and more.
• Hardware Profiling: Captures detailed device specifications, including manufacturer, SOC model, and supported ABIs, to establish a hardware baseline.

Sources: app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/SensorCollectionService.kt:39-60, app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/SensorCollectionService.kt:105-130

Data Discovery and Deduplication Flow

The system employs a rigorous deduplication logic to prevent database bloat. Signals are processed only if they are new or if a specific time threshold (30 seconds) has passed since the last sighting.

Implementation Details

Signal Capture Logic

The background services utilize specialized BroadcastReceivers and Callbacks to handle asynchronous hardware events.

Component	Mechanism	Key Data Points Captured
WiFi	WifiManager.SCAN_RESULTS_AVAILABLE_ACTION	BSSID, SSID, Frequency, Capabilities, Channel Width
Bluetooth LE	ScanCallback.onScanResult	MAC Address, Device Name, RSSI, TX Power, Service UUIDs
Cellular	TelephonyManager.allCellInfo	Cell ID, LAC/TAC, MCC, MNC, Signal Level, Network Type
Sensors	SensorEventListener.onSensorChanged	X/Y/Z Values, Accuracy, Sensor Type

Sources: app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/CompleteScannerService.kt:41-80, app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/CompleteScannerService.kt:173-205, app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/service/SensorCollectionService.kt:80-100

Lifecycle Management

Services are controlled via specific Intent actions. The lifecycle is strictly managed to ensure hardware resources (like GPS and Bluetooth) are released when scanning stops.

System Configuration

The background behavior is configurable through encrypted shared preferences, allowing users to balance detection granularity with battery consumption.

Setting	Default Value	Description
scan_interval	3 seconds	Time delay between scan iterations in the background loop.
auto_scan	True	Boolean determining if services start on app launch.
map_provider	Mapbox	Determines which API is used for coordinate visualization.

Sources: app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/rebuilt/ui/screens/SettingsScreen.kt:41-43, app/src/main/kotlin/com/shadowcheck/mobile/ui/screens/settings/SettingsScreen.kt:25-30

Conclusion

The Background Service Architecture of ShadowCheck Mobile represents a sophisticated implementation of Android's foreground service model. By decoupling signal discovery (WiFi/BT/Cell) from the UI layer and centralizing data persistence through a deduplicating scanner service, the application achieves high-fidelity surveillance detection without sacrificing system stability. The integration of sensor logging and hardware profiling further enriches the collected intelligence, providing a comprehensive audit trail of the device's environment.