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I want to enter developer more, How do you see Memory usage in Android O?, but am wondering if there are any dangers in doing so. Obviously I could change things and mess up, but will I open security holes to other apps by being in developer mode? Or are there other issues I need to consider?

I am using a Sony XZ1 compact.

Thanks,

Fed

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    There are not any significant security holes you can open, and the worst case scenario if you mess things up really bad you can just factory reset, but that would be pretty extreme. Developer Options is pretty safe for the most part, it's just options only an advanced user or a tester/developer would use. It is one of the first things I enable in my device so I can use adb to enable GSAM advanced battery stats. I don't have any documentation of this or I would make it an answer. Basically, developer options is just an advanced options menu.
    – acejavelin
    Apr 11, 2018 at 14:02
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    You might wish to see the previously asked question Security risks in case of activation of developer options and its answers.
    – Izzy ♦
    Apr 11, 2018 at 16:57
  • I missed that when I searched prior to posting. Thanks!
    – Fed
    Apr 12, 2018 at 1:48

2 Answers 2

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No, it's completely safe to enable developer options.

Doing so only lets you access these options from your phone settings. Some of them may be dangerous under some circumstances, but they have to be explicitly enabled by you, as they are not activated automatically.

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    Thanks. Which are the dangerous ones I should stay away from?
    – Fed
    Apr 11, 2018 at 15:04
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    You shouldn't enable ADB debugging unless you really need it (however Android 4.4.2 introduced secure debugging, so it's no longer an issue, because if you plugged your phone into a unknown PC, harmful or not, your phone would ask for your explicit permission to start debugging session). Also, be careful with "Smallest width" as this option might break some apps (especially those poorly-written). And I remember there was a bug (probably in some custom OS), that caused devices to bootloop after enabling "Simulate secondary display" option.
    – krzywo97
    Apr 11, 2018 at 15:09
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Developer mode is nothing near to the "REAL DANGER" on android. It's safe for most part unless you click or change something you should not. If you are just a casual android user go ahead. If you want really very very technical insight (and probably thilling work) on android, you can try rooting your phone.

I neither recommend nor force to any harm done to your smartphone especially by rooting it. Remember, Rooting your phone voids it's warranty.

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