▸Example Google Analytics for Firebase call (the "before")
import com.google.firebase.analytics.ktx.analytics
import com.google.firebase.ktx.Firebase
// GA4 event with user_id and freeform parameters:
Firebase.analytics.logEvent("level_up") {
param("level", 7L)
param("character", "Aragorn")
param("user_id", userId)
}
Most analytics SDKs back the unsent event queue with SQLite or UserDefaults / SharedPreferences — so a phone that's been confiscated, jailbroken, or restored from backup still contains analytics state. Respectlytics's queue is RAM-only, flushed on a 30-second timer; unsent events on force-quit are lost by design, in exchange for zero on-device forensic surface.
☑Remove Google Analytics for Firebase cleanly
-
1
Remove the Firebase Analytics dependency from your build (CocoaPods / SPM / Gradle / npm / pub)
-
2
Remove the GA4 property's data stream linkage from your Firebase console — the data stops flowing as soon as the SDK is removed, but the property remains until manually deleted
-
3
Replace
Analytics.logEventcall sites withRespectlytics.track("event_name") -
4
Re-audit your
Info.plistandAndroidManifest.xmlfor IDFA / AD_ID surfaces that GA for Firebase contributed -
5
Confirm
play-services-ads-identifieris no longer in the Android runtime classpath
⇋Google Analytics for Firebase vs Respectlytics — ram-only event queue
| Google Analytics for Firebase | Respectlytics | |
|---|---|---|
| Event queue persistence | SQLite / UserDefaults / SharedPreferences | In-memory ring buffer |
| Disk usage for analytics | 0.5–10 MB typical | 0 bytes |
| Forensic data on jailbroken / rooted devices | Persistent identifiers + queued events | None |
| Survives force-quit before flush | Yes | No (events lost — by design) |
❓Frequently asked questions
Doesn't this reduce data quality?
Marginally — typical force-quit-before-flush event loss is 0.5–2% depending on platform. For aggregate metrics (funnel rates, feature adoption, release deltas) this is invisible. For per-event reconciliation it would be a problem, but per-event reconciliation isn't a use case Respectlytics supports.
What's the actual flush cadence?
30 seconds by default, plus a flush on applicationDidEnterBackground (iOS) / onPause (Android). Most events reach the network within seconds of being fired.
Is this safe for crash analytics?
Crash analytics is a separate concern — use Sentry, Crashlytics, or Bugsnag (with their own crash-aware queues). Respectlytics is product analytics; crash data has different recoverability requirements and lives in different tools.
Why is this a privacy feature?
Devices that are jailbroken, rooted, restored from backup, or forensically imaged routinely surface analytics artifacts — distinct_ids, queued events, user properties — that survive uninstall in some cases. RAM-only storage moves the dump-recovery surface to zero.