Privacy-focused Android app that intercepts social media URLs and redirects them to privacy-friendly alternative frontends while removing tracking parameters. No apps or accounts needed to access the content shared with you.
Automatically removes tracking parameters from all URLs:
- UTM parameters (
utm_source,utm_medium, etc.) - Platform-specific trackers (Twitter
s/t, YouTubesi, Instagramigsh) - E-commerce tracking (Amazon, affiliate links)
- Analytics parameters
Granular control over how URLs are processed:
- Unshorten URLs: Automatically resolves shortened links (bit.ly, t.co, etc.)
- Remove Tracking: Strip analytics and tracking parameters
- Immediate Navigation: Automatically open the processed URL in your browser
Alternative frontends create a less cluttered web experience; bypassing closed ecosystems and promoting a more open internet. Sidestep supports several major platforms with configurable alternative frontends:
| Platform | Alternative Frontends |
|---|---|
| Twitter/X | Nitter |
| Redlib | |
| YouTube | Invidious, Piped |
| Google Maps | OpenStreetMap |
| IMDb | LibreMDB |
| Medium | Scribe |
| Wikipedia | Wikiless |
| Goodreads | BiblioReads |
| Genius | Dumb, Intellectual |
| Tumblr | Priviblur |
| UrbanDictionary | RuralDictionary |
| Imgur | Rimgo |
| GitHub | GotHub |
| StackOverflow | AnonymousOverflow |
- Clean Only Mode: Remove tracking without redirecting
- Clean & Sidestep Mode: Remove tracking AND redirect to alternative frontend
- Custom Redirects: Add your own domain mappings
- Instance Picker: Fetch live, healthy instances sorted by uptime
- Track processed links with rich metadata
- Privacy-respecting previews fetched via DuckDuckGo (optional)
- Configurable retention policies (by days or item count)
- Never/Forever/Auto retention modes
- No Data Collection: Zero analytics, zero tracking
- Local Processing: All URL cleaning happens on-device
- Proxy Previews: Metadata fetched via DuckDuckGo to avoid direct connections to source platforms (optional, disabled when history is off)
git clone https://github.com/yourusername/sidestep.git
cd sidestep
./gradlew assembleReleaseThe APK will be in app/build/outputs/apk/release/
- Android 7.0 (API 24) or higher
- Android Studio (for development)
- Install Sidestep
- Share a social media link to Sidestep, or open a supported link
- Sidestep will clean and optionally redirect the URL
- Your default browser opens the cleaned/redirected link
- Open Sidestep → Settings
- Tap Set as Default
- Select Open in app for supported domains
- Supported links will now automatically route through Sidestep
Navigate to Settings to:
- Toggle between "Clean only" and "Clean & Sidestep" for each platform
- Pick healthy alternative instances
- Configure custom domain redirects
- Adjust history retention policies
- Change app theme (Light/Dark/System)
┌─────────────────┐
│ MainActivity │ Main UI, URL input, history display
└────────┬────────┘
│
┌────┴────────────────────────────┐
│ │
┌───▼──────────┐ ┌──────▼─────────┐
│ UrlCleaner │ │ UrlUnshortener │
│ │ │ │
│ • Remove │ │ • Resolve │
│ tracking │ │ shortened │
│ • Normalize │ │ URLs │
└──────────────┘ └────────────────┘
│
┌────┴────────────────────────────┐
│ │
┌───▼────────────────┐ ┌──────────▼──────────────┐
│ HistoryManager │ │ PreviewFetcher │
│ │ │ │
│ • Store entries │ │ • Fetch metadata via │
│ • Apply retention │ │ DuckDuckGo │
└────────────────────┘ └─────────────────────────┘
│
┌────────▼──────────────────────┐
│ AlternativeInstancesFetcher │
│ │
│ • Fetch healthy instances │
│ • Provide fallback domains │
└───────────────────────────────┘
Sidestep is designed with privacy as the core principle:
- No Network Permissions for Tracking: Only network access is for fetching alternative instances and URL resolution
- No Analytics: No Firebase, no crash reporting, no telemetry
- Local Storage Only: All history stored locally in SharedPreferences
- Optional Metadata Fetching: URL previews are fetched via DuckDuckGo search only when history is enabled. Set history retention to "Never" in settings to disable all metadata fetching and operate in pure URL-cleaning mode with zero external requests.
- Open Source: Fully auditable code
To ensure your Sidestep build is genuine and hasn't been tampered with, you can verify it using AppVerifier.
Package Name: com.blankdev.sidestep
SHA-256 Hash: D5:69:98:17:CC:CE:5F:F6:0B:8C:4B:1A:FA:A7:E8:A8:61:E3:A6:EA:C0:BF:40:C6:FC:EA:21:0E:FC:57:40:56
- Copy the SHA-256 hash above.
- In AppVerifier, select Verify from clipboard.
- Choose the installed Sidestep app or the APK file.
- AppVerifier will confirm if the hashes match.
Sidestep is built upon the work of many privacy-focused developers:
- Nitter - Twitter alternative frontend
- Redlib - Reddit alternative frontend
- Invidious - YouTube alternative frontend
- Piped - YouTube alternative frontend
- LibreMDB - IMDb alternative frontend
- Scribe - Medium alternative frontend
- Wikiless - Wikipedia alternative frontend
- BiblioReads - Goodreads alternative frontend
- Dumb - Genius alternative frontend
- Intellectual - Genius alternative frontend
- Priviblur - Tumblr alternative frontend
- RuralDictionary - UrbanDictionary alternative frontend
- rimgo - Imgur alternative frontend
- GotHub - GitHub alternative frontend
- AnonymousOverflow - StackOverflow alternative frontend
- LibRedirect - Source for instance data
Shoutouts to:
This project is GNU AGPLv3 licensed - see LICENSE file for details.