Question

Is it possible to deploy a mobile profile on an Android device that enforces the use of a pass-code lock by the end user? Similar to how with iOS devices a company can deploy a mobile configuration XML file which enforce settings like the pass-code lock requirement. Is there an equivalent of this for android ? If so which versions of android support this?
Thank you.

Answer 1

yes. the way you do it is to use Android’s device admin facility.

Android 2.2 introduces support for enterprise applications by offering
the Android Device Administration API. The Device Administration API
provides device administration features at the system level. These
APIs allow you to create security-aware applications that are useful
in enterprise settings, in which IT professionals require rich control
over employee devices.

in a nutshell, you send the user through a short workflow that ask them to approve your app’s activity as a device admin, then you can you use the DevicePolicyManager API to define security policies for the device (such as password policy).

the first link i provided is very good and it walks you through the whole process, so i won’t try to duplicate that here.