How do I remove VoIP-related permissions (like `FOREGROUND_SERVICE_PHONE_CALL`) added by the Pushwoosh Cordova plugin?

Problem

Your Android application may be rejected by the Google Play Store for VoIP-related permissions (for example FOREGROUND_SERVICE_PHONE_CALL, MANAGE_OWN_CALLS) after integrating the Pushwoosh Cordova plugin.

Cause

Version 8.3.40 of pushwoosh-cordova-plugin added the com.pushwoosh:pushwoosh-calls module for VoIP-style call notifications unconditionally, and that module merges the call permissions into your AndroidManifest.xml.

Recommended solution: update the plugin and leave VoIP off

Since plugin version 8.3.43 the VoIP module is opt-in and disabled by default. The plugin exposes the preferences PW_VOIP_ANDROID_ENABLED and PW_VOIP_IOS_ENABLED, both defaulting to false. When the Android flag is false, the pushwoosh-calls dependency and its sources are never added to the build, so the VoIP permissions never reach your manifest.

Update to a current plugin version and either omit the variable or set it explicitly in config.xml:

<plugin name="pushwoosh-cordova-plugin" spec="^8.3.70">
    <variable name="PW_VOIP_ANDROID_ENABLED" value="false" />
    <variable name="PW_VOIP_IOS_ENABLED" value="false" />
</plugin>

Then delete the node_modules and platforms folders, reinstall your dependencies and rebuild.

Capacitor note: Capacitor does not execute Cordova hooks, so set PW_VOIP_ANDROID_ENABLED=false (or simply leave it unset) in android/gradle.properties.

Do not pin to 8.3.39. That build is many releases behind and ships Pushwoosh Android SDK 6.7.30 instead of the current 6.9.6, so you would lose a year of fixes to avoid a problem that is already solved by the opt-in flag.

If you are stuck on an affected version (8.3.40–8.3.42)

Strip the permissions and the service at build time by adding the following inside the <platform name="android"> tag of your config.xml:

<platform name="android">
    <!-- Add tools namespace to the manifest -->
    <edit-config file="app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml" target="/manifest" mode="merge">
        <manifest xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools" />
    </edit-config>

    <!-- Remove foreground service and VoIP-related permissions -->
    <config-file target="app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml" parent="/manifest">
        <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.FOREGROUND_SERVICE" tools:node="remove" />
        <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.FOREGROUND_SERVICE_PHONE_CALL" tools:node="remove" />
        <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.USE_FULL_SCREEN_INTENT" tools:node="remove" />
        <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.MANAGE_OWN_CALLS" tools:node="remove" />
        <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.READ_PHONE_NUMBERS" tools:node="remove" />
    </config-file>

    <!-- Remove the VoIP service -->
    <config-file target="app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml" parent="/manifest/application">
        <service android:name="com.pushwoosh.calls.service.PushwooshCallService" tools:node="remove" />
    </config-file>
</platform>

Rebuild with cordova build android --release and verify the result in platforms/android/app/build/intermediates/merged_manifests/release/AndroidManifest.xml.