Why is getNetworkOperator not reliable for CDMA?

Question

Can anyone say why the documentation for the getNetworkOperator function of TelephonyManager states that this can return unreliable result for CDMA ?

getNetworkOperator documentation

Availability: Only when user is registered to a network. Result may be unreliable on CDMA networks (use getPhoneType() to determine if on a CDMA network).

What kind of results are you getting when calling this method on a CDMA device ? and if it's not reliable, How can I get the MCC for a CDMA device ?

Answer 1

It is unreliable because it can be kind-of spoofed on cdma networks. You can get actual operator names like Verizon Wireless but you may also get strings like HOME, CRICKET, SCHOOL etc.

Answer 2

I know this is an old question, but maybe is useful to other people.

I don't know what returns from some CDMA networks, but i believe will be a "null" for sure.

You can get the MCC from getSimOperator().

Hope this helps.