Older APKs often don’t require Play Services for licensing verification. This is useful for de-Googled Android ROMs or devices without Google apps.

While the 2017 version itself is not malicious, downloading APKs from unofficial sources carries risks:

A standout feature of the 2017 era allowed users to set different actions for tapping versus swiping on an icon. For example, tapping the Camera icon opens the camera, but swiping up on it could launch the Gallery.

Title: The Golden Age of Android Customization – Still Holds Up!