Security News > 2020 > March > Watch Out: Android Apps in Google Play Store Capitalizing on Coronavirus Outbreak

Preying on public fears, the ongoing coronavirus outbreak is proving to be a goldmine of opportunity for attackers to stage a variety of malware attacks, phishing campaigns, and create scam sites and malicious tracker apps.

Now in a fresh twist, third-party Android app developers too have begun to take advantage of the situation to use coronavirus-related keywords in their app names, descriptions, or in the package names so as to drop malware, perpetrate financial theft and rank higher in Google Play Store searches related to the topic.

Using Coronavirus-Related Keywords to Rank in Game Play Store Searches As people increasingly sought out applications that provided information about COVID-19, malware authors have sneaked in adware, banking trojans, and information stealers under the guise of live tracker apps and those that help users identify common symptoms of the illness.

What's more, some apps such as Bubble Shooter Merge and Galaxy Shooter - Falcon Squad have even changed their name and description to ride on the coronavirus pandemic by including keywords that ensure their apps rank higher when people search for coronavirus in the Google Play store.

This is despite Google's strict policy against capitalizing on sensitive events and its adjustments to Google Play search results to intentionally filter out potentially malicious apps when searching for keywords like "Corona" or "Coronavirus."

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