Security News
Researchers have uncovered a new set of fraudulent Android apps in the Google Play store that were found to hijack SMS message notifications for carrying out billing fraud. The apps in question primarily targeted users in Southwest Asia and the Arabian Peninsula, attracting a total of 700,000 downloads before they were discovered and removed from the platform.
A new set of malicious Android apps have been caught posing as app security scanners on the official Play Store to distribute a backdoor capable of gathering sensitive information. "These malicious apps urge users to update Chrome, WhatsApp, or a PDF reader, yet instead of updating the app in question, they take full control of the device by abusing accessibility services," cybersecurity firm McAfee said in an analysis published on Monday.
Malware disguised as a Netflix app, lurking on the Google Play store, spread through WhatsApp messages, researchers have discovered. According to a Check Point Research analysis released on Wednesday, the malware masqueraded as an app called "FlixOnline," which advertised via WhatsApp messages promising "2 Months of Netflix Premium Free Anywhere in the World for 60 days." But once installed, the malware sets about stealing data and credentials.
Cybersecurity researchers have discovered yet another piece of wormable Android malware-but this time downloadable directly from the official Google Play Store-that's capable of propagating via WhatsApp messages. Disguised as a rogue Netflix app under the name of "FlixOnline," the malware comes with features that allow it to automatically reply to a victim's incoming WhatsApp messages with a payload received from a command-and-control server.
A malware dropper that paves the way for attackers to remotely steal data from Android phones has been spreading via nine malicious apps on the official Google Play store, according to researchers. The dropper, dubbed Clast82, was disguised in benign apps, which don't fetch a malicious payload until they have been vetted and cleared by Google Play Protect.
Cybersecurity researchers have discovered a new malware dropper contained in as many as 9 Android apps distributed via Google Play Store that deploys a second stage malware capable of gaining intrusive access to the financial accounts of victims as well as full control of their devices. "This dropper, dubbed Clast82, utilizes a series of techniques to avoid detection by Google Play Protect detection, completes the evaluation period successfully, and changes the payload dropped from a non-malicious payload to the AlienBot Banker and MRAT," Check Point researchers Aviran Hazum, Bohdan Melnykov, and Israel Wernik said in a write-up published today.
A barcode scanner app, with over 10 million downloads, was booted from the Google Play marketplace after users began to complain of mobile-ad overload. The makers of the app, called Barcode Scanner, intentionally altered the code of the app via an update turning it from a benign app to adware, according to researchers. Tipped by a user, researchers at Malwarebytes explained, the publisher added new heavily obfuscated code to the app that directed the default mobile web browser to launch and serve-up ads - whether the barcode app was active or not.
Infosec bods from Check Point have discovered that popular apps are still running outdated versions of Google's Play Core library for Android - versions that contained a remote file inclusion vulnerability. They found that the Play Core Library, an in-app update and streamlining feature offered to Android devs, could be abused to "Add executable modules to any apps using the library".
UPDATE. Researchers are warning that several popular Google Play applications - including mobile browser app Edge - have yet to push out an important update addressing a high-severity vulnerability in the Google Play Core Library. The vulnerability exists in Google Play Core Library, which is utilized by various popular applications like Google Chrome, Facebook and Instagram.
Multiple Android mobile apps found in Google Play, including Baidu Search Box and Baidu Maps, were found by researchers to be leaking data that could be used to track users - even if they switch devices. Researchers found the apps in question to expose a range of information, including: Phone model; screen resolution; phone MAC address; wireless carrier; network; Android ID; International Mobile Subscriber Identity; and International Mobile Equipment Identity.