Android Users, Beware Of New Virus That’s Infected Over 10 Million Devices
Image via ThomasDeco / Shutterstock.com
Back in August, it was reported that the ‘joker’ trojan virus had infiltrated the Google Play Store once again, with over 1,700 apps containing the malware.
Now, there’s been another round of culling, with the tech giant removing 200 apps that were used to spread a new virus. According to researchers at Zimperium, the ‘GriftHorse’ malware could’ve affected as many as 10 million people.
Researchers believe the new virus had managed to get onto third-party app stores as well, though it’s unclear if those stores will remove affected apps.
So far, victims have emerged from over 70 countries, with them incurring tens of millions of dollars in losses. The GriftHorse operation ran from November 2020 to April 2021.
When a user downloaded any of the infected apps from the Google Play Store, the virus would generate tons of notifications and popups, promising discounts or special prizes. Those who fell for the bait were then redirected to a site, where they were asked to enter their mobile numbers to win the “prize.”
However, the truth was that the victims were being subscribed to premium text messaging services, and were then billed more than US$35 a month.
As per TechSpot, the insidious scammers walked away with between US$1.5 million and US$4 million per month. Those who were fooled could’ve lost more than US$230 if they did not notice the extra charges.
Zimperium, which had notified Google about the malware, said the campaign wasn’t a low-level operation. Researchers Aazim Yaswant and Nipun Gupta believed the perpetrators were skilled in coding, and were intelligent enough to offer the infected apps across a whole range of categories to increase the chances of unknowing victims.
Unfortunately, while companies like Zimperium do their best to weed out malicious viruses from apps and devices, these scammers will come with a new plan in no time. The best way to stay safe is to remain vigilant while surfing the web, and to never give away personal information to unfamiliar sites.
For the full list of affected apps, click here.
[via TechSpot, cover image via ThomasDeco / Shutterstock.com]
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