Security researchers tracking the mobile app ecosystem have noticed a recent spike in trojan infiltration on the Google Play Store, with one of the apps having over 500,000 installs and available to download.
Most of these apps belong to a family of trojan malware used in various scams, resulting in financial losses and also loss of sensitive personal information.
Additionally, a new Android trojan built as a WhatsApp mod has been spotted in the wild, circulating via shady websites promoted by social media posts, forums, and SEO poisoning.
These findings come from Dr. Web, who published the details in their January 2022 review of virus activity on mobile devices.
Multiple trojans on the Play Store
The threats discovered on the Play Store by Dr. Web's analysts include cryptocurrency management apps, social benefit aid tools, Gasprom investment clones, photo editors, and a launcher themed after iOS 15.
Most fake investment apps prompt the victims to create a new account and deposit money supposedly for trading, which is simply diverted to the scammer's bank account. Other apps try to trick the user into signing up for expensive subscriptions.
The majority of the apps reported by Dr. Web have been removed from the Play Store, so while they might have been popular and widely downloaded, we don't have any numbers to share.
Bleeping Computer was able to find one of the reported apps that's still available on the Play Store, Top Navigation, which has over 500,000 installations,...
Read Full Story: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/android-trojan-persists-on-the-google-play-store-since-january/
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