How to Avoid Malware on TikTok and Instagram
TikTok’s days as a viable social media platform may be numbered , at least in the US (unless something changes before Trump’s recent executive order kills him for good), but the app is still running and its huge user base is active. more than ever . And that includes dubious app developers who use the platform to spread scams and malware.
A child from the Czech Republic recently reported a suspicious app and accounts distributing them for Avast Be Safe Online, which required a closer investigation. Avast discovered that numerous profiles on TikTok and Instagram are being used to promote malicious apps. Some install adware on your device, while others try to trick people into making unnecessary in-app purchases. However, they are easy to track down as they were all created or distributed by the same developers on iOS and Android.
Suspicious applications detected by Avast include:
Android
- Tap Roulette ++ Shock My Friend
- ThemeZone – Shawky App Free – Shock My Friends
- Ultimate Music Downloader – Free Music Download
iOS
- 666 Time
- shock my friend tap roulette v
- Shock my friends – Satuna
- ThemeZone – live wallpaper
These apps have many of the hallmarks of fake or malware-laden products: obscure titles with SEO add-ons, redundant or unnecessary features, and in-app purchases of content that is freely available elsewhere. Avast also found at least three TikTok accounts and one Instagram account promoting apps, some of which had over 300,000 followers.
As Avast writes:
“Applications are specifically targeted at young people and are games, wallpapers and music downloaders. Fraud can be either in the form of charging $ 2 to $ 10 for a service that does not meet this price range, including vibration of the phone, the appearance of wallpaper or access to music, or in the form of aggressive advertising. Some of them are HiddenAds Trojans – apps that appear to be legitimate but actually only exist to serve ads outside of the app. The HiddenAd Trojans also have a built-in hidden application timer, which makes it difficult to determine where the ad is coming from. “
Apple and Google are likely to block apps in their stores, disabling installation on most devices (you will need to manually uninstall them if they were uploaded unpublished), and TikTok and Instagram accounts are likely to be deleted if they are not were gone.
However, this does not mean that the threat has disappeared. Unfortunately, TikTok, Instagram and other social media platforms are easy ways to spread scams, malware and phishing campaigns, so such threats are likely to always exist.
Ultimately it’s up to you to keep yourself safe, but you can reach out to younger, trendy, crazy family members to give them useful information about device safety. Those who are more inclined to blindly click on prompts on their devices can also benefit from a helpful lesson about permissions: what different types of apps usually need to request access in order to do what they are supposed to do, and which requests are red flags for potential violations. security and privacy. If an app asks for a lot of money to enable a nonsensical feature, that is also a good sign of fraud.
If you need a reminder, we’ve put together tips for detecting questionable apps , phishing schemes , malware, and other types of online scams . If you are a parent, make sure you always include data security and malware issues in your online safety discussions with your kids .