These Malicious Apps Are Still Available on the Google Play Store
Malware is a problem that affects all platforms, including Apple , but Android seems to have the most cases at the moment. All too often , there are reports of recently discovered packages of malicious apps in the Play Store. This time there are four of them, one with only one million installs.
Once downloaded , these apps wait 72 hours before engaging in any malicious activity, which includes showing ads as well as automatically opening phishing links in your mobile browser. This activity continues every two hours, including when your phone is locked, so victims are exposed to this intrusive content no matter what.
Usually when I report stories like this, the apps in question are often not in the Play Store by the time I start writing. Google is usually quick to remove any apps identified as malicious, so when we hear about it, it’s DOA. Thus, the main goal is to help readers determine if they have downloaded any of the named applications on their smartphone so that they can remove them quickly.
However, this story is different. At the time of this writing, the apps and their developer, the Mobile App Group, are still available on the Play Store. To make matters worse, this isn’t the developer’s first rodeo. According to Malwarebytes Labs , the mobile app group has been cited twice in the past for spreading malicious apps on the Play Store. Somehow, the developer is still active on the Google marketplace, currently offering four apps, all of which have been flagged as malware.
Four Applications:
- Bluetooth Auto Connect : over 1,000,000 downloads
- Bluetooth App Sender : over 50,000 downloads
- Driver: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, USB : Over 10,000 downloads
- Mobile Transfer: Smart Switch : Over 1000 Downloads
If you have one of these four apps on your Android device, be sure to uninstall it as soon as possible. Bluetooth Auto Connect alone has over a million downloads, which means there are many potentially infected devices out there.
How to know if an app contains malware before downloading it
It can be difficult to tell if an app is malicious before downloading it, but there are some signs to look out for. First, read its Play Store page carefully. Do the descriptions match the advertised use? The same goes for preview images. Don’t forget to also read the reviews, especially the latest ones. A bunch of badly written reviews that don’t mention the purpose of the app is a red flag and suggests that the developer is using fake reviews to inflate the app’s rating.
However, in the case of these four apps, the reviews are negative and indicate how often users experience pop-ups. Diving into these ratings can paint a picture of the app in question and help determine if it’s safe to download.