APPS preloaded with vicious malware have slipped by moderators into the Google Play Store, reports claim.
Android users should be on high alert for toll fraud.
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A cybersecurity firm flagged four apps as fronts for scammers trying to get access to your phone.
Hacker-developers have buried lines of malicious software in the applications’ script that enable them to sign up for premium services in your name while collecting a cut.
Reports say that more than 100,000 users have been infected.
If you have downloaded Smart SMS Messages, Blood Pressure Monitor, Voice Languages Translator or Quick Text SMS from the Google Play store, take action and delete them immediately.
Toll fraud scammers will plug an Android phone with a malware program that autonomously scans the internet for subscription services and charges it to the unsuspecting user.
When necessary, hackers will cover their tracks by intercepting one-time passwords so the victim does not know another subscription has been added to their bill.
Pradeo, a cybersecurity firm, wrote “victims only notice the fraud when receiving their mobile phone invoice, potentially weeks after it started,” in a blog.
Google and cybersecurity firms have worked in tandem to remove infected apps.
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FastCompany reported there are ways to dodge a potentially hazardous download.
“Take a look at the developer’s account. If they have only one app, tread with extreme caution. (Once an app is banned, the hacker will simply open a new developer account.)”
The security vulnerability dissected by Pradeo is a descendent of a long-running toll fraud software called Joker.
The company said the hack is designed to use very little code to minimize detection.
