In the month of July, Google Play Store has removed 11 applications that contained a malware called Joker. Now researchers have spotted six more applications that have been added to the list of apps that have dangerous malware.
Google has pulled down the six additional applications from the Play Store. Hence there will be no new downloads. However, users who have already downloaded the applications will need to delete them from their smartphones. A cybersecurity firm Pradeo report claimed that these six apps had already almost 200,000 downloads before they were pulled off the app store.
These applications seemed to be legitimate but had the ability to sneak files into the users device by downloading malware. This malware then subscribed the user to premium service without their consent.
In the month of July, the discovery of a new variant of the Joker malware in Google Play was made by Check Point researchers. The researchers were able to spot 11 such apps with these suspicious packages. Here is the revised list of packages that were found to contain the Joker malware:
com.imagecompress.android
com.relax.relaxation.androidsms
com.file.recovefiles
com.training.memorygame
Push Message- Texting & SMS
Fingertip GameBox
com.contact.withme.texts
com.cheery.message.sendsms (two different instances)
com.LPlocker.lockapps
Safety AppLock
Emoji Wallpaper
com.hmvoice.friendsms
com.peason.lovinglovemessage
com.remindme.alram
Convenient Scanner 2
Separate Doc Scanner
The Counterpoint researchers suggest users tcheck their devices for these apps and immediately uninstall them. The user should then go through their credit card bills to check for any unintended subscription. If they find any discrepancies, they can unsubscribe to stay safe from future deductions. The user is also asked to install a security solution to provide any future issues. To read the detailed report on what caused the malware to enter Play Store click here.
Since the malware is very tricky to spot, it is expected to make a comeback in some applications. Users can keep tabs on their credit card statements to be sure that they aren’t victims to any of these apps.
