Why trust GreenbotA sneaky crew of 13 apps with relatively high ratings have vanished from the ay Store after security researchers discovered their hidden motives.
okout uncovered a batch of apps that are part of a malware family known as the Brain Trust. Apps with this vulnerability are able to gain root privilege to your device , like cockroaches who survive a mass extinction, live on even if you perform a factory reset.
The apps had another scheme: they were able to assign themselves good reviews using the infected devices. This is how games like Cake Tower Honey Comb were able to amass an average review score of 4.5 stars.
okout Blog Cake Tower Honey Comb offered malware disguised as harmless treats.
According to okout, the developers behind the malware were patient at choosing which type of apps to install finding ways to gain access to more users. It’s a rather scary scenario, as those who stick to the ay Store are generally able to avoid such security problems.
okout published the full list of apps that were kicked out:
okout Blog okout uncovered a total of 13 apps using the Brain Trust vulnerability.
If you downloaded one of the aforementioned apps, you can use the okout Security app to scan your phone see if it’s infected. okout recommends downloading flashing a stock ROM to get back to safety since the malware can survive a factory reset. If that’s above your skill level, then you’ll need to get in touch with customer support from your phone’s manufacturer.
y this matters: It’s rather curious how these apps were able to sneak through. The ay Store used to be a free-for-all, but now pre-screens tests apps just like Apple does with the App Store. However, security is always a cat–mouse game, will likely learn from this incident develop some new protocols for catching this vulnerability.
