Trojan trouble: Google bans 11 apps from Play Store

Google has removed 11 dangerous apps from its Play Store that contain a subscription Trojan. This Trojan is a serious threat to Android smartphone users as it can sign them up for expensive monthly subscriptions without their knowledge, leaving them out of pocket. Cybercriminals use these types of apps to generate illegal income.

Kaspersky, the leading cybersecurity firm, discovered these dangerous apps and urged users to delete them immediately to avoid any unauthorized payments.

Apps caught in Google's crosshairs downloaded hundreds of thousands of times

The rogue applications were downloaded over 615,000 times and have been removed from the Play Store. However, this doesn't help anyone who has already installed them.

The apps listed below are thought to be the most dangerous by Google:

• Beauty Camera Plus (com.beauty.camera.plus.photoeditor)
• Beauty Photo Camera (com.apps.camera.photos)
• Beauty Slimming Photo Editor (com.beauty.slimming.pro)
• Fingertip Graffiti (com.draw.graffiti)
• GIF Camera Editor (com.gif.camera.editor)
• HD 4K Wallpaper (com.hd.h4ks.wallpaper)
• Impressionism Pro Camera (com.impressionism.prozs.app)
• Microclip Video Editor (com.microclip.vodeoeditor)
• Night Mode Camera Pro (com.urox.opixe.nightcamreapro)
• Photo Camera Editor (com.toolbox.photoeditor)
• Photo Effect Editor (com.picture.pictureframe)

The subscription Trojan can hide on a user's device and sign them up for expensive monthly subscriptions without their knowledge. It's a serious issue, as affected users often don't discover the unwanted subscriptions until it's too late.

These apps have been found to affect users in areas such as Thailand, Poland, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore. Reports have come in from all over the world, making this a significant problem.

The Trojan is not entirely new

Kaspersky noted that the Trojan had been active since 2022 and that they had found 11 Fleckpe-infected apps on Google Play, which had been installed on over 620,000 devices. Although the apps have since been removed, the actual number of installations could be higher, as cybercriminals might have deployed other, undiscovered, apps.

It's vital for Android smartphone owners to be vigilant and check their devices for any signs of unauthorized payments. If any of the apps mentioned above are still installed, they should be deleted immediately to avoid falling victim to cybercriminals.

Google's Play Store has been working to remove these Play Store banned apps to keep their users safe. It's essential to keep up with the latest security alerts to protect ourselves from cyber threats.

Advertisement