The virus was contained within a game, known as “Colourblock”, downloaded from the Android market 50 thousand times
Despite Google’s reassurances, hackers continue to hide malware in apps that then manage to overcome the Play Store security system, thus ending up on the mobile devices of unsuspecting users. As in the latest case discovered by Kaspersky Lab researchers.
The experts of the well-known company specializing in computer security, in fact, have identified malicious code within a game, known as “Colourblock”, downloaded from Google’s digital market since the beginning of March as many as 50 thousand times. Dvmap, this is the name of the new trojan for Android, is very dangerous. Once the malware penetrates the victims’ devices, it installs a root exploit that allows the virus to overwrite the code of the green robot’s operating system. The risks for users are many: Dvmap can monitor the smartphone and install other malicious programs, such as adware.
Adware is a very peculiar virus that installs itself on the user’s device and tracks his movements online. The goal is to sell your personal data and show you advertisements to click on from time to time.
Dvmap: difficult to detect
Dvmap also poses a threat to your device’s stability, often crashing. However, this is not the first time that a malicious app ends up in the Play Store. A few weeks ago, FalseGuide, a virus that is estimated to have affected more than 2 million users, was discovered in Google’s store. And it’s not the only one. In the past, hackers had hidden malware inside a battery app.
The new malware discovered by Kaspersky Lab, however, features a modus operandi never seen before, which makes its detection very difficult. Hackers first uploaded the app to the Play Store without inserting any malicious code and only later updated the game by adding the virus, leaving the trojan in the app only for a short period.
Removed from Android
According to Kaspersky experts, cyber criminals used this trick at least 5 times in a span of just 4 weeks, thus tricking the Google Play Store security system. However, the malicious application has been removed from the Android market after Kaspersky’s report.