google play
Google blocked 2.36 million risky Android apps from Play Store in 2024
Google blocked 2.3 million Android app submissions to the Play Store in 2024 due to violations of its policies that made them potentially risky for users. In addition, 158,000 developer accounts were banned for attempting to publish harmful apps like malware and spyware on Android’s official app store. In comparison, Google blocked 2,280,000 risky apps in 2023 and 1,500,000 […]
New Android Identity Check locks settings outside trusted locations
Google has announced a new Android “Identity Check” security feature that lock sensitive settings behind biometric authentication when outside a trusted location. The new feature is part of Anroid’s theft protection suite, which includes features like last year’s Theft Detection Lock, which is now rolling out to more Android device models. The new Identity Check feature is […]
SpyLoan Android malware on Google play installed 8 million times
A new set of 15 SpyLoan Android malware apps with over 8 million installs was discovered on Google Play, targeting primarily users from South America, Southeast Asia, and Africa. The apps were discovered by McAfee, a member of the ‘App Defense Alliance,’ and have now been removed from Android’s official app store. However, their presence on […]
Over 200 malicious apps on Google Play downloaded millions of times
Google Play, the official store for Android, distributed over a period of one year more than 200 malicious applications, which cumulatively counted nearly eight million downloads. The data was collected between June 2023 and April 2024 by threat intelligence researchers at Zscaler, who identified and analyzed malware families both on Google Play and other distribution platforms. […]
Google removes Kaspersky’s antivirus software from Play Store
Over the weekend, Google removed Kaspersky’s Android security apps from the Google Play store and disabled the Russian company’s developer accounts. Users have been reporting over the last week that Kaspersky’s products (including Kaspersky Endpoint Security and VPN & Antivirus by Kaspersky) are no longer available on Google Play in the United States and other world regions. Kaspersky confirmed the issue on the company’s official forums on […]
‘Pig butchering’ trading apps found on Google Play, App Store
Fake trading apps on Google Play and Apple’s App Store lure victims into “pig butchering” scams that have a global reach. The apps have been removed from the official Android and iOS stores after accumulating several thousand downloads, say researcher at cybersecurity company Group-IB, who discovered the fraud. Pig butchering is the name of a scam […]
Fake WalletConnect app on Google Play steals Android users crypto
A crypto draining app mimicking the legitimate ‘WalletConnect’ project has been distributed over Google Play for five months getting more than 10,000 downloads. The malicious app used the name WallConnect and posed as a lightweight Web3 tool with various blockchain functionalities, offering to act as a proxy between cryptocurrency wallets and decentralized applications (dApps). The real […]
New Android malware ‘Necro’ infects 11 million devices via Google Play
A new version of the Necro malware loader for Android was installed on 11 million devices through Google Play in malicious SDK supply chain attacks. This new version of the Necro Trojan was installed through malicious advertising software development kits (SDK) used by legitimate apps, Android game mods, and modified versions of popular software, such as Spotify, […]
Android spyware ‘Mandrake’ hidden in apps on Google Play since 2022
A new version of the Android spyware ‘Mandrake’ has been found in five applications downloaded 32,000 times from Google Play, the platform’s official app store. Bitdefender first documented Mandrake in 2020, with the researchers highlighting the malware’s sophisticated spying capabilities and noting that it has operated in the wild since at least 2016. Kaspersky now reports that […]
Best Sleep Tracker Apps Tested
A good night’s rest is important to one’s health, and here is the best app to help you catch those Zs. Many people are unaware of their sleep quality and duration. The CDC reports that 50-70 million Americans have chronic sleep disorders. Sleep-tracking apps can monitor sleep hours, quality, and more. While smartwatches often have these features, […]