Android malware apps master list — stay away from these titles at all costs

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Official app stores are without a doubt the best place to download software for your phone, particularly when it comes to security. For Android phone owners that place is typically the Google Play Store, but every once in a while malicious apps manage to break through the wall despite all the precautions and safety measures.Figuring out which app is not safe can be difficult though, as the developers that make the malicious ones implement tricky tactics to fool you before and after you tap on the download button. For that reason, we have compiled all of the latest reports containing information about flagged malicious apps on the Google Play Store in chronological order, starting with the most recent one.

Keep in mind that even if an app is removed from Google’s Play Store, that doesn’t mean it will disappear from your phone if you have already downloaded it beforehand. What’s more, many of these apps pop up on the Play Store under a slightly different name after being taken down.

Reports on dangerous Android apps

Cybersecurity firm CloudSEK research (June 1, 2023)

The Cybersecurity firm CloudSEK carried out research via their own proprietary software and discovered apps that contain or had previously contained malware. A total of 193 apps were found, with 43 of them still active on the Google Play Store at the time. These apps have the ability to obtain server addresses, as well as personal data and files.CloudSEK states that the number of users affected by these apps amounts to approximately 30 million, and that most of these apps are casual games that are easily forgotten after being installed and played a little. The researchers advise users to regularly scan their phones via an antivirus software to catch such malicious apps before they get the chance to do damage.

Top 10 infected apps based on number of installs:

  • HexaPop Link 2248 (+5 million downloads)
  • Macaron Match (+1 million downloads)
  • Macaron Boom (+1 million downloads)
  • Jelly Connect (+1 million downloads)
  • Tiler Master (+1 million downloads)
  • Crazy Magic Ball (+1 million downloads)
  • Bitcoin Master (+ 1 million downloads)
  • Happy 2048 (+1 million downloads)
  • Mega Win Slots (+500,000 downloads)

Full list:

GitHub list with SpinOk malware apps (May 29, 2023)

A list of 101 apps containing a SpinOk module with spyware features was shared in GitHub, a platform where developers store and manage their code.

The SpinOk module is presented as a marketing SDK. It collects information from the files on your phone and can then send that data back to the source. It can also gather sensor data from your phone’s sensors to avoid detection by security researchers, which makes it especially dangerous.

As you might notice from looking at the list below, most of the applications are either some kind of game or contain a “prize-winning” system. That is the disguise these apps use to trick users into downloading and engaging them afterward.

The apps listed below are reported to have been installed over 421,000,000 times when the list was uploaded to the website, so the chances are not that slim that one is living in your phone’s app drawer.

Full list:

Kaspersky discovers Android subscription malware (May 4, 2023)

The cybersecurity firm Kaspersky discovered a new family of Trojan subscribers on Google Play at the beginning of May this year, dubbing it Fleckpe. The malware is mostly seen in photo editing apps and wallpaper packs.

After downloading the app and it gets access to your notifications, it sends out a confirmation code. The malware then runs on your phone, contacting the source it came from and providing information about your location and mobile carrier.

Once the information is acquired, the hackers send a paid subscription page that the trojan opens via an invisible browser to sign the user up for a paid subscription using the confirmation code mentioned above. This whole process is completely hidden and the user never finds out about it while using the downloaded app.

Full list:

  • Beauty Camera Plus
  • Beauty Photo Camera
  • Beauty Slimming Photo Editor
  • Fingertip Graffiti
  • GIF Camera Editor
  • HD 4K Wallpaper
  • Impressionism Pro Camera
  • Microclip Video Editor
  • Night Mode Camera Pro
  • Photo Camera Editor
  • Photo Effect Editor

MalwareFox list of known Android Malware Apps (March 16, 2023)

MalwareFox is a company that makes anti-malware software programs, and in March it detailed a list of the latest Android viruses plaguing the Google Play Store. In their report, they talk about each virus and what it does to compromise security.

List of viruses and the top 25 apps some of them were found in:

Harly Trojan Joker Spyware Autolycos Malware
  • Fare Gamehub and Box
  • Hope Camera-Picture Record
  • Same Launcher and Live Wallpaper
  • Amazing Wallpaper
  • Cool Emoji Editor and Sticke
  • Simple Note Scanner – com.wuwan.pdfscan
  • Universal PDF Scanner – com.unpdf.scan.read.docscanuniver
  • Private Messenger – com.recollect.linkus
  • Premium SMS – com.premium.put.trustsms
  • Blood Pressure Checker – com.bloodpressurechecker.tangjiang
  • Cool Keyboard – com.colate.gthemekeyboard
  • Paint Art
  • Color Message
  • Vlog Star Video Editor
  • Creative 3D Launcher
  • Wow Beauty Camera
  • Gif Emoji Keyboard
  • Instant Heart Rate Anytime
  • Delicate Messenger

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