Having a malicious app is not new for Android because Android Play Store has many malicious app history. Few months back it was Flashlight app and many more. Recently a new malicious app has been detected in Android play store.
Android users are familiar with the game named #Minecraft. There has been many malicious app distributing under the same name pretending to be the game tips and cheats.
More than 3 Million users has downloaded this malicious app and a security researcher warned that 33 fake apps has been uploaded to Google Play Store in the past 9 months time masquerading as Minecraft cheats and tips.
These 33 apps has been downloaded between 660000 and 2.8 million times. Once downloaded the app will show the false banner that a virus has been detected and alerts the user to remove the virus and thereby fooling the user and activating the premium-rate SMS subscription that cost 177 euros per year.
Many users are downloading this malicious app because the game seems to be from the original developer with different feature names and icons. After researching it was found that 33 apps has been uploaded from various account but it is believed to be from a same person.
The app also uses the legitimate mobile anti-virus vendor name G-Data and pops up the alert thus making no alarm to the user. The fake apps has been removed from the Google Play Store.
The users cannot be asked to be safe because it has been uploaded to Genuine Google Play Store only Google has to stop the uploading of fake app to the store.
Google has introduced bouncer bots to detect and remove the malicious apps and also introduced in past March that they are gonna do the manual review of any app before publishing it in Google Play Store.
P.S : The post is to create awareness and not to create any negative impact.
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