According to Symantec , 13 apps from three developers — many in the prescribed Android Market — have been carryingmalicious chunks of codecalled Android . Counterclank , and are distrust of prevail on as many asfive million phone , slip info and running ads against the will of the twist ’s owner .
ComputerWorld , speaking to Symantec , learned that the apps have been downloadable for over a month , and Symantec call off it the biggest Android malware outbreak to appointment .
Some of the 13 apps that Symantec identified as infected have been on the Android Market for at least a month , according to the revisal dates mail on the Es - store . Symantec , however , discovered them only yesterday .
exploiter had note something fishy before then .
“ The biz is decent … but every time you run this secret plan , a ‘ search ikon gets append arbitrarily to one of your screens , ” said one substance abuser on Jan. 16 after downloading “ Deal & Be Millionaire , ” one of the 13 . “ I keep deleting the icon , but it always reappear . If you tapdance the icon you get a page that looks suspiciously like the Google hunt page . ”
The apps , distributed by iApps7 , Ogre Games and redmicapps , are mostly games with titles such as Counter Strike Hit Force , Wild Man and Stripper Touch female child . Here ’s the full list :
Counter Elite Force
Counter Strike Ground Force
CounterStrike Hit Enemy
Heart Live Wallpaper
Hit Counter Terrorist
Stripper Touch girl
Balloon Game
Deal & Be Millionaire
Wild Man
Pretty women intimate apparel mystifier
Sexy Girls Photo Game
Sexy Girls puzzler
Sexy Women Puzzle
Not - so - shockingly Symantec believes these newspaper publisher exist only to dish out malware . Google might need to get free of those .
UPDATE : Computerworld alsoposted a followupfrom an Android - centrical protection house , Lookout , who take that the demeanour of these apps is on equation with at least 10 other ad meshing , and should n’t be see malware . They say Symantec has overblown their own findings . Symantec has yet to respond . [ SymantecviaComputerWorld ]
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