• Home
  • Cyber Crime
  • Cyber warfare
  • APT
  • Data Breach
  • Deep Web
  • Digital ID
  • Hacking
  • Hacktivism
  • Intelligence
  • Internet of Things
  • Laws and regulations
  • Malware
  • Mobile
  • Reports
  • Security
  • Social Networks
  • Terrorism
  • ICS-SCADA
  • POLICIES
  • Contact me
MUST READ

Nippon Steel Solutions suffered a data breach following a zero-day attack

 | 

Iranian group Pay2Key.I2P ramps Up ransomware attacks against Israel and US with incentives for affiliates

 | 

Hackers weaponize Shellter red teaming tool to spread infostealers

 | 

Microsoft Patch Tuesday security updates for July 2025 fixed a zero-day

 | 

Italian police arrested a Chinese national suspected of cyberespionage on a U.S. warrant

 | 

U.S. CISA adds MRLG, PHPMailer, Rails Ruby on Rails, and Synacor Zimbra Collaboration Suite flaws to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

 | 

IT Worker arrested for selling access in $100M PIX cyber heist

 | 

New Batavia spyware targets Russian industrial enterprises

 | 

Taiwan flags security risks in popular Chinese apps after official probe

 | 

U.S. CISA adds Google Chromium V8 flaw to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

 | 

Hunters International ransomware gang shuts down and offers free decryption keys to all victims

 | 

SECURITY AFFAIRS MALWARE NEWSLETTER ROUND 52

 | 

Security Affairs newsletter Round 531 by Pierluigi Paganini – INTERNATIONAL EDITION

 | 

North Korea-linked threat actors spread macOS NimDoor malware via fake Zoom updates

 | 

Critical Sudo bugs expose major Linux distros to local Root exploits

 | 

Google fined $314M for misusing idle Android users' data

 | 

A flaw in Catwatchful spyware exposed logins of +62,000 users

 | 

China-linked group Houken hit French organizations using zero-days

 | 

Cybercriminals Target Brazil: 248,725 Exposed in CIEE One Data Breach

 | 

Europol shuts down Archetyp Market, longest-running dark web drug marketplace

 | 
  • Home
  • Cyber Crime
  • Cyber warfare
  • APT
  • Data Breach
  • Deep Web
  • Digital ID
  • Hacking
  • Hacktivism
  • Intelligence
  • Internet of Things
  • Laws and regulations
  • Malware
  • Mobile
  • Reports
  • Security
  • Social Networks
  • Terrorism
  • ICS-SCADA
  • POLICIES
  • Contact me
  • Home
  • Breaking News
  • Cyber Crime
  • Malware
  • Mobile
  • Lockerpin, the first known Android lock-screen ransomware

Lockerpin, the first known Android lock-screen ransomware

Pierluigi Paganini September 13, 2015

Lockerpin is the first known Android lock-screen ransomware to set a phone’s PIN lock that is targeting mainly US mobile users.

Once again here we are to discuss a new mobile ransomware, this time the malicious Android app dubbed Android/Lockerpin.A locks out victims by changing lock screen PIN until owners pay a $US500 ransom.

Android/Lockerpin.A, the app first tricks users into granting it administrator privileges by displaying a bogus patch installation window on top of an activation notice.

ransomware PIN change Lockerpin

When victims click on the “continue” button, they grant the malicious app the administrator privileges which allow the app to modify the Android settings.

The Lockerpin ransomware changes the PIN used to unlock the screen lock, then the user only can do a factory reset to regain control over the smartphone.

“The trojan app has obtained administrator rights silently and now can lock [the] device—and even worse, it set[s] a new PIN for the lock screen. Not long after, the user will be prompted to pay a $US500 ransom for allegedly viewing and harboring forbidden pornographic material.” wrote in a blog post Lukas Stefanko, researcher at Eset firm. 

Differently from other ransomware, restarting the mobile device in safe mode will not allow the owner to disable the malicious Lockerpin app. According to ESET, Lockerpin is the first known Android lock-screen ransomware to set a phone’s PIN lock. It relies on the fear of the users to lose all of their data due to the factory reset.

“In previous Android LockScreen Trojans, the screen-locking functionality was usually achieved by constantly bringing the ransom window to the foreground in an infinite loop. While various self-defense mechanisms were implemented to keep the device user locked out, it wasn’t too difficult to get rid of the malware thus unlocking the device by using Android Debug Bridge (ADB) or deactivating Administrator rights and uninstalling the malicious application in Safe Mode.” continues the post.

Lockerpin is distributed through third-party app stores and masquerades as an app for providing adult content.

According to data provided by ESET, most of the infected Android devices are in the USA (75%), with a percentage share of over 75 per cent.

“This is part of a trend where Android malware writers are shifting from mostly targeting Russian and Ukrainian users to largely targeting victims in America, where arguably they can make bigger profits.” states ESET.

When malware is spread through official channels, App store and Play store, the situation could be much more dangerous for users due to the larger audience impacted as happened recently with the Android Adult Player malicious app.

Pierluigi Paganini

(Security Affairs – Lockerpin, ransomware)

 


facebook linkedin twitter

Android Cybercrime lock-screen ransomware Lockerpin malware ransomware

you might also like

Pierluigi Paganini July 09, 2025
Nippon Steel Solutions suffered a data breach following a zero-day attack
Read more
Pierluigi Paganini July 09, 2025
Iranian group Pay2Key.I2P ramps Up ransomware attacks against Israel and US with incentives for affiliates
Read more

leave a comment

newsletter

Subscribe to my email list and stay
up-to-date!

    recent articles

    Nippon Steel Solutions suffered a data breach following a zero-day attack

    Data Breach / July 09, 2025

    Iranian group Pay2Key.I2P ramps Up ransomware attacks against Israel and US with incentives for affiliates

    Malware / July 09, 2025

    Hackers weaponize Shellter red teaming tool to spread infostealers

    Malware / July 09, 2025

    Microsoft Patch Tuesday security updates for July 2025 fixed a zero-day

    Security / July 08, 2025

    Italian police arrested a Chinese national suspected of cyberespionage on a U.S. warrant

    Intelligence / July 08, 2025

    To contact me write an email to:

    Pierluigi Paganini :
    pierluigi.paganini@securityaffairs.co

    LEARN MORE

    QUICK LINKS

    • Home
    • Cyber Crime
    • Cyber warfare
    • APT
    • Data Breach
    • Deep Web
    • Digital ID
    • Hacking
    • Hacktivism
    • Intelligence
    • Internet of Things
    • Laws and regulations
    • Malware
    • Mobile
    • Reports
    • Security
    • Social Networks
    • Terrorism
    • ICS-SCADA
    • POLICIES
    • Contact me

    Copyright@securityaffairs 2024

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
    Cookie SettingsAccept All
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities...
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
    Non-necessary
    Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
    SAVE & ACCEPT