Android

Pierluigi Paganini October 14, 2017
DoubleLocker, the Android Ransomware that encrypts files and changes PIN Lock

Crooks have developed a strain of Android ransomware dubbed Doublelocker that both encrypts user data and changes PIN Lock. DoubleLocker, the name says it all, is a new malware that not only encrypts the Android mobile devices but also changes PIN lock. The DoubleLocker ransomware was discovered by security researchers from cybersecurity firm ESET. DoubleLocker is the first-ever […]

Pierluigi Paganini September 27, 2017
ZNIU, the first Android malware family to exploit the Dirty COW vulnerability

Security experts at Trend Micro have recently spotted a new strain of Android malware, dubbed ZNIU, that exploits the Dirty COW Linux kernel vulnerability. The Dirty COW vulnerability was discovered by the security expert Phil Oester in October 2016, it could be exploited by a local attacker to escalate privileges. The name ‘Dirty COW’ is due to the fact that it’s […]

Pierluigi Paganini September 19, 2017
New Android Banking Trojan Red Alert 2.0 available for sale on crime forums

Researchers discovered a new Android banking Trojan, dubbed Red Alert 2.0, that is being offered for rent on many dark websites for $500 per month. Researchers with security firm SfyLabs have discovered a new Android banking Trojan, dubbed Red Alert 2.0, that is being offered for rent on many dark websites for $500 per month. “The last […]

Pierluigi Paganini September 15, 2017
Premium SMS malware EXPENSIVEWALL infected millions of Android handsets

Google removed 50 malicious apps from the official Play Store after experts discovered a new malware, dubbed ExpensiveWall, eluded Google Bouncer checks. Google has removed 50 malicious apps from the official Play Store after experts with security firm Check Point discovered a new malware, dubbed ExpensiveWall,  eluded the checks of the Google’s Bouncer. The ExpensiveWall malware was […]

Pierluigi Paganini September 11, 2017
Toast Overlay attacks, a Cloak and Dagger with No Permissions, fixed by Google

Google just fixed a high-severity Android vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2017-0752, that ties with the Toast Overlay attacks. Security researchers with Palo Alto Networks Unit 42, warned of a high-severity Android vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2017-0752, that ties with the “toast attack” overlay vulnerability. The experts reported that it is possible to abuse Android’s toast notification, a feature […]

Pierluigi Paganini September 06, 2017
Boffins found multiple flaws in Mobile Bootloaders using custom tool BootStomp

Boffins have discovered a series of code execution and denial of service flaws in the bootloaders of popular mobile platforms using custom tool BootStomp. A group of nine researchers from the University of California Santa Barbara researchers has discovered a number of code execution and denial of service flaw in the bootloaders of Android chipsets from six vendors. […]

Pierluigi Paganini September 03, 2017
Google removed almost 300 Android apps involved in DDoS attack

Google removed almost 300 Android apps from the official Play Store after expert at ESET reported they were abused for a DDoS attack. This week Google has removed at least 300 apps from the Official Play Store after learning that apps were being hijacked to power DDoS attacks. “We identified approximately 300 apps associated with […]

Pierluigi Paganini August 30, 2017
Android Banking Trojan MoqHao targets South Korea users

Security researchers from McAfee have spotted a new Android banking Trojan dubbed MoqHao, targeting South Korean users via SMS phishing messages. Attackers send phishing emails with a malicious code link that tricks victims into believing that it points to a lost private picture or a Chrome update. When victims click on the shortened links in the SMS […]

Pierluigi Paganini August 25, 2017
Mobile Trojan Development Kits allow creating ransomware without the need to write code

Researchers at Symantec have discovered Trojan Development Kits that allow creating Android ransomware without the need to write code. Ransomware continues to represent a serious threat to users and organizations. Unfortunately, it is easy for crooks arranging their own ransomware campaign by using numerous RaaS services offered online. Recently researchers at Symantec discovered a new […]

Pierluigi Paganini August 18, 2017
Faketoken evolves and targets taxi booking apps to steal banking info

Kaspersky discovered a news strain of the mobile banking Trojan Faketoken that displays overlays on top of taxi booking apps to steal banking information. Security experts from Kaspersky have discovered a news strain of the infamous mobile banking trojan Faketoken that implements capabilities to detect and record an infected device’s calls and display overlays on top […]