Over 24 different applications carrying a wallpaper in tow made it to the Play Store. Here is a list of Android apps that have Malware going by the name Joker. Every Android user must uninstall these apps right now.
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Android and Malware
Android is the most widely used Smartphone operating system at the moment. Since it’s an open-source OS, anyone with good programming skills can manipulate the behavior of apps easily. Not only that, the malicious applications are then published on to the Play Store and then masses begin to installing those apps. This is where things go wrong. Now, when we talk about the Malware on Android operating system, we need to understand a few things.
Malware on Android doesn’t necessarily mean that it will corrupt your system or make the phone un-operatable. The moto of sending out Malware to an Android user through an App is quite different.
For the most part, it has to do with stealing information from the phone. The list of 24 applications that have come out today, those apps can manipulate a user’s behavior without the user knowing about it.
When you install the apps and run them, they ask you for specific permissions like accessing your contacts, call logs, location, camera, etc. As soon as you grant these permissions, the applications are free to do anything on the phone and you will never know about what’s happening in the background.
The list of infected Android apps includes 24 apps in total. All these apps are designed to steal information from Android phones. The primary goal of these apps is to sign the users up for premium services. Your credit card details and other data is transferred to these apps making things worst. To cut it short, you will end up losing your very very sensitive information along with a few hard-earned bucks.
This Malware carries the name, Joker. I won’t be surprised if it reminds you of the Batman Dark Knight’s Joker because the goal of this Malware seems to be inspired from original Joker’s role from that movie.
Take a look at the further explanation of the Joker Malware in Android Apps.
Joker Malware in Android Apps
Aleksejs Kuprins, Malware Analyst at CSIS Security Group took a deeper look into this malware and named it as Joker after watching its behavior. Here is what Kuprins has to say about it.
“For example, in Denmark, Joker can silently sign the victim up for a 50 DKK/week service (roughly ~6,71 EUR). This strategy works by automating the necessary interaction with the premium offer’s webpage, entering the operator’s offer code, then waiting for a SMS message with a confirmation code and extracting it using regular expressions. Finally, the Joker submits the extracted code to the offer’s webpage, in order to authorize the premium subscription.”
Google has already removed those applications from the Play Store, but Google cannot remove them if you have already installed any one of them on your phone. Take a look at the list of Joker Malware-infected Apps below and uninstall them right now.
Android Apps that have Malware
- Advocate Wallpaper
- Age Face
- Antivirus Security – Security Scan
- Altar Message
- Board Picture Editing
- Beach Camera
- Climate SMS
- Collate Face Scanner
- Certain Wallpaper
- Declare Message
- Dazzle Wallpaper
- Display Camera
- Great VPN
- Humor Camera
- Ignite Clean
- Leaf Face Scanner
- Mini Camera
- Print Plant Scan
- Rapid Face Scanner
- Ruddy SMS
- Soby Camera
- Spark Wallpaper
To uninstall these apps, open the app drawer on the phone and long-press the icon of the app > click on uninstall.
