A new malware campaign has been discovered in over 1 million Android devices, according to a new report from the security firm Check Point. Dubbed “Googlian” by the firm, the campaign first emerged in August, and is currently compromising devices at a rate of roughly 13,000 per day.
According to Google, the malware isn’t accessing any personal emails or files. When the Android Security team scanned the affected accounts, it found no evidence of the malware accessing data or otherwise using the token for fraud.
Instead, the malware authors seem to be using their powers to game the Google Play app rankings.
Gooligan comes into play when the user downloads a third party application. The malware then begins to root the device and steal the users Google Play account details.
Instead of downloading inboxes or Drive accounts, the malware installs non-malicious apps from the Google Play Store, leaving five-star rankings for each app.
With over a million devices in on the scheme, the result is a huge boost in the Play Store rankings for the targeted app - potentially worth far more than a stolen credit card.
You can find out if you've been affected by following this link.
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