Vaporized Trust: The Malicious App Campaign Hijacking Your Screen and Your Wallet
Cybersecurity researchers have uncovered a large-scale ad fraud campaign, codenamed Vapor, using hundreds of malicious apps on the Google Play Store. These apps, masquerading as legitimate, have been downloaded over 60 million times, bombarding users with full-screen ads and phishing attempts, proving that even your phone wants to join the “Get Rich Quick” scheme.
Hot Take:
Who knew that the Google Play Store was a one-stop shop for malicious apps, phishing attacks, and a full-blown ad festival? I guess these cybercriminals took “going viral” a bit too literally by turning our screens into ad-ridden canvases. Talk about app-etite for destruction!
Key Points:
- A massive ad fraud campaign dubbed “Vapor” has been exploiting Google Play Store with over 180 malicious apps.
- The apps display intrusive full-screen ads and engage in phishing attacks to collect credentials and credit card information.
- The operation amassed over 56 million downloads and generated more than 200 million ad bid requests daily.
- Threat actors employed “versioning” to fool Google’s vetting process, only activating malicious features in updates.
- The campaign utilizes techniques like hiding app icons and mimicking Google Voice to evade detection.
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