Protect Yourself from Dangerous Spyware Apps: Spotting the Six Threats Hiding on Your Android or iPhone

2023-07-09 08:54:29
Advertisement These spyware apps can take many forms — but there are six that you should look out for, as they can appear on your Android or iPhone as a legitimate app. Speaking to the British newspaper The Sun, technical expert Klaus Schenk, Senior Vice President of Security and Threat Research at Verimatrix confirmed that these applications containing malware can often slow down the performance of an Android phone or iPhone – and even drain battery life. Dr. Schenck explained how five popular app categories are often used to get dangerous malware onto your phone. What are these applications? In this context, the expert said: “Malicious actors often use various methods to disguise malware or spyware within seemingly innocent applications.” “One common method is to embed malware into dropper apps, or ‘droppers’, which can then silently install malicious code on the user’s device,” he added. These dangerous apps can take several forms that can appear on your device as a legitimate app. Popular categories of apps that have been known to contain malware include PDF viewers, calculators, converters, games, and QR code readers. There’s also a sixth type of download you should look out for: popular apps. Cybercriminals often disguise their dangerous apps as popular downloaders like WhatsApp or Twitter. Another method, Dr. Klaus warned, is to repackage legitimate apps, such as popular messaging apps like WhatsApp, with injected malware, exploiting users’ trust in familiar apps. How do you protect yourself? To protect yourself from such threats, it is advised to use official platform app stores while avoiding sideloading apps from untrusted sources. And carefully read user reviews that don’t mention any signs of fraudulent activity. If you notice that an app is behaving strangely, check its activity and the permissions granted to it in your Settings. It’s best to delete an app if you think it’s suspicious — especially if you never or rarely use it. Another important tip is that if you notice a change in your phone’s behavior following downloading an app such as: slowing down, draining battery, or overheating, it might be worth considering hitting the delete button.
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