The Malware problem in Android devices is increasing day by day. The OS already had fairly huge problems with its security. Leading to, some users switching to other devices such as iOS. According to a report, more than 60 apps with more than 100 million downloads contain malware in. With Billions of Android users worldwide, this problem is getting bigger than it already is. The individuals and companies responsible for creating these apps use them for cyber crimes like data stealing and spyware. These Malware companies are speculated to profit of as much as 400 million USD every year.
Who is Responsible for this Malware?
Google Play can be blamed for this because of its subpar malware detection. There are currently hundreds and thousands of applications on the store that have been proved to contain actual malware. And not just malware, applications on the platform also posses virus, fleeceware and trojan. However, Putting all the blame on Google Play Store is not justified. The main culprit this time are Pre-installed apps.
Hackers nowadays are trying to hack into any of the pre-installed applications that come with affordable android phones. These phones sometimes come with dozens of pre-installed apps. Most of which are sometimes not even required for proper functioning. The hackers only need to hack into one of them to create a chain of malware in any phones that has the app installed. It is also not easy to get rid of these kinds of malware. While, you can uninstall the application responsible, you can’t realistically remove the malware from the Android firmware.
Open Source Firmware Problems
Android is an open source platform. This means that nearly anyone can use android to make firmware for their device. And a lot of people actually do that. This leads to a lot affordable devices currently available in the market. There is a downside tho, Most of these firmware are not that great on the security front. It has been found that a lot of these firmware contain hidden apps, consisting of adware and malware. And since, most of these firmware are derived from older firmware, they also inherit these ‘Hidden Apps’.
The most common devices loaded with malware are suspected to come from Chinese smartphone companies. The infected devices are most common in regions like Europe and Asia. It is estimated that nearly 9 million devices are infected with these apps. These apps are dangerous for user privacy and data security. These plugins can allow hackers to tap into anyone’s device to steal data or use any phone to tap into another phone.
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