A mobile phone virus that spreads by texting contacts in the victim’s phone book is hitting U.S. Android users, security firm AdaptiveMobile says. Dubbed Gazon, the worm tricks recipients into downloading an app by promising $200 in Amazon gift cards. Some 4,000 users have been infected — most in the U.S. — and their phones have already sent 200,000 booby-trapped messages, AdaptiveMobile says.
“This is the fastest growing text-message malware targeting Android that has been seen to date,” the firm said in a release.
The malware works like this: a user gets an enticing, personalized text from a friend or contact that reads, ‘ Hey [NAME], I am sending you $200 Amazon Gift Card You can Claim it here,” followed by a link. Because the message appears to come from a trusted person, the recipient is more likely to click. Users are then invited to download an “awards app.” In one scenario, users are then asked to take a survey, netting the criminals a few marketing affiliate dollars. In the meantime, the app rummages through the victim’s phone, then sends out copies of itself to all the victim’s contacts.
Of course, the way to avoid this virus is to never download any apps from random places. Android’s open platform makes it possible to download apps from anywhere, but you shouldn’t do that. These kids of malware outbreaks are more common in Asia, where consumers frequently download apps from multiple places. U.S. consumers tend to stick with the Google Play store. That’s why this virus is noteworthy — 4,000 infections doesn’t sound like a lot, but it might break new ground and signal bigger problems ahead. The “but a friend sent it” technique has been really effective in the past.
There is a mobile phone virus doomsday scenario out there, and it’s pretty ugly. Those of you “experienced” enough to remember the LoveBug or Melissa PC viruses know how effective the message-everyone-in-your -contacts technique can be. It can turn 1,000 infections into a million infections within a few moments. That’s bad enough when your Outlook email is involved and your PC gets crippled for a little while. What if something similar happened to your smartphone?
Many factors have so far prevented a LoveBug-like outbreak on phones.The most obvious is the lack of homogeneity. There are many different telephone operating systems, and many versions of each, making it virtually impossible to write a virus that would infect all of them. When Melissa struck, Windows PCs were on nearly every desktop in every corporation in the Western world, and in much of the rest of the world.
However, the day is growing closer that something a bit like LoveBug will hit smartphones. And it’s going to hurt. When people spam all their phone contacts, or can’t use their phones for a few hours, the impact will be much greater than a virus attack on a PC. If there is a widespread mobile phone virus outbreak, there will be much wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Sign up for Bob Sullivan’s free email newsletter.
Be the first to comment