Google is a company that employs some of the best programmers in the world but sometimes even they make mistakes or create code that can be exploited. Such a thing has just happened to Android – despite all the updates and security patches that this mobile OS gets on a regular basis, new malware software that exploits a hole has been found.
This malicious software is known as Godless and has been discovered by specialists working for Trend Micro. The malware is said to be capable of downloading and installing apps on Android mobile devices without the consent or knowledge of their owners and all of this can be done remotely as well. According to Trend Micro, “With root privilege, the malware can then receive remote instructions on which app to download and silently install on mobile devices. This can then lead to affected users receiving unwanted apps, which may then lead to unwanted ads. Even worse, these threats can also be used to install backdoors and spy on users.” It is estimated that there are around 850 000 affected Android devices around the world so take this advice – download apps only from places that you trust and check user feedback.
The good news is that only Android 5.1 Lollipop and older Android versions are affected so if you have Android 6.0 Marshmallow installed then you are safe. Then again Marshmallow is installed on not that many Android devices, which means that there are millions and millions of possible victims with older Android versions.
Source: Ubergizmo.com