Over 200 malicious apps infiltrated the Google Play Store.

According to Gadget360 , Google has long promoted the strong security rules of the Play Store, promising to block the download of malicious apps. However, Kaspersky recently reported that Android users downloaded malware from the app store more than 600 million times in 2023.

A Kaspersky report indicates that malware developers have found new ways to bypass Google's security checks, allowing them to upload dangerous applications to the Play Store. The company has identified various types of infected content and applications present on the store, posing a significant security threat to Android users.

There have been over 600 million downloads of malware from the Google Play Store.

TECHSPOT SCREENSHOT

Leading the list of malicious apps are suspicious apps containing mini-game advertisements that collect data, with over 451 million downloads. According to reports, a malware called SpinOk has been found to have infected over 100 apps on the app store this year.

The report also noted over 100 million downloads of apps infected with hidden ads and over 35 million downloads of copies of the game Minecraft . The report stated that 38 copies of Minecraft containing hidden adware were found on the Play Store.

Additionally, suspicious apps promising rewards also garnered 20 million downloads. These primarily included health-tracking apps, enticing users to receive attractive rewards for completing fitness goals. The report also mentioned over 40 apps infected with background adware that had been downloaded 2.5 million times.

Two file management applications, with a combined total of 1.5 million downloads, were also found to be collecting user data. These spyware applications are believed to have sent sensitive user data such as contacts, location, photos, audio, and videos to servers in China.

Kaspersky experts also discovered applications infected with the Fleckpe trojan. When downloaded and run, they collect information about the victim's country and mobile service provider. They then automatically register the victim for paid services to drain their funds.

Additionally, the security company also noted over 50,000 downloads of the iRecorder screen recording app on Android. Operating on the app store since 2021, it contains malicious code that causes the app to record audio from the phone's microphone every 15 minutes and send it to the developer's server.

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