Malware in popular Android app steals your Facebook credentials - Delete it now
Imagine downloading a fun photo-editing app in hopes of turning yourself into a cartoon. Instead, the app doesn’t even work — and to add insult to injury, it steals your Facebook credentials. This isn’t imaginary: It’s based on a true story of about 100,000 people who recently downloaded a malicious app.
You don’t have to gamble on random, suspicious apps to edit your face and have fun. You can rely on a trustworthy brand like Adobe and download Photoshop Express for free photo editing fun. Tap or click here for five new features in Photoshop Express you haven’t heard about.
Despite its cute and playful theme, Craftsart Cartoon Photo Tools contained dangerous Android trojan malware called Facestealer. If you’re one of the thousands of people who fell for this app, your phone could be infected. Here’s all you need to know about this threat and how to protect yourself.
Luckily, Google pulled it from the app store on Monday
It’s all thanks to a French mobile security team called Pradeo. Cybersecurity researchers blew the whistle on Pradeo’s blog. On Monday, researchers pointed out that the app stole users’ Facebook credentials through social engineering schemes.
Craftsart would tell victims they couldn’t edit photos without first logging into Facebook. Victims would then enter their Facebook username and password into what they thought was the official site. In reality, they were using a dupe that sent their credentials to a criminal server with ties to Russia.
That’s right: Craftsart Cartoon Photo Tools connected to a domain Pradeo says is registered in Russia. This domain has been linked to many malicious mobile apps throughout the years. This is especially troubling considering President Biden warned the country about Russian cyberattacks on Monday.
“The more Putin’s back is against the wall, the greater the severity of the tactics he may employ,” President Biden said. “One of the tools he’s most likely to use in my view, in our view, is cyberattacks.”
RELATED: How to prepare for Russia’s impending cyberattacks on America
What you can do
After Pradeo alerted Google Play, the malicious app disappeared. Luckily, no one else can fall for its tricks now. But if you downloaded it in the past, you might be hearing some alarm bells in the back of your head.
This messaging app with 500K+ downloads is hiding malware that steals your money
Malware has evolved over the years to make detection incredibly difficult. Part of the problem is that many malicious apps behave like legitimate ones – stealing your data while hiding in plain sight.
When these apps are detected by security researchers or mobile phone developers, they’re typically removed quickly from the respective stores. Tap or click here to see if your phone could be harboring some of these apps.
Nasty malware spotted in 6 apps - delete these now
Has your phone been acting up recently? Are you experiencing sluggish performance or a surge of annoying popups? Have you noticed an unexplained uptick in your monthly Google Play statement? If so, you may have fallen victim to the latest batch of malware lurking in plain sight on Google’s app store.