Android malware: Your banking details may be targeted

Android malware: Your banking details may be targeted

Mobile APIs are designed to be easy-to-use to encourage developers to build applications, but cybercriminals are exploiting them

Sharath Kumar

Monday, March 07, 2011

BANGALORE, INDIA: Several mobile phone applications were recently pulled down from the Official Android Market after they were found infected with malware. It is estimated that the malware could have affected thousands of mobile phones that run on Android platform through a long list of infected applications and compromise personal data.

In an interview with CIOL, Abhijit Limaye, Director, Development, Symantec, discussed the reasons for such attacks on the platform and the consequences. Here are excerpts:

Q: What is the impact of malware infection found in Android mobile applications?

Abhijit Limaye: Symantec is observing a rise in the attacks targeting the increasingly popular Android platform. These attacks are aimed at stealing information, downloading malicious code on to the mobile without the user’s knowledge or send text messages to premium numbers.

Also read: Malware infection forces Android to pull-down applications

For example, AndroidOS.Tapsnake relays information about the phone’s location to the malware authors. It conceals a Trojan in a seemingly legitimate version of the popular Snake game, which switches on the phone’s GPS and sends the user’s coordinates. Another threat that we have observed drops malware to monitor installed applications and download additional packages of code. It attempts to record the phone’s IMEI number – which is unique to every phone and is used to identify/track it.

We have also observed that Steamy Window, a free application, is also exploited. This app was modified to carry Android.Pjapps code without letting the user know that the application was malicious.

Q: What makes Android platform more vulnerable when compared to Apple's OS?

A: While mobile APIs are designed to be easy-to-use to encourage developers to build applications, the flip side is that cybercriminals are also evolving to exploit this for profit.

Also read: Android phones users warned of Hong Tou Tou

Q: What were the attacks, so far detected, designed for?

A: Malicious authors have taken a variety of popular free apps from the official Android market and bundled them with malware capable of rooting the phone, harvesting data, or opening a back door. Of late, Symantec has been seeing a lot of threats like Android.Geinimi and Android.Pjapps.

Some of the information that malware on Android devices have been observed to compromise include the phone’s coordinates based on GPS, the phone’s unique IMEI number, administrative rights and screen shots of the phone.
Some malicious code can also silently pull additional malware into the phone as a background service, or hook the device on to a mobile botnet. Malware that steals data from the Android device is also a possibility – with many of us using phones for banking or social networking, these details are valuable for attackers.

Also read: How important is security for your mobile phone

Q: Do you see the malware affecting other mobile gadgets too?

A: Unfortunately, it is not just mobile phones that are vulnerable to these dangers. Today, the Android OS is used in several tablets, and they are equally vulnerable to such threats. In fact, JP Morgan Securities estimates that tablet market shipments will be over US$ 35.2 billion by 2012. This is a threat not only to personal information, but also corporate confidential data. Over 80 per cent of Fortune 100 companies are using or testing a tablet, an increase from 65 per cent three months ago, according to Apple Inc. As these devices access enterprise networks, they are opening up a window for attackers to steal critical data through the compromised device.

Q: What can be the impact of the attacks?

A: Since many of these malicious applications are designed to appear as legitimate free applications, several users could be infected. These threats are particularly prevalent in unregulated Android marketplaces in regions that don’t yet have an official Android marketplace.

Cybercriminals make use of the growing desire among users in these regions to enjoy the benefits of mobile applications and package malware into seemingly legitimate games and tools. For example, the Trojan Android.Geinimi – which transmits information from the phone – was bundled into over 20 applications in the unregulated market.
At the same time, attackers are also finding ways to sneak into the official marketplace.

Most recently, Symantec observed that some popular free apps, bundled with malware, were being republished in the official Android marketplace under different application and publisher names. According to sources, 50,000 to 200,000 downloads took place within a four-day time frame that the apps were made available. Since then, Google has removed these apps from the official Android marketplace.

©CIOL Bureau

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