“Godless”: A malware that can leave your Android device rooted

A newly discovered malware named “Godless” has been traced within some of the apps in Google Play Store.

According to TrendMicro, the Godless family of malwares is capable of rooting your device i.e. removing all the barriers placed by the manufacturers leaving your phone open to many issues and making it more vulnerable.

“What makes Godless particularly dangerous, is its ability to use multiple exploits to hack into your device. “We came across a family of mobile malware called Godless (detected as ANDROIDOS_GODLESS.HRX) that has a set of rooting exploits in its pockets. By having multiple exploits to use, Godless can target virtually any Android device running on Android 5.1 (Lollipop) or earlier. As of this writing, almost 90 percent of Android devices run on affected versions,” reports TrendMicro.

So basically, any device that runs Android Lollipop or below — including ICS, Jelly Bean, Kitkat, etc. is open to infection through this malware. Also, a significant 46 percent of the infected devices, or almost 400,000, hailed from India.

As per TrendMicro- “Based on the data gathered from our TrendMicro Mobile App Reputation Service, malicious apps related to this threat can be found in prominent app stores, including Google Play, and has affected over 850,000 devices worldwide.”

However, the App — Summer Flashlight — and the developer — Team Crazy WiFi — have been removed from the Play Store.

Meanwhile, there are a few steps you can take to ensure your safety and peace of mind. One, always install apps from verified publishers and stores, such as Google Play. Two, install a good antivirus system on your device. There are certain free ones like Avast and AVG out there that in my personal experience, have always managed to get the job done. Three, don’t click on links or download stuff requested by random people.