It’s not uncommon for either Google or Apple to seek out and remove apps riddled with adware or malware from their respective stores. Recently, Google reportedly flagged down no less than 85 adware-infested apps on the Play Store and removed them instantly.
The apps in question contained adware known by its technical label “AndroidOS_Hidenad.HRXH”, was first discovered by the antivirus and cybersecurity company, Trend Micro. The adware contains unique techniques that allow it to avoid detection, while also allowing it to keep showing off unskippable and difficult-to-close advertisements on a user’s phone.
Not surprising then, that Trend Micro would describe the adware as being “incredibly difficult” to deal with. One of the “unique techniques” used to avoid immediate deletion supposedly includes performing “several checks before it executes its routines” and comparing the several timestamps with each other.
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The bad news is that the affected apps were reportedly downloaded a total of eight million times. The good news is the Trend Micro says that as long as your device is running on the latest Android OS, your pretty much out of the woods. This is because the newer versions of Android will prompt you with a confirmation box, essentially becoming the last line of defence between the infected app and your phone.
(Source: Trend Micro via Techspot)
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