Security researchers at Doctor Web have discovered dozens of malicious games hiding in AppGallery responsible for infecting victims with a new variant of the Cynos malware. Cynos has been affecting Android users for seven years and is concealed in everything from adult content apps to harmless-looking virtual pet games. Doctor Web discovered one malicious app that had been installed more than 425,000 times, while another was downloaded by over 2 million victims.
The latest version of the malware detected in apps is Android.Cynos.7.origin, and was found in 190 games on AppGallery. Once installed, the game will request that users grant various permissions. Doctor Web found that the malicious apps are able to access information about a victim’s phone number, GPS coordinates, information about the wireless carrier’s network, and more. This can make it easier for cybercriminals to target victims with additional attacks such as SMS scams. Doctor Web reported that the latest version of the malware also has the ability to flood an infected device with ads in a process called digital ad fraud. This has been a worldwide issue for several years, with costs associated with digital ad fraud set to hit $44 billion by next year.
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