Google has issued a warning to people to stop downloading “malicious apps” in an effort to improve the safety of their smartphones.
In order to catch up with Apple iPhone, Google has flagged the permissions of many Play Store apps that are considered high risk.
We’ve also introduced live, AI-powered threat detection that can alert you as soon as dangerous malware appears on your phone.
One of the main differences between Android and Apple smartphones is that you can sideload apps onto your Android smartphone from sources other than the official app store.
However, a recent analysis of major fraudulent malware found that over 95% of installations come from sideloading sources.
Earlier this month, Google Vice President Dave Kleidermacher warned that “Google and the security community have been warning users for years about the real risks associated with downloading apps directly from the web,” Forbes reported. .
Four permissions on these apps that can lead to financial fraud include intercepting one-time passwords sent via SMS or notifications, and peeking at screen content to see inside banking apps and other apps. Contains malware that can be viewed or viewed.
Those permissions are:
- RECEIVE_SMS
- READ_SMS
- BIND_Notification
- accessibility
Google is now expanding its enhanced fraud prevention campaign to India following a successful pilot in Singapore.
Google Play Protect is a Play Store defense system that protects you from potentially dangerous apps installed within the Play Store and through sideloading.
“We have launched real-time scanning of Google Play Protect to better protect our users in India from new malicious internet sideloading apps,” a spokesperson said.
“This has already led to the identification of more than 10 million new malicious apps worldwide.
“This enhanced fraud prevention feature analyzes and automatically blocks app installations that may use sensitive permissions that are frequently exploited for financial fraud.”
“If a user in India attempts to install an application from an Internet sideloading source and one of these four permissions is declared, Play Protect provides instructions to the user and automatically blocks the installation.”
Currently being piloted in India, the crackdown on permit abuse is expected to eventually be rolled out around the world.
As a result, Google is warning developers to be careful about giving their apps too many permissions.
“This is a good time to review the permissions your app is requesting and ensure that they follow developer best practices,” the spokesperson said.
“Creating a truly secure mobile experience is a collaborative effort, and we are committed to working with governments, industry partners, and other stakeholders to make our customers safer.”
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