Android Users Beware: These Google Play Store Apps Spread Malware

Android users beware of these Google Play Store apps, even if they have more than a million downloads, as they spread malware.

We have listed below some of the harmful apps found on the official app marketplace of Android, thanks to the recent discovery by cybersecurity researchers.

Android Google Play Store Apps

In some cases, what appears to be the most harmless app on your phone might be the culprit of the infection of your mobile device.

It could be all sorts of seemingly safe Play Store apps, such as free photo editing tools or a horoscope platform. Who would have thought that an app that merely controls the flashlight does dark things in the background?

While Google continues to crack down on malware-spreading software, cybersecurity experts still spot a few that successfully got to the official app marketplace of Android.

Meanwhile, according to a report by Tech Radar, hundreds of Play Store apps are said to be susceptible to Trojan malware infection. The dangerous virus primarily targets financial apps.

So, aside from apps, which spread malware, some Play Store listings might be prone to infection.

Google Play Store Apps with Malware

This time, security researchers stumbled upon a few malware-spreading Play Store apps.

As per a news story by Bleeping Computer, there are a few Play Store apps carrying adware and malware that mine the information of their victims.

The news outlet notes that adware annoyingly brings intrusive ads to mobile devices.

Apart from the distracting pop-ups now and then, it also unnecessarily uses the resources of the devices of its victims. In turn, the phone might slow down or drain its battery faster than normal usage.

On top of adware, some harmful Play Store apps spread the notorious Trojan malware, stealing critical information from its targets, such as banking details and login credentials.

Android Users Beware of These Apps

As per a recent news report by Dr. Web, an anti-virus platform, the number of adware apps on the Play Store is on a rising trend. But, on the other hand, trojan carrying software has slightly gone down.

If we are being precise, here are some figures: adware-spreading apps increased their activity by roughly 13.57%, whereas information-stealing counterparts dropped to about 13.48%.

Bleeping Computer listed down some of the malware-spreading apps on the Play Store, which flaunts a remarkable number of downloads, as high as a million.

Magnifier Flashlight, which boasts around 10,000 downloads on Play Store, is actually an adware app.

Both PIP Pic Camera 2022 (50,000 downloads) and PIP Pic Camera Photo Editor (1 million downloads) steals Facebook credentials.

Two seemingly harmless apps, ZodiHoroscope and Wild & Exotic Animal Wallpaper, also come with Trojan malware and adware, respectively.