BRITS and Americans have been warned about a vicious banking attack targeting Android users.
Dubbed “Medusa,” the campaign allows cyber thieves to break into accounts using stealthy tactics without the phone owner noticing.
Medusa has been around for some time, but experts have detected a new variant of it.
First discovered in July 2020, the malware – also known as TangleBot – is capable of reading confidential text messages, controlling the buttons you press, taking screenshots and recording phone calls to ultimately obtain the details of your Bank account.
This latest version goes a step further, with the ability to display a full-screen overlay, according to cybersecurity firm Cleary.
This shows a black screen tricking victims into thinking their device is turned off, when in fact hackers could be at work.
“While the exact purpose remains under investigation, this functionality presents a potential threat: by hiding the underlying content of the screen, the attacker can use this overlay to mask other malicious activity,” Cleary explained.
The attack not only targeted Android users in the UK and US, but also in Canada, France, Italy, Spain and Turkey.
Hackers had the sneaky idea of asking for fewer but more essential permissions.
“The latest Medusa variant demonstrates a strategic shift toward a lightweight approach,” continued Cleary.
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“Minimizing required permissions avoids detection and appears more benign, increasing your ability to operate undetected for long periods.”
Medusa often relies on phishing tricks to spread malware.
But it has been increasingly detected in so-called dropper apps, which are downloaded from untrusted sources outside of the Google Play Store.
Sometimes they can appear in “smishing” attacks, which are fake SMS messages designed to trick you into installing something on your phone.
Among the dubious apps distributing Medusa this time are fake 5G connectivity and Google Chrome apps, as well as a sketchy streaming app called 4K Sports.
How to identify a dubious app
Detecting a malicious app before clicking the ‘Download’ button is easy when you know the signs.
Follow this eight-point checklist when downloading an app you’re unsure about:
- Check the comments – be careful with complaints and uniformly positive reviews from fake accounts.
- Beware of grammatical errors – Legitimate app developers will not have typos or errors in their app descriptions.
- Check the number of downloads – avoid apps with only thousands of downloads as they may be fake.
- Search the developer – do they have a good reputation? Or are they completely false?
- Check the release date – a recent release date combined with a large number of downloads is generally bad news.
- Review the permission agreement – this agreement gives permission for the app to take pieces of your data, and fake apps often request additional data that is not necessary.
- Check update frequency – an application updated too frequently often indicates security vulnerabilities.
- Check the icon – watch carefully and don’t be fooled by distorted and lower quality versions of legitimate app icons.
All this information will be available on the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
