Google’s Play Store Loophole leads to Judy Malware on 36.5 Million Android Devices

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Android smartphones often get affected by malware from various unknown sources. We have already covered a bunch of instances in the past where a lot of Android users were getting affected by the malware. And now, we have a new one called Judy Malware. Yes, the Judy Malware is the new one malware which is taking rounds now. Check Point researchers have discovered this malware campaign on the Google Play Store itself, which is the company’s official app store.

According to the reports which we have, it looks like this new malware dubbed Judy is an auto-clicking adware. It was found on a total of 41 apps on the Play Store, developed by a Korean company. So essentially what this malware does is, it uses infected devices to generate large amounts of fraudulent clicks on the adverts. More the number of clicks means the party behind this will generate more revenues. And surprisingly, the app reached total downloads of somewhere between 4.5 million to 18.5 million, which is a huge number.

The app was also found on several other apps that were developed by other developers. While the connection between the same is unknown, however, it looks like the one might have borrowed the code from the other. Considering all that, the total spread of the malware appears to have reached somewhere between 8.5 million and 36.5 million users. According to the source, this malware relies on the communication with its command and control server for its operation. And although the apps have now been removed from the Play Store by Google, it is worth noting that millions of devices are already affected and are out there.

You can read more about the malware on the source link below. However, if you are wondering if you are infected by the malware, then you can head over to the source link as mentioned above and check out the list of apps that they have updated. If you have downloaded any of these apps, then your only option is to create a backup of all your data and reset your smartphone. Yes, unfortunately as of now, there is no other fix for this.

This only proves that there are loopholes in Google’s services as well and you need to be aware of everything that you are donwloading into your smartphone. This goes for all the reliable sources as well. Having said that, we would like to know what do you think about this. Have you ever been infected by a malware before and if yes, what did you do to get rid of it? Be sure to let us know by dropping a comment down below and also, stay tuned to PhoneRadar for more info like this.

Source – Check Point

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