Security researchers discovered more examples of Android devices with pre-installed malware. Security company G DATA found that more than 24 devices from different manufacturers have been compromised straight out of the box.
Manufacturers such as Huawei, Lenovo, and Xiaomi have pre-installed spying applications in the firmware. G DATA suspects that intermediaries modify the device's software to steal user data, aiming to display their own advertisements, which yields them very large profits.
Naturally, as happened with Vodafone in Spain in 2010, there can also be inadvertent device infection from the supply chain or deliberate interventions by government spies.
We should note that many of the models that are circulating with malware are currently circulating in China.
Pre-infected devices have become a very serious problem for protecting privacy for smartphone users. As you understand, downloading apps only from the Google Play Store, avoiding suspicious websites, and generally taking precautions that common sense dictates does not help in such cases.
Back in March, Bluebox Security discovered pre-installed malware on the Xiaomi Mi4. Xiaomi responded by saying that the devices containing the malware were not genuine. Regardless of who was at fault, the incident illustrates the overall risk.
Late last year , Palo Alto Networks discovered that high-end Androids from Coolpad came pre-installed with the CoolReaper malware.
Although little known in the West, Coolpad is the third-largest smartphone manufacturer in China.
