Symantec researchers discovered that two very popular apps, found on the Google Play Store, were using a new trick to open ads secretly , without smartphone users knowing .
The two apps had a combined total of over 1.5 million downloads and had been on the Play Store for almost a year. researchers notified Google of the suspicious activity of the two apps, and the company immediately removed them from the app store.
The apps in question were a notepad app called “Idea Note: OCR Text Scanner, Color Notes” and a fitness app called “Beauty Fitness: daily workout, best HIIT coach.” The problem is that researchers are unable to fully understand their inner workings.
Apps use a sneaky trick to display ads without users. They place them in such a way that they are not visible on the screen.
"Using this tactic allows ads and any other malicious content to be displayed freely. The application can then initiate an automated process that opens ads, providing revenue to the administrators," Symantec said.
The problem is that applications, by clicking on ads, consume batteries smartphone slow down the device, and may even consume data users'
Symantec researchers urge users to immediately uninstall the apps from devices . The way these apps work is quite insidious and not fully understood.
A few months ago, Google revealed that malware installed on devices via apps found on the Google Play Store had increased significantly compared to the previous year. However, according to the company, this is because “potentially dangerous apps” now include click-fraud apps that open hidden pages.
