“More than one million Google accounts have been breached by malware that infiltrated older Android devices, cyber security firm Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. announced Wednesday,” Shanika Gunaratna reports for CBS News.
“The researchers traced the malware back to dozens of what they called ‘legitimate-looking’ apps — with names ‘Wi Fi Enhancer,’ ‘GPS,’ ‘Beautiful Alarm,’ ‘Battery Monitor,’ and even ‘Google’ — on third-party Android app stores,” Gunaratna reports. “Attackers also spread the malware via links sent in text messages to unsuspecting users, Check Point said.”
“This specific malware, nicknamed Gooligan, has been steadily infecting older versions of Android devices since August of this year; Check Point estimates that 13,000 new devices continue to be breached daily,” Gunaratna reports. “Attackers can steal users’ email addresses and authentication tokens in order to dive deeper into their extensive personal data stored across Google: Gmail, Google Photos, Google Drive, etc., Check Point said.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: The cost of free.
Anyone who values their security and privacy would be foolish to use any device that fails to sport the Apple logo [that includes, phones, tablets, smartwatches, Wi-Fi routers, etcetera]. — MacDailyNews, March 22, 2016
SEE ALSO:
Secret backdoor in U.S. Android phones sent location, text, contact data to China – November 15, 2016
Google to pay $5.5 million for sneaking around Apple’s privacy settings to collect user data – August 31, 2016
Cybersecurity researchers: Fitness trackers vulnerable to tracking, privacy breaches – but not Apple Watch – February 2, 2016
EFF files complaint asking for federal investigation; says Google broke privacy pledge, tracked students – December 1, 2015
Tim Cook gets privacy and encryption: We shouldn’t surrender them to Google – June 4, 2015
Apple CEO Tim Cook champions privacy, blasts ‘so-called free services’ – June 3, 2015
How Google aims to delve deeper into users’ lives – May 29, 2015
Apple CEO Cook: Unlike some other companies, Apple won’t invade your right to privacy – March 2, 2015
Edward Snowden’s privacy tips: ‘Get rid of Dropbox,” avoid Facebook and Google – October 13, 2014
Apple CEO Tim Cook ups privacy to new level, takes direct swipe at Google – September 18, 2014
U.S. NSA watching, tracking phone users with Google Maps – January 28, 2014
U.S. NSA secretly infiltrated Yahoo, Google data centers worldwide, Snowden documents say – October 30, 2013
Google has already inserted some U.S. NSA code into Android – July 10, 2013
Court rules NSA doesn’t have to reveal its semi-secret relationship with Google – May 22, 2013
Google Street View cars grabbed locations of cellphones, computers – July 26, 2011
Consumer Watchdog calls for probe of Google’s inappropriate relationship with Obama administration – January 25, 2011
Wired: Google, CIA Invest in ‘future’ of Web monitoring – July 29, 2010
37 states join probe into Google’s questionable Wi-Fi data collection – July 22, 2010
Google Street View Wi-Fi data included passwords and email – June 18, 2010