Fake Coronavirus Tracking App Is Locking People's Android Phones And Asking For Ransom

Fraudulent entities on the Internet are taking undue advantage of the Coronavirus scare through various means. Earlier the malpractices were limited to the spread of misinformation online, which the tech giants have started tackling hard.

Now, it seems that the cybercriminals have gotten involved in this and are using the virus outbreak scare to install malicious apps on smartphones.

Reuters

An Android app called CovidLock is a prime example of this, as cybercriminals are using it to install ransomware on a targeted user¡¯s smartphone. Security researcher blog, Domain Tools, notifies that CovidLock disguises itself as a Coronavirus tracking app.

It comes into action only when the users have installed it, asking them for various permissions such as lock screen and accessibility. Once these permissions are granted to the app, it locks the users¡¯ smartphones and asks for a ransom of $100 in Bitcoin within 48 hours to have their smartphones unlocked.

(Representative Image: Reuters)

In addition to locking the user out, the app also threatens to delete the user¡¯s data on their smartphone. This includes the user¡¯s pictures, videos, contacts and other data in the phone¡¯s memory. The app even threatens to leak users¡¯ social media accounts publicly.

The security firm further notes in a blog post that those using Android Nougat and higher have a protection in place against the ransomware. That, however, only works if the user has set a password for the device beforehand. If not, the device is still vulnerable to the attack by the CovidLock ransomware.

It is important to note that users should only trust governments and research institution¡¯s websites for authentic data around the Coronavirus outbreak. Tech majors are doing their best to limit the display to only such authentic content on their platforms. Users as such, should take a similar precaution too.