If you are an Android user then you might have heard of the Joker malware, and if you haven’t then it is high time that you learned about it. This is a stubborn malware that keeps infecting apps on the Google Play Store, and while Google often deals with the problem fairly quickly it always ends up coming back again. This time the malware has returned by using 17 different apps that were all available on the Google Play Store. According to Zscaler, these apps are quite diverse from PDF scanners to SMS interfacing applications and there are about 120,000 devices that have downloaded these apps so far.
This malware is dangerous because of the fact that it can steal a lot of information from your phone. This data can be sold on the dark web for a tidy profit, but the really big earner for the malware creator has to do with WAP signups. The malware starts to automatically sign you up to expensive WAP packages which is then reflected in the bill that is received, and many users have received a rather unpleasant surprised in the form of a bill that might just be far too expensive for them to afford.
There is some good news here, though. Google has removed all of the apps that were known to have been infected with the malware from the app store. The tech giant has also managed to disable these apps on any devices where it has already been downloaded. However, with all of that having been said and out of the way it is important to note that this is where the good news ends. There is no way to remove the app from the devices in which it has already been downloaded, and while the app has been disabled it might still be able to do a lot of harm.
Another issue is that there might be other apps out there with the malware that haven’t been discovered yet. Perhaps the most serious issue is that the same malware manages to trick Google’s defenses again and again, and eventually this would create a lot of problems for the tech giant. While the malware uses a lot of trickery and innovation each time it comes back, Google needs to try and get ahead of the situation otherwise the Play Store might no longer be considered a safe marketplace for apps. These are the apps ridden with malware, Android users should uninstall/remove from their device:
Read next: Android and iOS users be aware of the scam apps promoted by social media influencers they might trap you
This malware is dangerous because of the fact that it can steal a lot of information from your phone. This data can be sold on the dark web for a tidy profit, but the really big earner for the malware creator has to do with WAP signups. The malware starts to automatically sign you up to expensive WAP packages which is then reflected in the bill that is received, and many users have received a rather unpleasant surprised in the form of a bill that might just be far too expensive for them to afford.
There is some good news here, though. Google has removed all of the apps that were known to have been infected with the malware from the app store. The tech giant has also managed to disable these apps on any devices where it has already been downloaded. However, with all of that having been said and out of the way it is important to note that this is where the good news ends. There is no way to remove the app from the devices in which it has already been downloaded, and while the app has been disabled it might still be able to do a lot of harm.
Another issue is that there might be other apps out there with the malware that haven’t been discovered yet. Perhaps the most serious issue is that the same malware manages to trick Google’s defenses again and again, and eventually this would create a lot of problems for the tech giant. While the malware uses a lot of trickery and innovation each time it comes back, Google needs to try and get ahead of the situation otherwise the Play Store might no longer be considered a safe marketplace for apps. These are the apps ridden with malware, Android users should uninstall/remove from their device:
- All Good PDF Scanner
- Hummingbird PDF Converter - Photo to PDF
- Blue Scanner
- Meticulous Scanner
- Paper Doc Scanner
- Part Message
- Direct Messenger
- Care Message
- Talent Photo Editor - Blur focus
- Desire Translate
- Style Photo Collage
- One Sentence Translator - Multifunctional Translator
- Private SMS
- Tangram App Lock
- Unique Keyboard - Fancy Fonts & Free Emoticons
- Mint Leaf Message-Your Private Message
Read next: Android and iOS users be aware of the scam apps promoted by social media influencers they might trap you
