Trojan Stealing Android SMS Feigns to be AliPay Security Tool

China is the country with maximum infections for SMS-theft. These infections happen through Android apps that intermediate stores host. Called AliPay-Security Controls, the Android app gets advertised like one security program for protecting online payments carried out via AliPay.

Functioning within fourteen countries, AliPay serves like one intermediate Internet-based payment service, backing 65 institutions of finance, including MasterCard and Visa, as well as serving more than three hundred major brands. It's a Chinese company and like anything Chinese, it's an imitation of something.

Evidently, a research by Zscaler shows the phony application contains one sinister Trojan that steals SMS. The malware claims itself to be a 'security control' and so tricks victims that they believe it is an application for making AliPay more powerful. AliPay is described as the East's PayPal having zero transaction fees. Worldwide, over 300 traders are AliPay users. The online payment service enables transactions through fourteen prominent foreign currencies. Infosecurity posted this, February 11, 2016.

Now people having their phones loaded with AliPay Security Controls are likely to initially see one fresh icon on their device that on hitting activates the application. Subsequently a rapid introductory matter is displayed spanning 3-seconds after which it disappears while the icon too clears off. Behind all these, the application clandestinely begins 3 processes which would let it acquire what's called boot-persistence for remaining resilient to phone restarts as well as monitor SMS communications pertaining to inbound messages.

AliPay Security Controls malware developer's chief aim is for garnering victim's SMS messages from his phone. However, there's no attempt at gaining administrator privileges thus removal of the malware becomes easy. All that's required is uninstalling the app via the utilization of the Android phone's settings option. Trojans that only steal SMS are unusual as there isn't that much for them to do. Therefore, according to Zscaler, the Trojan in discussion likely comes within a bigger Internet crime scheme, besides other hacking software for Android.

Moreover, a few SMS-stealers contain malicious software, which records codes and IDs of inbound messages, while dispatches other SMSs within affiliate programs, which cheat tainted end-users, but aid hackers reap revenue laterally.

» SPAMfighter News - 2/18/2016