Fake Malware-Filled Super Mario Run Apps Take Advantage of Android Absence (silicon.co.uk)

Mickeycaskill writes: Nintendo's Super Mario Run was downloaded more than 40 million times in the first four days it was available. But an Android version has yet to materialize. An official release is on the way, but cybercriminals are taking advantage of this vacuum by spreading malicious apps masquerading as the real thing. The "Android Marcher trojan" appears as a fake landing page advertising the release of the game, where it can be downloaded onto users' devices. It then targets financial and banking apps and can modify your settings and read your contacts. The popularity of Pokemon GO last year saw similar scams emerge as users waited for the game.

Comments

Re:Run, Android, Run!!!

[hairyfeet]

Hell its been the same with Windows for years, if you have a decent AV and let the OS and programs auto-update? You really don't have anything to worry about. Now all the infections I see at the shop are all social engineering, stuff like "You want teh hot sluts for free? Just run "Iz_Not_Viruz_Iz_Chatroom.exe" and talk to hot skanks now!" or the ever classic Facebook chat bug, where someone they know pops up a "Hey you have got to see this, just open "Iz_Not_Page_Of_Malware_Iz_Pupies.html" this is soooo adorable!"....sigh.

The sad part is unless you do like Chromebooks and just take away the rights of the user? There is really nothing an OS can do against the dancing bunny problem because you have the user actively working against the security because they want to see the bunny. I have got to see this firsthand, the only person I have ever thrown out of my shop was a customer that wanted to buy a desktop and install Limewire on it. I told him "Look Limewire doesn't exist, it was shut down by the FBI years ago, if you want a P2P program I can install one but there is no more Limewire" and told him that any copies he found of Limewire online would be malware....so what does he do? Takes his brand new PC home, uninstalls the AV when it tries to stop him and promptly installs malware that has a Limewire icon and then expects me to clean it for free! When I threw him out of the shop he was screaming "It says right there its Limewire, you make it work!"....nothing any OS can do if the user is working for the bad guys.