Innocent-seeming apps can be trojan horses for your information. | Image: Amar Toor / The Verge An Android recording app called iRecorder Screen Recorder began as an innocent screen recording
A phone with a recording app installed and running on screen
Innocent-seeming apps can be trojan horses for your information. | Image: Amar Toor / The Verge

An Android recording app called iRecorder Screen Recorder began as an innocent screen recording app but turned evil nearly a year after it was first released, as detailed by Ars Technica. The app first came out in September 2021, but after an update the following August, it began recording a minute of audio every 15 minutes and forwarding those recordings, through an encrypted link, to the developer’s server. The whole thing is documented in a blog post from Essential Security against Evolving Threats (ESET) researcher Lukas Stefanko.

In the post, Stefanko said the app was updated in August 2022 to include malicious code “based on the open-source AhMyth Android RAT (remote access trojan).” The app had 50,000 downloads by the time it was reported and removed from the Play store. Stefanko added that apps with AhMyth embedded in them had made it past Google’s filters before.

Scam apps aren’t new on either Apple’s or Google’s app stores. Recorder apps can be especially bad, sometimes having predatory subscription pricing and fake reviews to inflate their visibility on those platforms. And Stefanko’s blog post highlights a particularly sticky problem: apps turning to the dark side after you’ve had them for a while, using the permissions you granted them at the outset to gather sensitive information from your device and shuttle it off to the developer for nefarious activities.

This particular app is gone, but what’s to keep another sleeper agent from activating on your phone? Google is at least working on updates that will tell you via monthly notification which, and when, apps have changed their data-sharing practices — if it finds out, that is.

original link


You may also be interested in this

9to5Mac Happy Hour 437: i…

Benjamin and Zac break down the WWDC keynote with their impressions to all the announcements from the 15-inch MacBook Air to iOS 17, macOS Sonoma, watchOS 10 and all of

How to install the watchO…

To install the watchOS 10 Developer Beta, you need to make sure you’re signed into your developer Apple ID and that you have developer betas turned on in the Watch

After years of silence, t…

Apple has at long last released a trailer for "Killers of the Flower Moon," an upcoming Western drama from Martin Scorsese that stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Mollie Kyle."Killers of the

Get all your shopping don…

Macworld Between graduation parties and poolside get-togethers, and of course the need to stock up on everyday essentials, there are some great reasons to join a warehouse club like Costco

Mac: How to scan for malw…

Macs are more protected from malicious software like viruses, Trojans, adware, etc. than Windows and Linux. However, they aren’t immune, and more and more malware is being designed specifically for

Apple’s C1 modem in iPhon…

Apple C1 Apple’s iPhone 16e is a new addition to the iPhone 16 lineup that offers powerful capabilities at a more affordable price. iPhone 16e delivers fast, smooth performance and

Add fun to your vacation …

With the EZCast Beam J4a, you can carry a big screen TV everywhere you go. The pico projector works well with MacBook or iPad. (via Cult of Mac - Tech

How Apple Could Shape the…

In a world increasingly driven by technological advancements, the influence of major tech companies extends beyond the realms of innovation and market competition. Apple, one of the leading players in
X

A whimsical homage to the days in black and white, celebrating the magic of Mac OS. Dress up your blog with retro, chunky-grade pixellated graphics to evoke some serious computer nostalgia. Supports a custom menu, custom header image, custom background, two footer widget areas, and a full-width page template. I updated Stuart Brown's 2011 masterpiece to meet the needs of the times, made it responsive , got dark mode, custom search widget and more.You can download it from tigaman.com, where you can also find more useful code snippets and plugins to get even more out of wordpress.