Here’s how to check if your Pokemon GO Android app is legitimate
From the time, Nintendo release the last game of Pokemon GO, which uses augmented reality, the gamers are going crazy. The mobile app is used by players to walk around and collect the popular characters. However, the game is geo-restricted, which means it is not available in all the countries.
As a result, many gamers out of curiosity have already started to search the app outside official app stores. Crooks are using this opportunity to exploit the popularity of the game by spreading a malicious version of the Pokemon GO app that could infect Android mobile devices and install a backdoor to gain complete control over the victim’s smartphone.
The official Pokemon GO app was first launched in Australia and New Zealand on July 4th, and later on July 6th in the U.S., but the malicious app was first uploaded to an online malware detection repository on July 7.
According to a report from security biz Proofpoint, repackaged versions of the game have been found carrying malware dubbed as DroidJack that grants remote-control access of infected devices to crooks. Also, many media outlets have published instructions on how to download the game from a third party.“The augmented reality game was first released in Australia and New Zealand on July 4th and users in other regions quickly clamoured for versions for their devices. It was released on July 6th in the US, but the rest of the world will remain tempted to find a copy outside legitimate channels. To that end, a number of publications have provided tutorials for “side-loading” the application on Android. However, as with any apps installed outside of official app stores, users may get more than they bargained for.” reported ProofPoint in a blog post. |