Scareware Migrates to Android Devices, Beware of Opera Virus Scanner

Rogue pieces of software which falsely alert users that their devices are infected with all sorts of malicious elements, requiring victims to pay certain amounts of money to allegedly clean their computers, have been spotted to target Android enthusiasts.

Up until now, Windows systems were the main target for these scareware scams, but Kaspersky Lab researchers found that online scam artists started focusing their attention to smartphone owners.

While searching for some popular mobile apps such as Opera Mini, experts came across a couple of phony webpages that claim the user’s device is infected with a piece of malware, requesting access to the phone to provide further details.

If the unsuspecting victim accepts, he is taken to another page that brings up some worrying results. The site finds malware in messages, calls, apps, and the storage unit.

Unlike the rogue applications that target Windows systems, where the victim is required to provide sensitive information or a certain activation fee, in this case, he is offered with a link to activate a “security system” free of charge.

Once the alleged system is activated, a Trojan identified as SMS.AndroidOS.Scavir is downloaded and installed on the phone.

After the installation is complete, a menu icon similar to the one belonging to Kaspersky applications appears and after making sure that it has all the permission it needs, starts sending SMSs to premium rate numbers.

Unfortunately, experts warn that not only Android users are targeted. If the phone is detected as running a non-Android operating system, the malicious webpage serves a file called VirusScanner.jar identified as Trojan-SMS.J2ME.Agent.ij.

Users are advised to avoid untrusted applications such as Opera Virus Scanner, Android Virus Scanner or anything similar. While a mobile security solution is always recommended, make sure to obtain it only directly from the vendor or from trusted websites.