14 DAY TRIAL // Listings for the Star N9500 smartphone have been pulled by eBay after German security software vendor G DATA discovered that the device was delivered with built-in spyware straight from the factory.
Star N9500 comes pre-installed with spying software that is disguised as the Google Play Store app, and cannot be removed because it is embedded in the firmware. It features nearly unlimited options that allow cybercriminals full access to the content of the phone.
All the information collected from the device – online banking data and text messages among them – is sent to an anonymous server under the control of the criminals, in China.
Christian Geschkat, product manager mobile solutions at G DATA, said that the identity of the perpetrator(s) is unknown and “it is not possible to find out who ends up receiving and using the data.”
eBay said in a statement to BBC News that they are currently not allowing the sale of these devices as a precautionary measure and that the ban will be imposed globally.
However, we managed to find a couple of such devices by simply searching the global store. One item was auctioned by a top-rated seller and was delivered from Italy, while the other came straight from China.
Star N9500 is also available on other electronic commerce websites, such as Amazon.com.