An important adware attack targeting Android users has been discovered. Security researchers have stated that nearly 60,000 applications are impersonating popular software and attacking users. These applications appear to be cracked or modified versions, but they are reported to conduct ad attacks.

Tens of thousands apps impersonating popular software

Adware applications attack on Android users redirect them to unwanted advertisements. Additionally, they also harbor other malicious software such as banking trojans and ransomware.

The ad fraud, discovered by Bitdefender, manifests itself in approximately 60,000 applications. None of these malicious applications are distributed through the Google Play Store. Instead, they target individuals searching for modded or cracked versions of popular apps from Google.

To evade detection, the ad applications do not appear after being installed on the device. Once the application is launched, users are presented with a message stating that the app is not available in their region and should be uninstalled. However, in the background, the application remains dormant while activating the malicious software.

This ad attack is reported to target popular applications such as Netflix, PDF apps, Spotify, Disney+, and WhatsApp. Users who attempt to download modded or premium versions of these applications may have fallen into the trap of over 60,000 malicious software.

Furthermore, a different ad attack was detected recently. The SpinOk software attacks users through mini-games and daily rewards. Users who believe they can earn money by spinning a wheel or collecting daily rewards become victims of the malicious software.