Agent Smith Malware Is On Hunt.

Agent smith is a fictional character and the primary antagonist in the Matrix franchise, those who have watched the Matrix movie surely knows the character very well and his tricks that make it hard for Neo to save the world. But the “Agent Smith” security researchers are talking about is far more dangerous and has already infected 25Mn+ Android devices so far, mostly in India and nearby countries. Yours might be one of them.

Check Point researches has recently discovered an Android Malware that disguises itself as some sort of  Google application and then exploits the known Android vulnerabilities, replacing the original app code with the malicious one without user’s interaction. The malware doesn’t steal  a user’s data but instead, it hacks apps and forces them to display more ads or takes credit for the ads they already display so that the malware’s operator can profit off the fraudulent views. The malware looks for known apps on a device, such as WhatsApp, Opera Mini, or Flipkart, then replaces portions of their code and prevents them from being updated.  It has strong hold in India and nearby countries where it got spread with third party app store like 9Apps which are quite popular in these countries.

Check Point says a key vulnerability that Agent Smith relies on was patched several years ago in Android. But developers need to update their apps in order to take advantage of the added protections. Evidently, many have not.

The malware is spreading on fast pace and all you can do is nothing, apart from waiting for an 

security update from your mobile manufacturer or app developer. However one thing you can so is if you feel something fishy in your mobile so a backup of your Smartphone and do a factory data reset. Till next time stay safe stay connected stay updated.