Android malware posing as 'Angry Birds Space'


Stay up to speed with news and reviews on video games for the PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360, Android, iPhone, iPad, Facebook and more.

2 hrs.

Rovio

Android smartphone users and “Angry Birds” fans need to watch out for more than crafty pigs — there’s malware going around that targets Android users by posing as Rovio’s hit game “Angry Birds Space,” warns SophosLabs.

The infected version can be found in unofficial app stores and uses an Android Trojan known as Andr/KongFu-L. It contains the GingerBreak exploit to gain root access to the handset and install malicious code.

From there, the Trojan communicates with a remote website and attempts to install even more malware to the device. As Sophos says in its report: “Effectively, your Android phone is now part of a botnet, under the control of malicious hackers.”

No fix for infected parties is available at this point. All Android users are asked to use caution when downloading games and software to their devices. If you want “Angry Birds Space,” the safest bet is to get it from Google Play, Google’s Android app store.

Matthew Hawkins is an NYC-based game journalist who has also written for EGM, GameSetWatch, Gamasutra, Giant Robot and numerous others. He also self-publishes his own game culture zine, is part of Attract Mode, and co-hosts The Fangamer Podcast. You can keep tabs on him via Twitter, or his personal home-base, FORT90.com.

17 days

Angry Birds Space

‘Angry Birds Space’ downloads hit the stratosphere 

21 days

Angry Birds

‘Angry Birds Space’ launches gamers into orbit 

34 days

Angry Birds Space

NASA helps announce ‘Angry Birds Space’ 

Close post

Article source



Android OS