Number: IRCNE2015082623
Date: 2015/09/18
According to “computerworld”, researchers at security company ESET have found a type of malware that changes an Android device's PIN, the first of its kind in an ever-evolving landscape of ransomware attacks.
For most users, the only option to get rid of the malware is to reset the phone to its factory settings, which unfortunately also deletes all the data on the device.
The has only been seen on third-party Android application marketplaces or forums for pirated software, wrote Lukas Stefanko, an ESET malware analyst.
To change the device's PIN, this malware needs administrator-level access to the phone. Stefanko wrote that the malware uses a new method to obtain that high level of access.
The malware is also coded to try to shut down three mobile antivirus products: Dr. Web, ESET's Mobile Security and Avast.
More advanced users may be able to get rid of this malware without resetting and erasing all data on their phone. It is possible to remove the malware if a user has root privileges to the device, and some security software can stop it, Stefanko wrote.
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