There’s no disputing that the smartphone in your pocket is capable of many things, but having a device that isn’t performing at its best is the worst possible situation.
Maintaining one in excellent working condition for a very long time might occasionally seem like an insurmountable effort, whether you’re trying to squeeze the last few kilometers out of a model that is several years old or have subjected it to a few too many unintentional drops.
In addition to normal wear and tear, however, there are certain other actions you might be taking that might be slowing down your device, such as downloading the incorrect software.
Security experts are now cautioning that six well-known Android apps may be damaging your phone. See which hazardous programs you should remove right away by reading on.
Keeping deceptive or harmful apps off your phone requires a lot of effort.
Your actual smartphone is an amazing piece of technology that can make calls, send messages, and even take high-quality pictures with only a few clicks.
However, consumers are now accustomed to downloading a variety of third-party apps and programs that can almost unlimited the capabilities of the devices in addition to what they are meant to accomplish out of the box.
Unfortunately, the technique that can increase the usefulness of your phone can also expose it to software that could be damaging.
Programs are thoroughly vetted by the companies behind Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store in order to shield consumers from malicious software that might jeopardize personal data or even outright steal money from unwary users. Such diligence may be fruitful: Google announced earlier this year that it has removed 1.2 million apps from its marketplace due to policy violations and banned 190,000 illegitimate accounts.
In the previous year, we added a number of privacy-focused features, improved SDK data security, and strengthened our defenses against malicious developers and apps.
To further protect users from malware and undesirable software, Google Play Protect continues to analyze billions of installed apps daily across billions of devices. However, certain malicious programs can still get through even with stronger security—including a couple that was just recently uncovered.
Six well-known Android apps, according to security experts, may be destroying your phone. You might want to look at the programs you have downloaded if your smartphone has been functioning slowly lately.
On December 2, cybersecurity company Doctor Web reported that it has found a number of Android malware apps that were misrepresented as helpful tools and offered for download on the Google Play store in October. More than 2 million individuals have downloaded harmful malware thus far.
The research claims that TubeBox, which is still available on the app store, is the most downloaded of the apps. The following malicious software programs have also been found: “Bluetooth device auto-connect,” “Volume, Music Equalizer,” “Bluetooth & Wi-Fi & USB driver,” and “Fast Cleaner & Cooling Master” from Hippo VPN LLC.
The latter apps were later taken down from the company’s app store. The business also discovered a number of apps that make the claim to be associated with Russian banks and financial companies.
However, despite claims that the programs would teach users how to make quick money through investments, they are actually merely gathering data through a series of surveys and phishing websites that consumers used to create accounts.
If you have the apps installed, your device may become slower.
While some malware, like the collection of Russian investment applications, operates as Trojan-style programs to steal data or personal information, some recently found apps have an atypical impact on devices. Users are persuaded to download TubeBox with the promise of money for watching commercials and videos.
According to Dr. Web, the app will start to display error messages whenever users try to claim their profits while the creators keep the cash from the views.
Similar to the other apps, they operate in the background of your device, allowing their creators to use your phone to create phony advertising impressions.
Even developers can use the Fast Cleaner & Cooling Master program to transform smartphones into servers that can handle their own traffic routing. Any Android smartphone will have performance issues as a result of all of the programs as it battles with higher data usage. Computer beeps as a warning
You can guard yourself against malicious software and hazardous programs in a few straightforward ways.
Malware downloads will always be a risk as long as there are smartphones and computers that use the software.
However, you can still take particular actions to guard against unintentionally putting yourself in danger.
Experts at Reviews.org advise only ever downloading products from legitimate app stores since they offer the highest level of protection.
As the recent malware discovery demonstrates, it is still imperative to confirm that the app has been verified before installing it, including looking for suspicious typos or unfavorable reviews in the program’s description.
Additionally, according to Bleeping Computer, it’s best to regularly check your phone to see if any unnecessary dating apps are still on there that you can delete.
Google’s Play Protect feature, which can actively warn you if you end up downloading any harmful programs, can also be turned on for Android users’ devices.
