A new malware strain has turned up recently, perhaps the scariest thing on Android yet. This malware is dubbed “ANDROIDOS_GODLESS.HRX” by Trend Micro who first found it. According to their blog post, “By having multiple exploits to use, Godless can target virtually any Android device running on Android 5.1 (Lollipop) or earlier. As of this writing, almost 90% of Android devices run on affected versions.” Yikes!

You might be asking what exploits this malware exposes. It is designed to get root access to your device, which allows it to open a Pandora’s Box of other unwanted software. Godless can remotely and secretly install other programs or adware on your device. This allows applications to perform some backdoor spying and more. This is a nasty little piece of programming.

It seems to be sneaking onto devices in seemingly harmless utility apps, such as flashlight apps or wifi apps. Getting the app from the Google Play Store is no safe bet either, as the team has discovered plenty of apps carrying the payload there. Let this serve as a reminder to be vigilant in the apps you select.

Caveat Installer – Let the installer beware.

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