More than 2,000 apps on Google Play Store flagged as dangerous

More than two thousand apps on Google Play Store, including those that are widely known, were found dangerous, a study claimed.

2,040 apps on Google Play Store dangerous

2,040 apps are proved to be malware, while some pose suspicious amount of permissions

This was according to a two-year-long study of the University of Sydney and Data61 of CSIRO, where 2,040 apps proved to be malware, while some pose suspicious amount of permissions. 

With 1.2 million apps included in the research, a huge number of fake apps, although without malware, seeks to access a user's data, including Hill Climb Racing and Temple Run. 

In order to process one million apps and point out risks, researchers used  neural networks and machine learning. 

The algorithm had been set to look for similar text description and visually similar icons to the 10,000 most popular apps on the app store. The algorithm found 49,608 potential threats.

About 7,246 of the apps were considered malicious, 2,040 of which were "fake" and "high-risks" mobile apps. 

More than 1,500 apps also request for at least five sensitive permissions, and 1,407 apps have third-party advertisement libraries. 

Encouragingly, 6-10 months since we discovered the apps, 27%-46% of the potential counterfeits we identified are not available in Google Play Store, potentially removed due to customer complaints, the authors of the study said.

In a separate report from Forbes, meanwhile, said threats brought by mobile applications continue to haunt Android and iOS users. 

Three-quarters of mobile applications have vulnerabilities relating to insecure data storage, leaving both Android and Apple iOS users open to cyber attacks, Forbes said quoting ZDNet.

Both Google and Apple are working on strengthening their systems to fight cybercriminals.

Google also noted the number of rejected app submissions surged to over 55 percent last year, while app suspension increased to 66 percent. 

Sources: GSMarena, Forbes