Be careful how you get your mobile rocks off. New Android ransomware is targeting users of
a porn app called Adult Player—by silently snapping their photo.
First-time users are greeted with a request for admin rights; click "Activate," and the app shows a fake update page. But, according to security firm Zscaler, no update occurs. Instead, the app accesses a device's front camera and clicks a photo of the user, which is displayed on a ransom page with a demand for $500.
Victims are then locked out of their device, even upon reboot; the malware also prevents the handset from going into sleep mode.
"As soon as the money arrives to the PayPal account, your device will be unblocked and all information will be decrypted in course of 24 hours," according to Zscaler.
There are other options, though. First, boot the device into safe mode, which launches default settings without running third-party apps. Then visit the device administrator setting to select the ransomware app and deactivate it. Finally, uninstall the app entirely.
According to the BBC, the Adult Player app is not available from official sources like Google Play, but is instead installed directly from a webpage.
"To avoid being victim of such ransomware, it is always best to download apps only from trusted app stores, such as Google Play," Zscaler said, suggesting users uncheck the option of "Unknown Sources" under the device's security settings.
Source: pcmag.com
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