Google removes virus-infected Android apps again

According to what we read in Phone Arena, Google has just removed Android apps from the Play Store after finding that they contained viruses and other malicious files. Said applications contained the virus Tizi,a malware created in 2015, capable of obtaining permissions from administrators on the mobile.

Tizi, a dangerous virus, infects numerous apps on Play Store

Thanks to this, the app developer could have access to the user's personal photos, call logs and phone contacts as well as chat history in apps like Messenger Facebook, Telegram or Viber.Furthermore, this exploit is capable of sending SMS with the location coordinates of the infected mobile, taking photos without permission and recording audio through the microphone.

However, we need not fear anything: Google, in a 2016 installation patch, already fixed this vulnerability The problem is that there are thousands of mobiles that are not updated: either they do not receive the files automatically or the user does not care about keeping their system up to date.

A virus widely downloaded in Kenya and the United States

According to the company's own data, the applications that carried the Tizi virus were downloaded, for the most part, in the African country of Kenya. To greater surprise, a small portion of these were installed in the United States. After discovering the malware, Google proceeded to remove the apps, suspended the accounts of those who created these apps, and finally sent an automated message to all users that they had been infected.

Having an operating system that supports you and makes sure you don't have problems with viruses is paramount. Google makes sure, on Android, to update with patches that prevent cybercriminals from accessing sensitive data from our phones, such as card numbers or service passwords. And although it has shown, at least, that it has good intentions in aspects related to security, such as its own antivirus that its application store has integrated, it is inevitable that, from time to time, applications with problems appear.

During the month of August, Google withdrew no less than half a thousand applications capable of installing viruses on our phones. Some applications that, in total, had already accumulated more than 100 million downloads worldwide.These applications included the Ixegin virus. A virus similar in intent to the aforementioned Tizi.

And last September, the security firm Check Point verified that 50 applications in its store were infected by some type of malicious file. These applications would be making cash charges without permission, in those terminals that were installed. Google removed them from the app store after they had been downloaded more than 4 million times by users all over the planet.

Tips to avoid attacks on our phone

You have to use your head well when we install an application on our phone. Many apps require special permissions in order to work. For example, WhatsApp needs to access the microphone to record audio; or access the gallery, so we can send photos to our contacts.But, if we download a game and it asks us to access our phone, we should be wary. If we accept, that game could make indiscriminate use of our device. We always have to watch the permissions we give to the applications that we download.

Removing Android apps should be Google's last step in its fight against piracy. As long as we keep our phone updated, we should not fear for its safety.