We’ve all heard the news once Jelly Bean was released that Adobe Flash Player would no longer be supporting that OS and feature ones to come. I’m still at a standstill on how I feel about it, however this situation has opened a door for a much “UN-wanted” visitor….CYBERCRIMINALS!
Cybercriminals are malicious people who will look for any way to exploit virus and malware on your phone, and sadly they succeed numerous times. The discontinuation of Flash has allowed these ‘cybercriminals’ to exploit apps that “disguise” themselves as apps that will work in place of Flash, however you end up infecting your phone with malware and virus’ not to mention access to countless personal account information.
Well we were all well aware of Flash ending, but there are some not so fortunate on hearing the news. According to analyst Jovi Umawing, at GFI Software they:
“…some Android users have missed that deadline, so they venture on to other parts of the internet in search of alternative download sites.”
For what purpose, do they really need to have some type of back up for Flash? I haven’t had it on my phone since it was discontinued and I’m definitely not sweating it. SMS Trojan apps have been popping up all over since, and their cover up? Android Flash player.
Umawing then states:
“This particular piece of adware creates a shortcut files on the home screen that lead to advertisements, displays of ads via Android’s notification bar every 15 minutes and sends information about the user’s contacts to advertiser.”
That is a scary thing to read! There are countless more apps out there that are “disguising” themselves as an Android Flash Player. Please, I beg you, either be wise and know what you are downloading, otherwise just don’t download it! If you can’t heed the warning then I have no sympathy for those that have little knowledge and end up in a bad situation. If you don’t know what it is, or who it came from, your best bet is to just STAY away from it. This will help keep these Cybercriminals at bay, but we all know they will never completely disappear.
Sources: PCWorld