Dodgy Android mobile wallpaper app
p2pnet view Mobiles:- “Even good apps can be modified to turn bad after a lot of people download it [sic]. Users absolutely have to pay attention to what they download. And developers have to be responsible about the data that they collect and how they use it.”
So John Hering, CEO,and Kevin MaHaffey, CTO of mobile security firm Lookout, told the Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas.
Under discussion was the “questionable Android mobile wallpaper app that collects your personal data and sends it to a mysterious site in China”, and that’s been “downloaded millions of times”, says MobileBeat.
Says Google’s Android Market, “This is a showcase for some of the featured and top ranked applications and games available … ”
Then there’s the app from Jackeey Wallpaper, “uploaded to the Android Market, where users can download it and use it to decorate their phones that run the Google Android operating system”, says the post, noting it includes “branded wallpapers from My Little Pony and Star Wars, to name just a couple”.
“Update”, says the story, going on >>>
Lookout notes it does not capture browsing history and text messages. It collects your browsing history, text messages, your phone number, subscriber identification, and even your voicemail password, as long as it is programmed automatically into your phone. It sends the data to a web site, www.imnet.us. That site is evidently owned by someone in Shenzhen, China. The app has been downloaded anywhere from 1.1 million to 4.6 million times. The exact number isn’t known because the Android Market doesn’t offer precise data. The search through the data showed that Jackeey Wallpaper and another developer known as iceskysl@1sters! (which could possibly be the same developer, as they use similar code) were collecting personal data. The wallpaper app asks for permission to access your “phone calls,” but that isn’t necessarily a clear warning. While suspicious, Lookout says there isn’t evidence of malicious behavior.
Hering and MaHaffey found the questionable app as part of their App Genome Project, says MobileBeat.
… and identi.ca
MobileBeat – Android wallpaper app that takes your data was downloaded by millions, July 28, 2010
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