Companies Selling Android Phones Infected With Malware, 38 Devices Affected

Smartphone security is now an incredibly serious matter in the tech industry, largely due to how deeply the devices have been integrated into the lives of its users. Everything from business to banking, to retail, are now conducted through mobile devices, with Android units being the most numerous. So when news broke out that up to 38 types of smartphones are infected with malware since production, it’s understandably a cause for concern.

According to the discovery made by Check Point, a cyber-security firm, two companies are selling numerous devices that come with malware pre-installed. In the blog post that the security firm made about the matter, Check Point noted how unique this case is since phones are usually infected post production.

“According to the findings, the malware were already present on the devices even before the users received them,” the blog post reads. “The malicious apps were not part of the official ROM supplied by the vendor, and were added somewhere along the supply chain.”

There aren’t any specifics about the companies that are selling these infected devices, but the devices themselves were listed. Check Point has already identified the malware that has been infected the devices as well.

Some of the devices include the Galaxy Note 2, LG G4, Xiaomi Mi 4i, and the Oppo N3. As for the malware, the most common are programs that steal information or install adware on the devices, but a ransomware has been found as well.

As Gizmodo points out, not all of the mentioned devices in the market are infected with malware. Only some of them are. However, it is worth noting that the owners of the infected devices might not know that their phones are carrying the malware. By putting the information out there, users can at least check their devices to see if they are carrying the infected programs.