Almost a million fake apps are targeting your phone
Fake apps dressed up to look like official ones but actually designed to steal user data are increasingly targeting Android phone users, according to a study by Trend Micro.
The company looked at the top 50 free apps in Google's Play Store and then searched Google's app store and others to see if fake versions existed. It found fake versions existed for 77 percent of the apps. The fake apps are often made to look like the real ones and have the same functions, but carry a dangerous extra payload.
"We've been tracking the activity of malicious or high-risk apps for nearly five years," said JD Sherry, vice president of technology and solutions at Trend Micro. "The potential for people to slip things past the gate and appear legitimate is much easier."
