The Ministry of Internal Affairs warned about the risks of downloading applications in unofficial stores

When downloading mobile apps from unofficial stores, you may encounter fraudulent schemes. This was announced on May 14 in the press service of the Department for the organization of combating the illegal use of information and communication technologies (UBK) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia.

According to the agency, 53% of Russians have downloaded apps at least once that are not from official sources, and 10% do nothing to secure their device.

"What malicious applications can you encounter if you use non-official stores? Phishing — disguised as legitimate applications, <...> passwords and payment data are being stolen," says the Telegram channel of the UBK of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation.

They noted that there are several other types of malware: Trojans with access to SMS and banking applications can sign up a person for paid services, spyware covertly records calls, tracks location and copies user correspondence, and backdoors allow hackers to remotely control the device.

The Office for Combating the Illegal Use of Information and Communication Technologies reminded that official stores, such as RuStore, Google Play and the App Store, are the only safe way to install applications.

Exclusion zone: half of the substitutes for mobile applications in the Russian Federation are unsafe

What vulnerabilities are we talking about and how they can harm users?

Marina Kholod, an employee of the Laboratory of Artificial Intelligence, Neurotechnology and Business Analytics at Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, said on April 23 that some mobile applications, disguised as useful utilities or banking interfaces, can imperceptibly debit money from the owner's account. According to her, such applications often use fake "OK" or "Continue" buttons, which redirect the gadget owner to sites offering paid services.