The sneaky ad scam that tore through 11 million phones is a particularly nefarious type of mobile malware that has been plaguing the mobile industry for several years. This scam works by using malicious code to hijack a user’s phone and display ads on their screen. The scammers make money when the user clicks on the ad or purchases the product being advertised. The scam was first discovered in 2018 when researchers at Check Point Software Technologies noticed an increase in the number of malicious applications being distributed across the Google Play Store. The malicious applications had been designed to display full-screen ads on users’ phones without their knowledge or consent. The scam spread quickly and affected more than 11 million phones by 2020. The scam was so effective that it managed to infect devices across multiple countries, including the United States, India, and the United Kingdom. The scam works by taking advantage of a feature in the Android operating system known as “AirPush”. AirPush allows developers to display ads on users’ phones without their permission. The scammers used this feature to display full-screen ads on users’ devices.
The ads were designed to look like normal apps and often contained links to malicious websites. The scammers were able to collect revenue from the ads by using affiliate networks. The scammers would then receive a commission for each person who clicked on the ad or purchased the product being advertised. The scam was so successful because the scammers were able to distribute the malicious applications across the Google Play Store without being detected. The scam was able to remain undetected for so long because the malicious applications used legitimate-looking names and icons. Fortunately, Google eventually removed the malicious applications from the Play Store. Google also took steps to prevent similar scams from occurring in the future. The sneaky ad scam that tore through 11 million phones is a reminder of the importance of security on mobile devices. Users should always be aware of any applications that are installed on their phones and should be cautious when clicking on ads or downloading applications from the Google Play Store.