Cybersecurity experts are unanimous, mobile apps are hackers’ preferred vector to exfiltrate valuable data from mobile devices. Yet, the flexibility they offer makes them irreplaceable for both work and personal usages. Today, companies cannot afford to forbid public apps usages to their collaborators, even in the most sensitive industries. However, it doesn’t mean they should turn a blind eye to app-related risks.
The largest online retailers in the world offer their products through mobile applications that are used by billions of customers. As a result, nowadays 82% of internet users shop online through their mobile device, according to a Statista report.
When a mobile application handles personal and financial data, it is required by data privacy laws, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Payment Service Directive 2 (PSD2), to embed security capabilities that’ll enforce privacy by design and prevent data breach.
The Pradeo Lab looked into Google Play’s 38 most downloaded shopping apps, shredding them with its app security testing tool. The results show they overly process personal data and handle them in a poorly secure manner.
Most online transactions require a two-step authentication, and the One-Time-Password (OTP) sent by SMS is often one of those two steps. The purpose of an OTP is to prevent fraud by confirming that the person making the transaction and the credit card owner are one and the same. To do so, a temporary code is automatically sent by SMS to the phone number associated with the bank account used.
Update: The app “Int App Lock” has now been deleted from Google Play and added to global antiviral databases.
Joker is a malware that silently exfiltrates data and subscribes users to unwanted premium subscription. In September, the malware was found in 24 apps on Google Play. Last week, Pradeo researchers identified another infected application still featured on Google Play. The app called Int App Lock, a tool intended to lock access to some data with a PIN code, was installed on 10,000+ devices. Users are advised to immediately delete it from their device.
After being awarded by Frost & Sullivan for best mobile security, Pradeo adds a new offer to its product line to address a strong mobile security need so far unanswered.