These 16 Android apps cause battery drain, excessive data consumption; Removed from Play store

0

Google has recently taken down a total of 16 apps from the Play Store. The apps were allegedly causing faster battery drain and excessive data consumption on users device. Security firm McAfee first identified these battery-draining apps, which were previously available to download on Android smartphones and tablets. According to the security firm report, these apps were reportedly performing ad fraud by opening web pages in the background to click on advertisements while masquerading as a real user.

These apps were installed in 20 million devices before they were removed from the Paly Store.

According to a report by Ars Technica, Google has removed 16 applications from the Play Store. The apps were previously listed as utility applications. As per the security firm, these apps allowed users to scan QR codes, turn on the device’s flash as a torch, or convert various measurements.

Here is the list of apps removed from Google Play Store.

Utility apps such as BusanBus, Joycode, Currency Converter, Instagram Profile Downloader, Flashlight+, K-Dictionary, High-Speed Camera, Smart Task Manager, Quick Note, EzDica, and Ez Notes have been removed from the Play Store.

McAfee reported that these utility apps downloads some adware code after they were opened. These codes helps the apps to open web pages without alerting the user by clicking on links and advertisements. This method is used to increase engagement on these ads artificially. This is called ad fraud.

The security firm found that the apps that were removed came with adware code called “com.liveposting” and “com.click.cas”. It has libraries that would allow them to click on links and advertisements without alerting the user.

These types of activities causes additional battery drain and increased network usage.

Google has removed these applications from the Play Store, and activated Play Protect blocks these apps on users’ devices. However, McAfee’s report that the apps would download additional code after the apps were installed, suggests that they managed to bypass Google’s protections on the Play Store.

Leave A Reply

Your email address will not be published.