10 million Samsung users have installed a fraudulent update app: report

10 million Samsung users have installed a fraudulent update app: report [update]

Don't download Updates for Samsung

Approximately 10-1000000 Samsung device owners have installed a fraudulent app called 'Updates for Samsung,' according to a report by the CSIS Security Group.

The app'due south developer, Updato, markets the app to Samsung owners as a i-stop store for all their firmware needs. That is software that Samsung offers to its customers for complimentary every bit function of their device purchase.

Not only does the app include a pregnant number of ads, information technology offers a $35 annual subscription that promises customers access to all the firmware ever released for their item device. Moreover, instead of using the Play Store'south secure subscription API, Updates for Samsung asks individuals to add their credit card information straight within the app, which, information technology goes without saying, is non a safe exercise.

If all of the above weren't bad plenty, the app offers a gratis tier — and I utilize the term 'free' very loosely here — that allows i to download all the firmware updates the app offers at snail-like 56Kbps.

In short, Updates for Samsung is a scam, and however the app has a four-star rating across approximately 86,000 reviews.

At the time of writing, the app is still available to download via the Play Shop. Its continued presence there raises questions related to how Google could allow such an plainly fraudulent app onto its digital marketplace. On the flip side, its popularity speaks to only how passionate people are virtually their smartphones.

Update eight/07/18: Google has removed Updates for Samsung from the Play Shop. In a statement issued to The Verge, the search giant said it suspended the app for violating its policies. Google did not land the specific policy which Updato, the app's developer, violated.

Source: CSIS Security Group Via: Side by side Web